For 125 Years Advanced Practical Nurses have been safely providing anesthesia care to more than 22 million surgical, obstetrical, and trauma patients each year in the United States. Nurse Anesthetists administer every type of anesthesia, work in every type of practice setting and provide care for all types of operation or procedure. They are used in collaboration with Surgeons, Anesthesiologists, Dentists, Podiatrists, and any other qualified health professional. A high degree of autonomy and professional respect is given to Nurse Anesthetist’s because of the their advanced education and practice level. There are 36,000 Nurse Anesthetists in the United States as of 2010, with 45 percent of these being male compared to the 8 percent of male in nursing as a whole. CRNA’s are the sole providers of anesthesia in two-thirds of all rural hospitals in the United States enabling facilities to offer obstetrical, surgical and trauma stabilizing services.
The working condition for CRNA’s is very good because they can work at just about any medical facility. Traditional hospital surgical suites are the most common place because of the high number of surgeries involving CRNA assistance takes place. Dentist offices, Podiatrists and even Plastic Surgeons also use these nurses to safely monitor and put their patients under. The least common are pain management specialists, military hospitals, Public Health Services and Veteran affairs but still need a Nurse with advanced training for their patients. There are many options on where to work depending on what you are interested in which also makes the job exciting knowing you have all these good options. Nurse Anesthetists carry a heavy load of responsibility and are compensated accordingly.
In order to get your Nurse Anesthetist degree you must finish a twenty-six month accredited Nurse Anesthesia program. To be accepted into this program you must be a licensed Registered Nurse with your Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) or another appropriate Bachelor’s degree. On top of this, one year of experience in an acute care setting or Intensive Care Unit (ICU). CRNA programs which lead to Master’s degree, take two to three years and include clinical training in University-based or large community hospitals. Once Schooling and training is finished, Nurse Anesthetists must pass the National Certification Exam before practicing begins. Forty hours of continued training is also required every two years to keep up with advancements.
Nurse Anesthetist’s salary varies depending on experience, where you work, how much you work, private or public practices or higher position is achieved. According to Iseek.com the starting salary for a CRNA is about $110,000 with an average salary of $160,000. Pay increases for Nurse Anesthetists practicing in specific areas and with more experience your pay could reach the higher end of the spectrum at $200,000 plus. Temporary CRNA’s who fill in at health practices get an hourly wage of $95.00 to $105.00 an hour depending on the area and practice which adds up to $3,800 to $4,200 in a forty hour week which adds up to about $212,800 to $235,200 a year but it is harder to find steady work for forty hours a week all year. With experience, Nurse Anesthetists can advance to higher pay and supervisory positions. They may also join private surgical practices.
Major employers of CRNA’s are anesthesiologist’s offices, Federal State and local government agencies and hospitals. Demand depends on trend for hospitals to have complete anesthesia teams including Physicians, Nurses and other staff. Advances in technology, the growing number of old people and increases in hospital and day surgical care also can fluctuate employment opportunities along with government regulations and changes in health care funding. Employment is expected to grow the most in hospitals and medical offices where patients go for short-stay surgeries.
Along with all the education and