Diane Miller, a Master of Health Science in anesthesia and a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), is the chief executive officer of PeDIA LLC, which she launched in 2015. Shaped by her own negative childhood experience with anesthesia via mask induction, she became the inventor of the PeDIA after a calming nurse anesthetist soothed her to sleep for her wisdom tooth removal procedure. With her perspective on anesthesia transformed, she was moved to improve the experience for the 50% of children who experience anxiety during mask placement.
Ms. Miller notes that many children exhibit negative behaviors such as aggression, nightmares, and bed-wetting, which can persist for months. She is grateful for the opportunity to transform this often traumatic experience in many children’s lives into a time of lighthearted, relaxed play. The PeDIA device rewards children with a comforting sound as they breathe, and Ms. Miller proudly notes that it also rewards the parents, doctors, and hospital staff with pleasant smiles and a smooth induction of anesthesia.
In her current capacity as the CEO of PeDIA LLC, Ms. Miller oversees all aspects of the company’s operation, including design specifications, contract services, engineering, quality control, regulatory compliance, and marketing. She is proud of her contributions to improving patient care and remains committed to challenging outdated standards of care for pediatric induction. As a skilled manager and coordinator, Ms. Miller attributes her achievements to the exceptional nurse anesthetists and anesthesiologists in her field. To support burgeoning professionals and innovative disruptors, she established the Medical Inventors Group, through which she has met amazing and supportive friends.
Before she found her calling with PeDIA LLC, Ms. Miller worked with Diamond Anesthesia from 2017 to 2020 and spent nearly 20 years as an anesthesia provider with the Diamond Anesthesia Group. In 1995, she began her career as an anesthesia provider with Kaiser Permanente, after which she transitioned to Potomac Anesthesia. Ms. Miller is proud to hold a patent for her pediatric anesthesia device, which she was awarded in 2018. Active in her field in multiple ways, including creatively, she authored “Pediatric Anxiety during Mask Induction of Anesthesia” in CRNA Today in 2017, as well as “Anesthesia Alert: Take the Fear Out of Mask Induction for Kids” in Outpatient Surgery Magazine in 2016. Also, in 1994, she wrote a piece for the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology. For her professional achievements, Ms. Miller received an honorable mention for the Innovation Award from the American Nurses Association in 2024, won the Client of the Year Award from Score in 2023, captured the Swimming with Sharks Award from the American Society of Anesthesiologists and Physiologists in 2022, and received a writing award in 1994.
A CRNA for more than 25 years, Ms. Miller is a graduate of the University at Buffalo. In 1987, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, cum laude, after which she matriculated at the Medical University of South Carolina. She graduated with her Master of Health Science in anesthesia in 1994. Ms. Miller considers inventing the Pediatric Device for Induction of Anesthesia (PeDIA) to be her most notable achievement, as she developed the product without any investors to retain full control over its future. In the coming decade, Ms. Miller hopes to establish the PeDIA as the new standard of care for anesthesia in children, even adapting the original device for use with patients as young as 18 months old. The PeDIA has helped even adults with post-traumatic stress disorder and children with autism spectrum disorder.
In Ms. Miller’s vision, every child undergoing anesthesia will receive calming, pleasant, high-quality care and will leave the operating room with a smile. She maintains involvement in her field as a member of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology. In her spare time, Ms. Miller enjoys helping her husband with various building projects and spending time with her pets.