Anesthesia Didactic Instructor of the Year Award Presented to Courtney Brown

Rosemont, Ill. – The American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) presented Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) Courtney Brown, PhD, CRNA, CHSE, with the Didactic Instructor of the Year Award during its 2023 Annual Congress, August 18-22, in Seattle.

The Didactic Instructor of the Year Award was established in 1991 to recognize individuals who have made a significant contribution to the teaching of student registered nurse anesthetists in the classroom. The award recognizes the individual’s commitment to the profession of nurse anesthesiology and to the advancement of educational standards that further the art and science of anesthesiology and result in high-quality patient care.

“This award is an honor and a privilege,” Brown said. “I find so much joy in my interactions with students, presenting problem-based learning and enhanced simulations to optimize their orientation to the patient-care setting.”

Brown has been a full-time educator at the Wake Forest CRNA Program since 2008 and has served in many roles as an educator. As a didactic educator, she takes particular pride in incorporating nursing theory into her work as a professor and a clinician. Brown also created several doctoral-level (DNP) courses as the Wake Forest CRNA Program moved to a three-year curriculum. 

According to her students, Brown’s teaching style benefits every type of learner. She consistently goes above and beyond in everything she does, and during the COVID-19 pandemic she ensured her students had access to all of the resources they needed to be successful. One example of this dedication to her students was creating a mentorship program among the faculty and students, in which students were assigned a faculty member as an extra resource throughout the program.

With her passion for teaching and helping her students, Brown has also been a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion. She spearheaded a diversity scholarship to support CRNA students at the Wake Forest CRNA Program, which provides significant support to those students from diverse backgrounds.

Brown is a former board member and vice president of the North Carolina Association of Nurse Anesthetists, and she also currently serves on the AANA Professional Development Committee.

Brown received her PhD and master of science degree in nursing from University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She earned a certification in nurse anesthesia from Wake Forest University, Baptist Medical Center Nurse Anesthesia Program, and a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Winston-Salem State University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.