Nurse anesthetists is a job thats taking over the nursing field, and is currently the highest demanded job in nursing, and also the highest paying field in nursing. (Discover Nursing). My neighbor, specifically, was one of four anesthetists who were in charge of administering anesthesia for the hospital he worked at. He had told me that in rural hospitals, like the one he worked for, they stuck to employing nurse anesthetists, rather than an anesthesiologist, to save on money. I researched into this to see just how often they are used, and according to the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, "nurse anesthetists are the sole anesthesia providers in more than two-thirds of all rural hospitals in the United States, affording some 70 million rural Americans access to anesthesia." The cost saving is huge for these rural hospitals, as the average anesthesiologist makes around $271,057 per year, while average nurse anesthetists makes around $133,115 per year. Anesthetists have also been around longer than any other specialized field in nursing. In fact, it was established in the early 1800s, and was the first clinical nursing specialty. Today, there are more than 49,000 practicing anesthetists providing patient care to America's healthcare system.
What exactly is a nurse anesthetist?
They are called CRNA's for short, which stands for Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists. They work with anesthetics; the drugs that put you to sleep, for surgical, trauma, and obstetrical (child birth) reasonings. On my day on the job, I was able to see orthopedic surgeries, such as hip replacements, total knee replacements and shoulder surgeries. In each of those cases, my neighbor was the one who would put them to sleep and monitor them throughout the surgery. Another interesting case I was able to see was a woman who was 17 weeks pregnant and having her gallbladder removed. With this, they had to be extra careful with the amount of drugs they gave her, in order to keep the baby safe. A lot goes into a surgery, which is one thing I found out.
So why spend so much money on schooling to be an anesthesiologist, when you can be a nurse anesthetist and preform the same tasks?
For starters, one is a nurse and one is a medical doctor, so the amount of school required has a huge difference. A nurse anesthetist is required to complete around 6-7 years of schooling; four years to obtain a bachelors degree in nursing, two years in anesthesia school, and passing of a national certification exam. An anesthesiologist spends around 12 years in school; four years of undergraduate studies, four yearrs of medical school and four years of residency. A big difference is that not all nurse anesthetists can practice alone or in certain situations. Some states and medical associations require surgeons to use licensed medical doctors in certain cases.
What does it take?
This job is a highly important job. During my time in the operating room with my neighbor, he was required to chart heart rates every 5 minutes, monitor the patients response to the anesthesia, and assess each problem quickly and efficiently. Communication is a huge part of completing the job, to make sure that everyone has a clear idea of how the patient is doing while under their care. Thinking on your toes and response time to high stress situations is a vital quality to hold.
Overall...
My experience on this day showed me possibilities I didn't know existed. The importance of nurse anesthetists shows, as it is still a highly demanded job for hospitals and other medical services all over the country. To anyone is a nursing major and wanting to do more, it will never hurt to check it out. While it wasn't quite what I wanted, I was able to discover other fields of nursing in which I want to look further in to... (Stay tuned for future blog post!)
UPDATE: Here is a blog post of something that I have looked into doing that you may find interest in. Here is the link to becoming a nurse practitioner!
-Brooke B.
References:
"How to Become a Nurse Anesthetist." allNursingSchools. All Star Directories, 2015. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
"Nurse Anesthetist." Discover Nursing. Johnson & Johnson, 2015. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
Kokemuller, Neil. " Anesthetist Vs. Anesthesiologist." Chron. Hearsts Newspaper, 2015. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
URLS you may be interested at looking into:
http://www.allnursingschools.com/nursing-careers/article/become-nurse-anesthetist/
https://www.discovernursing.com/specialty/nurse-anesthetist#.VgDKQ7RH3-a
http://work.chron.com/anesthetist-vs-anesthesiologist-6475.html
Good job Brooke! Very proud of you. Being a nurse is a very rewarding career. Study hard, have fun.
ReplyDeleteThis was so interesting to me. My goal is to specialize in nurse anesthesiology so this post really caught my eye. It's very cool to kind of here what it's like from more of an inside view. It seems like a much more high pressure job than I thought it was, but it is good that it will keep me on my toes!
ReplyDeleteIt was an experience I'll never forget! If you want a job that keeps you thinking and always busy, this is the one for you.
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