BIO ENGAGEMENTS IN THE MEDIA
BIGGER DREAMS, BETTER TOMORROWS EVENTS AND PROGRAMS WELLNESS SUPPORT GROUP FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Health. Wealth. Advocacy.
 

What’s up?
I’m Dr. Flanagan.

I may have come from humble beginnings, but I’ve always had a lot of heart. With a supportive family that instilled a strong work ethic in me from an early age, I knew I could grow up to be whatever I wanted. I just had no idea what that would be.

I’ve always seen education and entrepreneurship as a gateway to achieving everything I ever imagined. Contrary to gender norms, I started my medical career in the nursing arena. Choosing the road less travelled opened up opportunities and experiences for me to gain financial independence while making people's lives better everyday.

I’m driven by the inspiration I can give to students, especially black men with less resources, who may need added encouragement and exposure to the speciality opportunities that exist beyond the bedside of nursing. The opportunity for younger generations to step in to relieve and support the growing needs of patients is here. Everything I do is for the advocacy and equity of people of color and the underrepresented. I hope to share my story and knowledge so that beyond the career success, people begin to build the habits that will lead them to generational wealth for decades to come. Knowledge is power and action via knowledge is lasting.

Not that it’s a big deal or anything, but here are my credentials: Columbia University Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP); Samford University Master of Science of Nursing, Anesthesia (MSN); Emory University Bachelor of Science of Nursing (BSN) 

 
 
 

Trusted anesthetist at hospitals all over the country.

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 My Journey.

Healthcare is one of the few industries that touches every person from coast to coast at some point in their lives. With the health disparities that plague communities of color, it’s important for us to encourage and develop caregivers that share cultural similarities and experiences to the patients they serve. My passion for diversity and equity in the nurse anesthesia field continues to drive me as I wrap up the first decade of my career in the profession. It’s an honor and a blessing to share the testimonies of my life as I work to inspire the next generation of medical professionals to Dream big.

 

What does it take to be an advanced practice provider? How is the field changing? Here's what they told me

Derek Schmack didn’t know what a certified registered nurse anesthetist was when he started nursing school. He had followed a cousin into nursing, mostly driven by a desire for a job that didn’t require sitting behind a desk all day.

But in his senior year, he met an older fraternity brother who invited him to shadow him in the operating room. And it would change his career trajectory.

“I really had no clue what was going on,” Schmack recalled, “but I knew I admired the way he cared for patients, and I was shocked by the amount of care and autonomy he had in taking care of patients.”

 

CRNA Founds the Dream Big Wellness Support Group Amidst COVID-19

The last two years have become the Era of Covid-19. My four months on the frontline, day after day, face-to-face with patients suffering from signs and symptoms of Covid-19 was the longest and most devastating and traumatic experience of my 20-year nursing career.

After spending 3,750+ hours working in the hospital in 2020, equivalent to an average of 72 hours per week, my mind and body collapsed upon itself, and I knew it was time for me to step away to focus on my own well-being. The patient load, coupled with the endless debates surrounding masks, vaccines, mandates, and science took its toll on me. I decided it was time to seclude away for some much-needed respite. In the midst of all the attention being given to healthcare workers and frontline workers, I still felt isolated, unseen, and unheard.

 

A Conversation on Mental Health and Wellness

The COVID-19 pandemic has driven stress and burnout among healthcare workers, some to crisis levels. The American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) cares about the well-being of CRNAs and SRNAs. AANA’s Wellness program offers a multitude of resources and educational opportunities, so that CRNAs and SRNAs can live a balanced personal and professional life.

AANA President Dina Velocci, DNP, CRNA, APRN, was recently joined by Donté Flanagan, DNP, CRNA, co-chair of AANA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, to discuss health and wellness. In 2020, Flanagan worked over 3,750 hours in a hospital – equivalent to an average of 72 hours per week. His patient load, coupled with the demands of COVID-19 and the changes in delivery of care, had taken its toll. He described the past two years as the most “devastating and traumatic experience” of his 20-year career in nurse anesthesiology.

 
 

Meet Donté Flanagan DNP, CRNA

Dr. Donté  Flanagan, DNP, CRNA and founder of the Bigger Dreams, Better Tomorrows foundation, says his career as a nurse anesthetist was an unplanned turn that helped him find a profession he loves.

In recognition of this week’s Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists Week (CRNA Week), Minority Nurse spoke with Flanagan about his career path and what it takes to succeed in this field.

Flanagan says his original plan included nursing school as a stepping stone to medical school. He wanted a secure career that gave him options as he moved toward that goal. But during his first year in nursing school, he heard about anesthesia as a nursing path and was intrigued. Once he saw it in action, he decided it was the choice for him.

 
 

Amplify Nursing: Season 3 Episode 06: Donte Flanagan

On our next episode of Amplify Nursing, we talk with Dr. Donte Flanagan. A nurse anesthetist, mentor, and author, Dr. Flanagan is a driven advocate for students of color and those underrepresented and looks to inspire and motivate them in all that he does. Through his foundation Bigger Dreams, Better Tomorrows, and in his new memoir, Dream Big, he shares his experiences with others. Today we talk with him about those dreams, his peripatetic path in the profession, and the importance of representation in healthcare.

 
 

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Independence, diversity, equity, and financial freedom drive Donte A. Flanagan. Born and raised in Chattanooga, TN, he has a doctorate in nursing practice from Columbia University and a master of science in nursing from Samford University. A founding member of the National Black Nurses Association of Greater New York City and the Council on Diversity and Inclusion in Healthcare, he is president-elect of Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing Alumni Association. Prior to the release of his highly anticipated memoir, Dream Big, Flanagan established the Bigger Dreams, Better Tomorrows Foundation. Its Dream Big Mentorship Program encompasses a three-tier format that equips RNs to become quality perspective nurse anesthesia candidates and sustains mentees through a monthly Dream Big Wellness Support Group. By way of his professional work, community involvement and public speaking, he aims to push the profession and culture forward to new heights.

 
 

Breathing Room

Donté Flanagan has one of the most difficult jobs on the front line of fighting COVID-19. As a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) based in hard-hit New Orleans, he’s been asked to cover emergency rooms and intensive care units to help in performing one critical task: Keep patients breathing.

 
 

Donté 04Ox06N and Ashlee Yates Flanagan are leaving an imprint on our Emory Nursing Learning Center by creating the Flanagan Solidarity

 
 

IN THE INNOVATION HUB, THERE ARE NO LIMITS TO IMAGINING WAYS TO IMPROVE PATIENT CARE

Margaret’s life isn’t easy. Now 72, the widow has lung, kidney, and heart problems related to diabetes. In recent months, she’s been admitted to the hospital five times. After she’s discharged, she resumes life as best she can, aided by her pregnant daughter, until her health worsens once again.

A small group of Emory nursing students have come to know Margaret. They’ve seen her in the doctor’s office, at the hospital, at home, and in her neighborhood — all without leaving the classroom. They entered her world after donning a virtual reality (VR) headset to test a program developed by Emory nursing professor Beth Ann Swan, PhD, RN, FAAN, and her team.