Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)

CRNAs work closely with many health care professionals to take care of a patient's anesthesia needs before, during and after surgery or during the delivery of a baby.

Essential duties of CRNA practice include the following:

• Performing a physical assessment of the patient
• Administering anesthesia during the course of surgery
• Overseeing the patient's recovery from anesthesia 

 Nurse anesthetists practice in a variety of settings, such as the following:

• Hospital operating rooms
• Ambulatory surgery centers
• Pain clinics
• Physicians' offices
• U.S. military

The job market for nurse anesthetists remains strong, as it does for all advanced practice nursing specialties. As the AANA describes, CRNAs provide affordable, high quality health care that can help hospitals, clinics and other facilities maintain health care costs. This makes CRNAs an attractive alternative to anesthesiologists who demand higher salaries and are not in as much supply.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nurse anesthetists will find the greatest job opportunities in underserved areas such as inner cities and rural regions of the country. Overall, registered nursing professions can anticipate a 22 percent increase in employment between now and 2018.

Registered nurses interested in advanced practice education might consider a nurse anesthetist career based on their professional goals, personal interests and individual talents. If you would thrive in rigorous surgical or emergency setting, serving as a primary care provider in delivering anesthesia and working closely with other health care practitioners as well as patients, a nurse anesthetist career might be right for you.

^{Sources:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010; American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA).}