How to Become a Nurse Anesthetist

Edited by Harri, Jmuddy95, Nicklepicklepie, Jason and 5 others

Nurse anesthetists perform a variety of duties including administering anesthesia, monitoring patients' vital signs, and overseeing patient recovery following surgery.[1] They may serve as assists to physicians, dentists, anesthesiologists, and other medical professionals. Read this article to learn how to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).

Steps

1.

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Graduate from high school or pass the General Education Development (GED) examination. This is the first step on the path to becoming a nurse anesthetist. Pay special attention to science courses like biology, physiology, and chemistry, as your performance in these types of courses early on will help you determine whether or not medicine is the right field for you.

Take the SATs, the required standardized test for college admissions, your junior year and apply to more than one school to increase your likelihood of acceptance.
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Get a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.[2][3] While particular programs differ, coursework generally includes physiology, nursing theory, and biology. [4]

Though registered nurses don't necessarily need a bachelor's degree, nurse anesthetists do because they must complete postgraduate education, and a bachelor's degree is a prerequisite for these programs.

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Become a registered nurse. You will need to take the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses and meet additional state requirements. [5] You must become a registered nurse in the state in which you plan on practicing.

Some states require that you complete a criminal background check and send your college transcripts in order to sign up for the national licensing exam.[6]

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Complete at least one year of acute care experience.[7] This includes working as a nurse in an ICU (Intensive Care Unit), ER (Emergency Room), or other acute care facility within a hospital.[8]

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Complete an accredited graduate program in nurse anesthesia.[9] These programs typically last between 2 to 3 years, and earn you a Master of Science in Nurse Anesthesia or other related Master of Science degree.[10][11] Nurse anesthetist programs combine classroom instruction and hands-on clinical experience, focusing on subjects like anatomy, chemistry, physiology, and pharmacology.[12] You will learn important skills like how to administer anesthesia for different types of surgeries.[13]

You will need to have a bachelor's degree, hold a nursing license, and show proof that you have completed one year of acute care in order to apply for a master's program in nurse anesthesia.[14]

6
Take the national certification examination for CRNAs.[15] This test is required in order to become a certified nurse anesthetist. Tests are administered several times a year, and there are a variety of programs designed to help you prepare for the exam.

You must have successfully completed a postgraduate program in nurse anesthesiology to be eligible for the national licensing exam.[16]

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Find work as a nurse anesthetist. Certified nurse anesthetists can work in either the private or public sector, and typically work in hospitals, surgery centers, physicians' offices, dental offices, plastic surgeons' offices, podiatrist offices, and clinics. [17][18]

Nurse anesthetists earn one of the highest salaries within the nursing profession, with a median income of six figures.[19] As populations continue to grow, there will continue to be an increased demand for nurse anesthetists and other medical professionals.

Nurse Anesthetist Salary

The average annual mediannurse anesthetist salary is $161,000. This is also an hourly pay rate of about $77. The range of salaries for the middle 50% of employed nurse anesthetists is between $150,000 and $173,000, which is also an hourly rate between $72 and $83. The lowest 10th percentile of nurse anesthetists should expect an hourly rate of $67 or less, adding up to at most $140,000. As can be seen, even nurse anesthetists making the least amount of money in their field will make a six figure salary. The top 10th percentile of working nurse anesthetists should see a comfortable salary of $185,000 or higher. This is equal to about $89 per hour. Many factors can determine the annual income of a nurse anesthetist. Normal factors such as experience and education play a major role, as they do in most other job fields. Region also is important. Metropolitan areas tend to offer a better pay grade since their standards of living are higher. It is a trade-off. Although, these factors are seen in many professions, not just the field of anesthesiology. The total compensation package after benefits for a nurse anesthetist is on average about $214,000. Paid benefits from an employer may include vacation time, health insurance, social security, and pension, to name a few.

Job Description of a Nurse Anesthetist

Nurse anesthetists are the primary providers of anesthesia. These professionals are registered nurses and advanced practice nurses that work specifically with anesthesiologists, surgeons, and other medical professionals. The nurse anesthetist will deliver the anesthesia for medical and surgical procedures. A nurse anesthetist will be providing care for the patient both before, during, and after a surgical procedure. Besides assessing the patient to know the proper levels of anesthesia, a nurse anesthetist will monitor the patient to ensure he or she is properly sedated during the procedure. After the procedure is complete, a nurse anesthetist will monitor the patient as he or she regains consciousness and assess any immediate needs. Nurse anesthetists can be found in a number of employment areas, including hospital operating rooms, critical and intensive care floors, labor and delivery rooms, outpatient centers, and various physicians offices (like dentists and plastic surgeons).

How to Become a Nurse Anesthetist

It will take approximately seven to eight years to fully complete the training needed to become a nurse anesthetist. First of all, an aspiring student must obtain a bachelors degree in nursing from an accredited college or university. This will take about half the training time (four years). Next, one must become licensed as a registered nurse. This occurs through a licensing exam that can be taken after the bachelors degree has been obtained. Clinical experience must then be completed. At least a year must be spent in an acute care setting. This means that the only way to become a nurse anesthetist is to first become a registered nurse and work for a year in such a position. This is used to gain experience as a nurse in general. After this, an accredited nurse anesthesiology program must be undertaken at a college or university. This program will last from two to three years, and it will prepare a nurse anesthetist for the proper administering of anesthesiology, a crucial component to the job description. Following graduation from this program, a certification exam in nurse anesthesiology must be passed in order to begin practicing.

Nurse Anesthetist Salaries in Other Countries (Canada, UK and Australia)

A nurse anesthetist working outside of the United States may see comfortable salaries nearly identical to those found in the U.S. For instance, Australia pays her nurse anesthetists an average salary of AU$180,000 per year. It is important to note that there are no nurse anesthetists in Canada. Only a licensed anesthesiologist can administer anesthesia in Canada. There are nurse anesthetists in the United Kingdom, and they receive an average nurse anesthetist salary higher than many other registered nurses in the U.K. The annual income of a nurse anesthetist will be on average about 73,000. This is equivalent to about $117,000 in America.

Verdict on Nurse Anesthetist Salary

Nurse anesthetists can make a very comfortable salary right from the beginning. These are some of the highest paid nurses in the medical field. However, that salary also comes from being some of the most experienced and educationally trained in the health care industry. It will take at least seven years to complete the training

required to become a nurse anesthetist, but the salary will be more than comfortable upon entering the work force.

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How to Become a Nurse Anesthetist What is a Nurse Anesthetist?

Nurse anesthetists are registered nurses that provide anesthesia and related care before and after surgical, therapeutic, diagnostic, and obstetrical procedures. They also provide pain management and emergency services. A nurse anesthetists is considered an advanced care nurse, and requires additional education and training beyond the initial RN education.

Find Schools

Nurse Anesthetist Job Description

As a nurse anesthetist, you may work with with surgical, medical or dental procedures. Duties may include: Assembling supplies and equipment Administering anesthetics, including intravenous, inhalational, epidural, and spinal Monitoring patient's reactions to anesthesia Monitoring patient's vital signs during and after anesthesia Taking appropriate actions based on patient's responses and vitals Creating postoperative reports Maintaining detailed records

Requirements for Becoming a Nurse Anesthetist

In order to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, you must:
1. 2. 3. Have a bachelor's degree in nursing Hold a Registered Nurse license Have a minimum of one year acute care experience (i.e. ICU or ER)

4. 5.

Graduate from a nurse anesthesia educational program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs Pass the certification examination administered by the Council on Certification of Nurse Anesthetists

Education Requirements
To become a nurse anesthetist, you must have a minimum of a bachelors degree in nursing. In addition, you must graduate from a nurse anesthesia program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs. You can search for accredited nurse anesthesia programs on the AANA website.

Certifications
To become a certified registered nurse anesthetist, you must take a certification examination through the National Association of Nurse Anesthetists.

Work Experience
You must have a minimum of one year acute care experience to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist. You can gain this experience by working in the intensive care unit (ICU) or emergency room (ER) as an RN. In addition to this experience, most nurse anesthetist jobs require a minimum of 3 years of experience as an RN, usually in acute care.

Nurse Anesthetist Salary

As a nurse anesthetist, you are considered an advanced care nurse and you may expect to make more than an RN. However, to give you an idea of how much money you'll make as a nurse anesthetist, we have to take a look at the bureau of labor statistics, who include nurse anesthetists with other registered nurses. According to the bureau, RNs made a median salary of $64,690 per year in 2010 with the top 10 percent earning more than $95,130. There's also a great conversation on how much nurse anesthetists make on all nurses.

Nurse Anesthetist Jobs

Employment of registered nurses is expected to grow 26 percent from 2010 to 2020. This will create over half a million jobs in nursing. According to the bureau of Labor Statistics, all four advanced practice registered nursesclinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, nurse-midwives, and nurse practitionerswill be in high demand, particularly in medically underserved areas such as inner cities and rural areas. Nursing job opportunities exist in hospitals, physicians' offices, outpatient care centers, and in-home healthcare and there are many websites that offer nursing job postings including monster.com, indeed.com and nursingjobs.org.

How Many Years Does it Take to Become a Nurse Anesthetist?

inShar e

2/25/2013

February 25, 2013 By HEALTHeCAREERS.com A certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) evaluates patients prior to administering anesthesia, administers anesthesia and follows up on patient recovery after anesthesia. CRNAs are found working in hospital settings, military settings and in private practices. It takes a minimum of seven to eight years to become a CRNA. Becoming a CRNA is a multi-step process. The qualifications for entrance into a CRNA program require that a person is licensed as a registered nurse and has acute careclinical experience.

BSN
The first requirement for admission into a CRNA program is a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing degree (BSN). A BSN takes an average four years to complete.

RN
Another requirement for admission into a CRNA program is a registered nurse license (RN). To obtain a RN license, a person must pass the RN examination. In order to qualify to sit for the RN exam, the person must have first earned a BSN.

Acute Care Nurse

CRNA programs require a person to have worked as a nurse in an acute care setting for a minimum of one year. Each CRNA program specifies what exactly qualifies as acute care nursing. Generally CRNA programs define acute care as working in a coronary care unit, anemergency room or in an intensive care unit.

CRNA School
Depending on the school, a nurse anesthetist program is two to three years long. CRNA programs teach through class work and through hands-on clinical opportunities.

Time Frame
In total, it takes six to seven year of college education to become a CRNA. In addition to education, a minimum of one year of acute care clinical experience working as a registered nurse is required before a person qualifies for entrance into a CRNA school program, which means it takes seven to eight years to become a CRNA. CRNAs are well paid. According to the Association of Nurse Anesthetists, the average salary for CRNAs in 2005 was $160,000 a year. Because of the high salary, gaining admission into a CRNA education program has become highly competitive. Registered nurses who desire to become CRNAs sometimes find that more than one year of acute care clinical experience is required to successfully gain entrance into a CRNA program, which means, it can take much more than eight years to become a CRNA. Read more nurse career tips and find more jobs by visiting the nurse career center.