October 3, 2023

Nursing is a family affair for Damien Boham, whose mom, sister and aunt are also nurses. After earning his Bachelor of Science in Nursing from East Stroudsburg University, Boham worked six years as an ICU nurse for Lehigh Valley Health Network.

While there, he met a number of CRNAs and became interested in pursuing the profession himself. He’s currently 17 months into Drexel University’s DNP-Nurse Anesthesia (DNP-NA) program and expects to graduate in June 2025.

Boham applied to a lot of Pennsylvania schools. “When I got the interview here, the professors blew me away talking about the program. I loved everything about it and just knew I wanted to come here,” he said.

He was impressed by the professors’ dedication to their jobs and that all were actively working. He also liked that most had experience on state boards, including the Pennsylvania Association of Nurse Anesthetists (PANA). “Not only are they practicing CRNAs, they’re doing everything they can to protect and advance the profession,” he said.

Drexel’s new Health Sciences Building, with its state-of-the-art simulation lab and brand new equipment, was an added enticement. “My cohort started in April 2022, the building opened in September, and we began using it in January,” he said.

Boham belongs to a diverse cohort with students from all over the country. He’s made close friends within the group who are now part of his core support system in both the clinical and academic settings.

He also considers his professors part of his support team. “In addition to being knowledgeable, the professors are dedicated to helping us succeed,” Boham said. “I feel like the professors are invested in us not just getting through the program, but becoming good CRNAs.”

In 2023, Boham became involved in political advocacy after being accepted as a student representative on PANA’s government relations committee.

“It’s been pretty cool to see what goes on in the background and all the work people put in on the legislative side,” he said. “We recently had an in-district lobby day and the board set up meetings for committee members to speak with their local government representatives.” Boham also keeps his cohort and professors up to date on pending bills related to their industry.

“My experience so far on the PANA board definitely increased my chances of being politically active for the profession beyond graduation,” he said.

Boham lives in Allentown, Pennsylvania, with his wife (a nurse practitioner) and three-year-old daughter. His current weekly schedule includes three days in the OR and two days in the classroom. A unique feature of Drexel’s program is that students have access to 26 clinical sites throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Lew Bennett, DNP, CRNA, who’s chaired the Nurse Anesthesia program since 2006, said he’s often stopped by colleagues at their clinical sites who point out how well prepared Drexel’s students are when they begin a rotation. He also hears from students after graduation who remark on how comfortable they felt during their orientation at new jobs because of their prior experience working in an OR by themselves.

That autonomy is one of the factors Boham finds most appealing about becoming a nurse anesthetist. He also enjoys caring for patients when they are most vulnerable.

“Patients only see me for a moment when I talk to them in pre-op. It’s not a long time to establish a relationship, but I try to have a smile on my face and let my patients know I’ll be with them the entire time, and they are going to be safe in my care. I tell them I’m going to take good care of them, keep them comfortable, and make sure it’s a good experience for them,” he said.

The Nurse Anesthesia Program at Drexel University was launched 50 years ago and has undergone much change since it began as a certificate program at Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1973. “In 1994, we moved to a master’s framework, and I think we were one of only five programs in the country at that level,” said Bennett.

The program’s history includes affiliations with Hahnemann University and Allegheny Health System, before becoming part of the College of Nursing and Health Professions formed by Drexel in 2000. “In 2022, we moved to the doctoral framework and our program went from 24 months to 39,” Bennett said.

Boham and his cohort will be among the first to graduate the program with a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree and eligible to take the national certification exam for Nurse Anesthetists.