After being rejected

What are your thoughts on the subject? Just curious.

That is an interesting question that I do not fully know the answer to. I can tell you what I have been hearing through the grape vine. A good portion of applicants are not meeting the criteria for entrance into CRNA school. A number of applicants will simply apply, and hope the admission committee is gracious, and accepts them. But of course, I see the other side of the coin where it is difficult to meet every single standard based on a wide range of career paths that diverse people undertake. But basically, if you have the critieria required, and you interview well, then it is up to the admissions committee to see if someone else has better criteria, and interviews better.

Do aspring CRNA's attempt to get in multiple times? They sure do, but you have to make this decision alone. Many individuals need the extra year to beef up their resumes, get some more experience, or retake that class they got a D in on an off semester. Are admissions committees accepting them on a second round? Sure they are. CRNA's who apply a second time often show that they want to do it the most by improving their educational knowledge and clinical backgorund.

What makes a nurse want to be a CRNA? This is definitely an interview question you will get if you decide to interview, so you better think up an answer. I think for most nurses, it's not just one thing that makes them want to be a CRNA. For me it was a combination of factors. There isn't one thing that made me want to do it. If it was just one thing, then I probably wouldn't have done it considering it's such a challenging and time consuming profession for education.

When comparing CRNA's to RN's I think alot of the seperation comes in at independence. An RN assesses a process and then calls for medical or surgical intervention. At which point someone else makes the decision. CRNA's are responsible for carrying out their own treatments.You decide how to treat this or that. Once you have identified the causation, it is now your turn to take care of it.

Some other traits that I have found present typically in CRNA's and not always as predominant in RN's are fascination with science and engineering gizmos. A need to understand why something works, not just that it does. From my experience, alot of CRNA's that I knew as RN's and future SRNA's all seem to have a little undercurrent of "civil disobedience". Questioning management, taking things to the boundaries, testing limits, etc..

And yes, I know CRNA's are RN's.

gettingthere,

I hold a BS in Computer Information Sciences. I'm currently employed as an application developer (programmer). I'm 41 years old and have recently been "provisionally" accepted to Drexel University's accelerated BSN program next Spring.

My wife, to whom I have been married for 12 years, is an RN (BSN). She's been in nursing for approximatley 18 years and has primarily relagated herself to the OR, but has also worked within the LTC setting as an ADON and MDS coordinator . Also, prior to working within the IT industry for the past 10 years, I was prior service (Army) and worked in the capacity as an operating room technician. My first exposure to Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) was in Korea (Seoul) at the 121st Evac Hosp.

To be sure, I consider myself somewhat familiar with the culture of nursing. From the moment that I encountered that first Army CRNA, who was a Major, I knew that should I go in the direction of nursing, it would be for the sole purpose of becoming a Nurse Anesthetist. Why? Because of the independent nature of the job and the challenge of undertaking and meeting such an awesome responsibility. However, upon leaving the military, I chose to follow the path of IT, as the industry was really booming and I did not want to be left behind in the 20th century.

Although a large percentage of male nurses find themselves in areas of nursing that are considered to hold more of a masculine appeal, such as ER, nursing anesthesia, flight nursing, this fact, initially, did not factor in on my affinity toward nursing anesthesia, at least not conciously. However, in terms of understanding the educatioanal requirements in becoming a CRNA, I was somewhat in the dark, until I decided to leave the IT industry and embark on my path toward becoming a Nurse Anesthetist, which started in November of 2002. Honestly, the events of September 11, 2001, in which just a few days prior I was working at the Pentagon, cemented my decision to make that move.

In the prereqs that I have had to amass, thus far, to gain entry into a nursing program, the areas of study that I have found to be the most exciting, and I mean I really enjoy the classes, are chemistry, math, and biochemistry. To be honest, whenenver I look at a nursing program's description of their core courses, I got to say that I am not too enthralled at the prospect of having to take these classes if the content does not, for the most part, seem to incorporate any of the three afore-mentioned areas of interest. I do get excited about pharmacology and I really like statistics, though. In fact, I've even considered the possibility of getting another undegrad degree in Chemistry. If I could not get into NA I would definitely consider biochem/tech as an alternative.

So, to echo what a previous poster had alluded, I think a sense of independence has a lot to with the mindset of persons wanting to become CRNAs, as well as an understanding and affinity toward the sciences -- math, chem, bio, physics. I also think that people pursuing nursing anesthesia want to be completely engrossed in a livelihood that challenges their their intellect, and skill, and whom welcome the opportunity to take on such an awesome responsibility, as that of which can potentially impair another's health and impact life or death.

(This is no way precludes the mindset of individuals in other areas of nurisng.)

I'm three weeks into this journey. More than one professor has told us "You are not nurses anymore." And this is a program that grants an MSN. It's okay with me. Upward and onward.

One other thing. You should look into the history of Nurses in anesthesia. You will find that the circumstances surrounding the evolutionary development of nurses in anesthesia is not the direct result of a cost/benefit philosophy, as applied in today's terms.

According to Lt. Col Thomas J. Evans, Air Force, nurses have been providing anesthesia as early as 1861 - 1865. Check out his Web site, as well as other CRNA links, under the sticky entitled: Anesthesia websites.

Excellent point. For a complete description of the evolution of nurse anesthesia, read the book "Watchful Care" by Bankert.

Even if you are not usually a history buff, you will find the information very enlightening and helpful in understanding the current anesthesia environment.

loisane crna

Thanks for the info.