Lois Stewart, the founding director of South College’s nurse anesthesia program, has been inducted as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (FAANA).

The honor for Stewart, who is now the director of the new Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Nurse Anesthesia program at South College, came at the recent Annual Congress of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) in Chicago. The national organization represents nearly 59,000 of the country’s Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) and student nurse anesthetists. Stewart is a member of the Tennessee Association of Nurse Anesthetists (TANA).

A registered nurse for 35 years and CRNA for 18 years, Stewart was part of the second class of FAANAs, a select group of anesthesia professionals who are recognized as accomplished leaders and outstanding practitioners, educators, researchers, and advocates for the profession.

“It means that in my own small way I have succeeded at contributing to a fantastic profession that has given me so very much fulfillment and opportunity,” Stewart said. “And in a very meaningful way, it indicates that my years of effort to honor the example of my mentors and role models have borne fruit and been recognized.” 

Stewart now works with the South College inaugural cohort of 40 nurse anesthesia residents for a three-year program that consists of distance education along with intermittent and mandatory on-campus intensive sessions in Knoxville.

“We commend Lois on this distinctive and well-earned honor as a national fellow,” South College Chancellor Steve South said. “She is an excellent example of the superb quality of our faculty and staff and a role model for all students in the Nurse Anesthesia program at South College. Her longtime efforts in the classroom and real world experience allow Lois to prepare our students for the next step in their nursing careers.”

Stewart also provides anesthesia care to patients in outpatient, office, and ambulatory surgery facilities for Priority Anesthesia, PLLC, an independent-practice CRNA staffing company serving the Knoxville area.

She earned a Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) in 1987 at Radford University in Radford, Virginia; a Master of Science in Nurse Anesthesia (MSNA) in 2004 from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond; and a PhD in Nurse Anesthesia in 2017 from VCU.