Certified registered nurse anesthetists or CRNAs are among the most advanced registered nurses today. Because of this qualification, this makes them one of the highest paid nurses too. It will be great for you to pursue this kind of career if you are willing to do the get additional education and extra training.
There are so many things to like about being a certified registered nurse anesthetist. For one, the money is very good. You can even earn more than a primary care physician. Second, the employment outlook for CRNAs is excellent. Lastly, hospitals believe that hiring CRNAs are more cost-effective which results to more demand for certified registered nurse anesthetists compared to anesthesiologists.
Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist Overview
From a job title itself, you can deduce that this type of nurse can administer anesthesia. With the extra training, a registered nurse can take the place of an anesthesiologist during a surgical procedure. The certified registered nurse anesthetist can administer anesthesia while doing pre-surgery and post-surgery care for the patient as well. CRNAs often work in a team with the head anesthesiologist leading the pack. However, with the skills of the CRNA, there is more possibility of completing surgeries with less anesthesiologist in the team.
The work of a certified registered nurse anesthetist will depend on the state regulations. There are states that allow CRNAs to work independently while some states require that CRNAs should be supervised by an anesthesiologist. Today, certified registered nurse anesthetists are believed to be more cost-effective in hospitals. As a result, a CRNA today benefits from job stability, high demands for services and great pay.
Becoming A Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist
To become a certified registered nurse anesthetist, you must first become a registered nurse. You must complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from an accredited nursing school or program. This undergraduate degree will take 4 years. The bachelor’s degree will be a combination of classroom instruction and supervised clinical work. Once you earn your degree, you must take the National Certification Licensing Exam for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). If you pass this, you will earn the title of Registered Nurse.
Now that you are a registered nurse, it is time to go back to school and earn a master’s degree. This is the educational requirement to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. A typical master’s degree program will take 2-3 years. It is also a combination of classroom lecture and clinical work. The focus of the degree program will be on anatomy, pharmacology, chemistry and physiology. Hands-on techniques will be taught to students. These techniques include administering anesthesia in different kinds of surgical and obstetric procedures.
When looking for nurse anesthesia master’s program to enroll in, only look for that which is accredited by The Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs. This is the only accrediting body for nurse anesthesia degree programs. You can go to their website to look for the list of nurse anesthesia educational programs that are already accredited. They update the list every year.
Moreover, to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist, you must complete a year of work experience in an acute care setting which means that you have to work in the critical care unit or emergency room of a hospital. You will also need additional training working in a big hospital. A certified registered nurse anesthetist who is in training should complete 1,800 clinical work hours and is able to administer 800 anesthetics at clinical programs in the US.
If you have completed these requirements, you will be eligible to take the national certification exam to gain the title of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. To be able to retain the certification, you must complete 40 hours of continuing education within 2 years.
The Career Of A Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist
A certified registered nurse anesthetist’s main duty is to deliver or administer anesthesia to a patient during a medical or surgical procedure. He or she works closely with the head anesthesiologist, surgeon and physician of the patient. The certified registered nurse anesthetist takes care of the patient before, during and after the surgery. The CRNA has to do patient assessment, prepare the anesthesia, prepare the patient, ensure proper sedation, administering anesthesia, pain management, overseeing patient recovery and assisting patient with post-operative needs.
A certified registered nurse anesthetist works where anesthesiologists work. These work environments include hospital operating rooms, critical or intensive care units, plastic surgeon clinics, labor and delivery rooms, dentist’s clinics, outpatient centers, ophthalmologist clinic, podiatrists and pain management clinics. CRNAs can also work for government and military medical facilities.
Certified registered nurse anesthetists can choose to work in both the public and private sector. Some CRNAs do extra work on the side by having personal contracts with other physicians. CRNAs have the legal right to practice in corporate or institutional and can work in a group or independently.
The career outlook for certified registered nurse anesthetists is very strong like that of practice nursing specialties. CRNAs are able to offer affordable yet high quality patient care to different healthcare facilities. This makes them great alternatives for anesthesiologists that demand higher salaries. Also, there is a shortage of anesthesiologists in the US too. The expected employment growth for CRNAs is 26% until the year 2020. Certified registered nurse anesthetists deliver 65% of administered anesthesia to patients in the US and there are 30,000 CRNAs practicing in the healthcare industry today. More than half of them are men.
With the growing demand for certified registered nurse anesthetists in the US, they are rewarded with high salaries. As mentioned, CRNAs are among the highest paid nurses in the healthcare industry today. The median annual wage for CRNAs is $160,000. You may notice that a certified registered nurse anesthetist can earn more than a family physician.
Being a certified registered nurse anesthetist has great responsibilities so do not mistake it for an easy career. Still, this is one of most sought after nursing specialties today. How about you, are you ready to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist?
Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist: Would You Want To Become One? is a post from: AcceleratedNursingGuide.com
