CRNA.Receives.Award

October 2010

Colusa Regional Medical Center, Caring for Our Community

CRNA, Gayle Ulshafer, Receives Prestigious Award

The California Association of Nurse Anesthetists presented the Sophie Winton Award to Gayle Ulshafer CRNA, MSN at the annual Meeting in Pasadena on October 9, 2010. This award is in recognition for outstanding dedication to the practice of nurse anesthesia and is named in honor of Sophie Winton a pioneer in independent CRNA practice.

Sophie J. Winton, CRNA, was a pioneer in nurse anesthesia, having practiced for more than 50 years. During World War I, she served as a nurse anesthetist in the American Expeditionary Forces in France, receiving numerous military honors.

“In 1933 she lent her financial support in a test case in California that was to have far reaching effects on the practice of nurse anesthetists—the case of Dagmar Nelson vs. Chalmers-Frances. Mrs. Winton established a dental outpatient clinic in California and was later awarded honors by the Mexican Dental Society in conjunction with the International Dental Association for her advancement in the delivery of dental anesthesia. At the request of a group of plastic surgeons seeking quality anesthesia, she opened an outpatient plastic surgery clinic, numbering among her patients the likes of Judy Garland, Tyrone Power, Ronald Coleman, and Deanna Durbin. Mrs. Winton was the epitome of the independent practitioner who forged new ground for the nurse anesthetist.”

Colusa Regional Medical Center is an equal opportunity employer and provider.