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Mission Statement

To provide perioperative nursing expertise to our colleagues for thepurposes of education, networking, and developing business and leadershipskills.  Thus promoting and maintaining the passion and commitment toexcellence exemplified by the RN first Assistant.

Tyler,Texas                                                    Indialantic, Florida

TheCreation of RNFA Ventures

Milha and Rita formed RNFA Ventures in order to share their knowledge and experience with other RNFA’s.     They had both benefited from the networking and sharing of more experienced RNFA’s when they began their careers as self-employed RN First Assistants, and saw this as an opportunity to facilitate networking and sharing of information between the novice and experienced RNFA.  

Milha graduated fromHermann Hospital School of Nursing in Houston, Texas with a diploma in Nursing.    She worked a few years in labor and delivery and then took a ten yearsabbatical to start a family.

In 1981, she began hercareer as a perioperative nurse.     

The role of the RNFA attracted her as a way to stay in the clinical arena and expand her knowledge and skills.   After completing Dr. Jane Rothrock’s course for the RNFA in 1991, she began to explore the role of the self employed RNFA.    This required learning many business skills that serve her well in today’s constantly changing and challenging health care arena.  

Milha sat the RNFA certification exam in 1994, and was an active participant in Texas ’ enactment of reimbursement legislation in 2001.   She also supports the RNFA PAC which continues to explore avenues for reimbursement for the RNFA at the federal level.    (Medicare)  

Having been an activemember of AORN since 1981, she has attended congress almost every year, servingas a delegate or alternate for 15 years.    She has been President of 2 local chapters, and served on the board invarious capacities at the local level for the past 20 years.

In 1994, she was awarded AORN’s award for “Outstanding Achievement in Perioperative Clinical Nursing Practice” which was presented at AORN Congress in New Orleans that year.     This was truly one of the highlights of her career.

She has been active in theRNFA Specialty Assembly as a committee member and chair, and as a governingcouncil member for 7 years.     Milhaalso maintains membership in ANA , TNA, and TCORN.

Rita has been in peri-operative nursing since graduatingfrom a diploma-nursing program in 1975.   She   received her BS in Health Arts, and her MS inHealthcare Services Administration from St. Francis University , Joliet , IL .    

Rita sat for the RNFA certification exam in 1993.   Florida passed state reimbursement legislation in April 1994, which prompted her toopen First Assistants, Inc. in August of that same year.   Owning her corporation has been extremely rewarding and educational.   Marketing, contracting, accounting, collaborating, and politics are dailyexperiences that she utilizes to negotiate the constantly changing andchallenging health care arena.