A Nurse Ahead of His Time
Arthur Botnik and the Class of 1961.
Arthur Botnik has always been something of a maverick.
As the School of Nursing's first male student,
he earned a B.S.N. from the University of
Miami in 1961, then went on to earn a graduate degree in
anesthesia from the University of Alabama. A Certified
Registered Nurse Anesthetist for more than 30 years, he
established one of the first anesthesia practices devoted to
outpatient office surgery in 1977.Today he and his wife, Sybil,
operate a medical supply company.
A native of Alliance, Ohio, Botnik first experienced
nursing as an Air Force medic during the Korean War. "I was
stationed near the DMZ and became a medic initially to
avoid guard duty," admits Botnik. "At that time, medics operated
with a tremendous degree of independence, and the
doctors took great care in helping us to handle the challenges
that came our way."
Returning stateside, Botnik looked into nursing programs
with an eye toward becoming a nurse anesthetist. "I
discovered my passion for nursing in the military," he says.
"From the time I began my training, my goal was to go into
anesthesia. It was the only place in nursing for us to achieve
any independence of practice." Says Botnik,"Hardly a day
went by that someone didn't try to discourage me, saying
that C.R.N.A.s were doomed to extinction. Here we are
37 years later with a serious shortage and demand for nurse
anesthetists."
Botnik recalls that it was difficult to be a man in the
female-dominated nursing world. He says the University of
Miami not only welcomed him, but encouraged him to
continue his nursing education. "I will be eternally grateful
to the University of Miami for giving me the opportunity
to study nursing when a male nurse was
viewed as a creature from another planet,"
says Botnik. "I am very proud of the
progress and leadership of the
school."
