Nurse Anesthetists Career

nurse-anesthetists-500The primary duties of a nurse anesthetist are to administer anesthesia to patients undergoing certain medical procedures and monitor their vital signs and recovery from anesthesia. They also perform screening such as patient interviews, physical evaluation and documentation of results.

Nurse anesthetists work in various settings in the health care industry. They typically assist anesthesiologists, physicians or surgeons, or dentists.

Nurse Anesthetists Career Snapshot

Nurse anesthetists typically work full time in either a clinic, hospital, physician’s or dental office, or school setting. Those who are employed in clinics or schools usually work during regular business hours, but those who work in hospitals may expect to be on call or work night, weekend or holiday shifts.

Further details on a career as a nurse anesthetist are listed below (statistics from the May 2015 Bureau of Labor Statistics and Onet Online):

$157,140

is the average yearly salary for nurse anesthetists.

19%

increase in employment between 2014 and 2024.

77%

have a Master’s degree while 6% have a Professional degree.

Nurse Anesthetists Education

A nurse anesthetist must hold at least a master’s degree in their area of specialty. They need at least one year of clinical experience, typically as a registered nurse in an acute or critical care setting, before they can be admitted to an accredited program for nurse anesthetists. Most states require nurse anesthetists to be certified by the National Board of Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists.

Nurse Anesthetists Job Outlook

The demand for nurse anesthetists is expected to steadily grow at a rate of around 19 percent until the mid 2020s. This excellent outlook is due to an increasing demand for health care services from newly-insured patients as a result of federal legislation, a growing aging population and an increasing participation in preventive care.

Nurse Anesthetists Salaries

In May of 2015, the median annual salary for nurse anesthetists was $157,140 according to the BLS.gov. The bottom 10 percent earned just over $71,500, and the upper 10 percent made over $171,000.

If you choose the career of a nurse anesthetist, you can expect to earn more working in a hospital setting than in a school.

Nurse Anesthetists Job Duties

The nurse anesthetist’s primary responsibility is to provide anesthesia to the patient before, during and after a medical procedure. Prior to the procedure, they must discuss with the patient any allergies or illnesses the patient has or medication the patient is currently taking. This is to ensure that administering the anesthesia will be safe for the patient. Whether the nurse anesthetist provides local, regional or general anesthesia, they must remain with the patient throughout the entire procedure, observe vital signs and make necessary adjustments to the dosage of anesthesia.

Nurse Anesthetists Skills & Traits

Nurse Anesthetist Skill Set:Required Abilities:Tools Used by Nurse Anesthetists:Typical Work Activities:
• Critical Thinking
• Reading Comprehension
• Active Learning
• Active Listening
• Monitoring
• Problem Sensitivity
• Oral Comprehension
• Deductive Reasoning
• Inductive Reasoning
• Information Ordering
• Anesthesia inhalers
• Cardiac output CO monitoring units
• Electronic stethoscopes
• Endotracheal or tracheotomy sets
• Epidural anesthesia kit or tray
• Caring for others
• Problem solving
• Recording information
• Getting information
• Using relevant knowledge

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