Mason McDowell, CRNA, MSNA
Area of Expertise: Anesthesia
Area of Research Interest: Anesthesia
School of Nursing
Assistant Professor, Nurse Anesthesia Program
Phone: 828-670-8810 x244
Email: mcmcdowell@email.wcu.edu
Office Location: Enka Campus, Haynes Building 616
Mason McDowell is the Assistant Director of the Western Carolina University (WCU) Nurse Anesthesia Program, in Candler, North Carolina. He has been on faculty as an Assistant Professor at WCU since 2008 and served as the university’s clinical education coordinator prior to accepting his current academic appointment. Previously, Professor McDowell served as a clinical preceptor at Mission Hospitals in Asheville, NC and the Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, NC. In these roles he assisted in the clinical education of graduate anesthesia students from Duke University and the UNC Charlotte Graduate Nurse Anesthesia Program.
Professor McDowell is currently enrolled as a full-time doctoral student at Texas Wesleyan University, Forth Worth, TX. His area of research focus is perioperative patient management; specifically studying cardiac risk assessment and evaluation of coronary revascularization vs. medical management of patients with cardiac disease undergoing non-cardiac surgery.
In 2000, Professor McDowell received his MSNA from Virginia Commonwealth University/Medical College of Virginia. Prior to completing his graduate studies, he received his BSN from the University of Florida and subsequently served four years as an RN in the United States Navy. His active duty assignments provided him with varied experiences in Newport Rhode Island, San Diego California, and Portsmouth, Virginia.
Professional memberships include the Society for Perioperative Assessment and Quality Improvement (SPAQI), International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS), Sigma Theta Tau (Eta Psi), North Carolina Association of Nurse Anesthetists (NCANA), and the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists. Professor McDowell’s service activities include the Admission Committee for WCU’s Nurse Anesthesia Program, WCU Graduate Curriculum Committee, WCU SON Research Day Planning Committee, NCANA Education and Research Committee, & NCANA Peer Assistance and Wellness Committee.
Scholarly accomplishments over the past several years include being twice awarded a $15,000 scholarship for doctoral studies; invitations to lecture at several NCANA District Meetings and the NCANA Annual State Meeting; and poster presentations (state and national) as a member of student’s research/project committee. Most recently Professor McDowell was invited to be a contributing author to the 5th edition of the textbook, Nurse Anesthesia (Hepatobiliary and Gastrointestinal Disorders and Anesthesia). Professor McDowell lives in Asheville, NC, is married and the father of two daughters. In his spare time, he enjoys bicycling, practicing piano and gardening. He also maintains his clinical anesthesia practice at Mission Hospitals in Asheville, North Carolina.