Peer Assistance FAQs

The AANA has offered support for substance use disorder (SUD) for members since 1983. This support includes:  

• AANA Helpline (800-654-5167) for 24/7 live confidential individualized help on alcohol and drug related issues. This may include well-being as it pertains to risk for SUD, concerns about unhealthy use of alcohol or other drugs, or suspicion of drug diversion. 
• Commitment to address the occupational risk for SUD through education to mitigate and recognize the need for help early in the disease process.  
• Formulation of guidelines, workplace resources, and policy considerations for treatment specific to anesthesia professionals, long-term recovery, reporting, and re-entry to the workplace. 

AANA Helpline 800-654-5167 provides a live, confidential response for CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs with support, information, and helpful resources for issues related to alcohol or drugs.

No, AANA Peer Assistance is not a professional treatment or counseling program. Peer Assistance is peer to peer education and resources.  
 
Through the partnership between the AANA and Parkdale Center for Professionals in November 2021, Parkdale responds to all AANA Helpline calls with ready access to addiction treatment professionals.  

Yes, support is confidential. Information provided by anyone contacting the AANA Helpline will be shared only with the caller’s knowledge and for the purpose of facilitating support. Anonymous demographic data is collected for reporting purposes only. Please note that all AANA staff and volunteers are required to comply fully with all applicable state laws regarding mandated reporting. 

Yes. The AANA Helpline 800-654-5167 provides a live, confidential response with support, information, and helpful resources for colleagues or family members of CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs. Also see Substance Abuse Disorder

Yes. The AANA Helpline 800-654-5167 provides information and helpful resources for supervisors, educators, or program administrators. Also see Fitness for Duty Workplace Resources.

Learn about the signs and behaviors of Substance Abuse Disorder.

PAP members are subject matter experts on the topic of SUD among anesthesia professionals. Their work includes providing education, advocacy, and resources for CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists, RRNAs and the public on issues regarding practitioner well-being as it pertains to the occupational risk for SUD.  
 
They lead the AANA peer support network of State Peer Advisors (SPAs). Meet the Peer Assistance Panel. 

SPAs expand educational outreach, build awareness, and participate at the state and local levels.  
 
SPAs are listed in the AANA Peer Assistance Resource Directory. 

In October 2018, the AANA and Parkdale Solutions, LLC, entered into a partnership to enhance the services offered to CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs who suffer from SUD or who have colleagues, friends, or coworkers who may be at risk for diverting drugs or shows signs of impairment due to drugs/alcohol. The PAP and SPAs play an important role in this partnership. 

Parkdale Solutions, LLC, is the sister company of Parkdale Center for Professionals, which is a dual diagnosis treatment center for professionals in the early stages of recovery.   

The partnership with Parkdale Solutions LLC was established in October 2018 and improved in November 2021 with these primary goals: 

• A 24-hour live answer AANA Helpline, staffed by addiction professionals, to improve access to help for SUD. 
• Reduction in variability in the support received. 
• Improved access to care by a validated treatment provider meeting the needs of anesthesia professionals, their employers, and families. 
• A formalized collaboration with AANA on education, treatment, aftercare, and reentry considerations specific to CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs. 

Parkdale Solutions LLC, a sister company to Parkdale Center for Professionals, was developed to assist professionals, organizations, hospitals, regulatory agencies, and licensing boards in developing evidenced-based solutions to the SUD crisis throughout the country. As both a CRNA/nurse anesthesiologist and an addiction professional, Rodrigo (Rigo) Garcia, APN, MBA, MSN, ACIT, has primary responsibility for the live answer AANA Helpline. 

In the years prior to the partnership being formed, Rigo worked with the AANA to create the Parkdale Center for Professionals addiction treatment program following AANA recommendations specific to CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs. Rigo has helped PAP and the SPAs on critical peer support calls, speaking with affected CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists, colleagues, employers and loved ones to bring CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists from hazardous and vulnerable situations to safe, swift admittance to an addiction treatment program. Rigo and partner Claudia Garcia, MBA, BSN, RN, CADAC II, LAC, have presented at AANA SPA Workshops and the Annual Congress, as well as across the country, advocating for appropriate workplace polices for prevention and safe management of situations related to SUD and drug diversion. 

Parkdale Center for Professionals responds to AANA Helpline calls and when the need for SUD treatment is determined, they can facilitate entry into Parkdale or another treatment program with demonstrated experience in the treatment of anesthesia professionals.   

No, AANA Peer Assistance and the AANA Helpline (800-654-5167) is a member service for CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists, RRNAs, and their families as well as colleagues, supervisors, and educators.

Return to work is looked at on an individual basis. Anesthetists in Recovery (AIR) provides support for anesthesia professionals in maintaining sobriety. See Fitness for Duty Workplace Resources.

Contact the National Board of Certification & Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA) for any questions related to recertification: 855-285-4658. 
 
In the event of a lapse of four or more years, see Fitness for Duty Workplace Resources.

There are no fees for assistance. AANA Peer Assistance is funded by the AANA to support the well-being of CRNAs/nurse anesthesiologists and RRNAs.  

The AANA Peer Assistance Program doesn’t provide legal support. Please contact an attorney—ideally one familiar with nursing regulations in your state—for any legal questions.