Should I Worry About Future of CRNAs?

Specialties CRNA

Published

So I've been reading about a few things that worry me:

1. Oversaturation of CRNAs.

2. MDAs pushing back against them.

3. Insurance reimbursement going down for anesthesia.

4. The push for AAs over CRNAs.

Taken together, this things make me worry about pursing the career. I don't want to spend all of the time and money required to become a CRNA only to find that I can't find a job due to oversaturation + AAs, and I don't want to find that due to insurance, etc, that I will be paid at a level too low for someone with that amount of education.

I'm not going into this for the money, I have an interest in anesthesia because my family suffers from an anesthesia related condition (Malignant Hyperthermia). I want to do this so badly, but I don't want by the time I get out of school as a CRNA (4-5 years from now) that the field has changed so much that we have no autonomy, low pay, long hours, no competitive advantage due to high numbers available, etc. It's the same thing that happened to the RN profession in recent years - and now pay is lower, no sign on bonuses, no one can find jobs, etc. Should I consider a new career path?

Specializes in critcal care, CRNA.
This is a lot of advice on this thread about CRNAs' future, but how many that actually posted are CRNAs besides myself?

Just opinions but the OP started a discussion and never stated that they only wanted to hear from CRNAs. I'm not a politician but am I still allowed to argue politics? Thank you for your positive comments that added to the conversation.

It's a speculative thread. I'm happy to hear posts from CRNAs and non-CRNAs.

Specializes in Anesthesia.
Just opinions but the OP started a discussion and never stated that they only wanted to hear from CRNAs. I'm not a politician but am I still allowed to argue politics? Thank you for your positive comments that added to the conversation.

Maybe I'm wrong, but posting questions about CRNAs under the CRNA forum would seem to lead most people to believe that you are asking a question of someone in the CRNA community.

Specializes in Anesthesia.

Here is an interesting link for anyone that thinks these political/legal fights with physicians vs. CRNAs is a new thing. http://www.aana.com/brieflookhistory.aspx. These legal bouts have been ongoing before most of our grandparents were even alive. The ASA and the AMA are still using the same basic argument they did back then.

Specializes in critcal care, CRNA.
Maybe I'm wrong, but posting questions about CRNAs under the CRNA forum would seem to lead most people to believe that you are asking a question of someone in the CRNA community.

Well apparently the OP has stated to the contrary. I would post a lot of questions here because this has the most active posts and would probably receive the most variety of thoughts. Not saying what you said was wrong in any way, but this is an open forum and your statement seemed a little arrogant. I value all opinions and took this as an open discussion. I am not a CRNA but I do had a vested interest in the subject as a SRNA. That being said, you probably do have a better perspective of the outlook for CRNAs but that doesn't mean everyone is wrong.

Maybe I'm wrong, but posting questions about CRNAs under the CRNA forum would seem to lead most people to believe that you are asking a question of someone in the CRNA community.

Oh, I definitely posted it here so current CRNAs would answer! :D

...however that doesn't mean non-CRNAs shouldn't comment. So, let's move on to something productive before this becomes some sort of pointless argument.

nope yu shouldnt

I would recommend reading into MH triggers prior to working to hard at becoming a CRNA. Hint volatile gases used for the vast majority of cases is one. Seeing that MH runs in the family (genetically linked) either I would avoid those gases, carry Dantrolene with a note on how to use it strapped to your chest, or spend thousands of dollars on a muscle biopsy to access whether or not you have one of the detectable known mutations leading to MH (many are undiscovered and don't have a screening test)....just my thoughts

RN boom is comparable to housing because back in 2000s (from late 1990s to mid 2000) so called RN shortage was crazy to say the least--hospitals were recruiting RNs from the Philippines, Colombia, India, etc. ; Giving them Green cards, bringing them here with signing bonuses (up to $20K), paid accomodations, etc. Mt Sinai Hospital here in Miami is a case in point. They built an apartment type complex to house their nurses during the boom times. Today, it sits there empty together with a hospital they purchased.

As far as gaswork tabulations is concerned, the earliest period I got was May 12, 2010 (when I started gathering the data) and it still showed 663. Given a month or so, the gap of -26.3% is still too big to account for seasonality.

Another thing to consider is that when everyone thinks CRNA is a lucrative thing to enter and everyone does it--just like when everyone thinks that buying a home is a foolproof investment and I was hearing people saying, "Home prices only go up." --that was time to beware and get out.

My Point is you should go for the profession you're passionate at so that even with a hit to your income, you wont regret doing it.

Just my .02

Specializes in Anesthesia.
Well apparently the OP has stated to the contrary. I would post a lot of questions here because this has the most active posts and would probably receive the most variety of thoughts. Not saying what you said was wrong in any way, but this is an open forum and your statement seemed a little arrogant. I value all opinions and took this as an open discussion. I am not a CRNA but I do had a vested interest in the subject as a SRNA. That being said, you probably do have a better perspective of the outlook for CRNAs but that doesn't mean everyone is wrong.

What I should have stated is who is a CRNA or SRNA on this thread. Being an SRNA depending on where you are in your didactic training often gives you better access to what is going on with the local job market and anesthesia politics than some of us CRNAs that don't work in the academic setting.

Was my statement arrogant? Maybe, but I really don't enjoy seeing people post on my career field that for the most part don't have any real knowledge on the subject.

Specializes in critcal care, CRNA.
Here is an interesting link for anyone that thinks these political/legal fights with physicians vs. CRNAs is a new thing. http://www.aana.com/brieflookhistory.aspx. These legal bouts have been ongoing before most of our grandparents were even alive. The ASA and the AMA are still using the same basic argument they did back then.

The amazing thing to me is how nasty some of the physician sites get. There is one that treats our educational programs like crap and tells people to pretty much demand a doctor over a CRNA. I know the opt out is a big deal and really agitated the AMA.

Specializes in critcal care, CRNA.
What I should have stated is who is a CRNA or SRNA on this thread. Being an SRNA depending on where you are in your didactic training often gives you better access to what is going on with the local job market and anesthesia politics than some of us CRNAs that don't work in the academic setting.

Was my statement arrogant? Maybe, but I really don't enjoy seeing people post on my career field that for the most part don't have any real knowledge on the subject.

Fair enough. And I did say that you probably had the better perspective. I understand what you are saying. Like we see a highschool student or someone in a different career field giving advice about nursing or becoming a CRNA.

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