Anyone find CRNA School EASIER than made out to be?

[SlyFoxRN]

Hey everyone,

I consider myself to have above average intelligence and did fairly well in college (a top 20 private university). Last year, I decided medical school wasn't for me due mainly to the expense (4 years medical school than 3-5 years residency at a very low salary = loan buildup!). I was going to have to pay for any schooling past undergrad on my own, so I decided I could still go into the medical field, but with a cheaper route - an advanced practice nurse. When I was going to medical school, I planned to either be a surgeon, dermatologist, psychiatrist, or anesthesiologist. I have interest in all 4 fields and would be happy in any of them. As an advanced nurse, I can be a dermatology certified NP, a mental health NP, or a CRNA - making it possible to still follow the paths of my 3 favorite specialities. I've been finding out what I can about all three, and when I look up CRNA information I always see the same thing: That CRNA education is a nightmare-ish experience. That it requires 10+ hours of studying per day, etc.

So did anyone find it a bit easier than it was made out to be? I'm not saying easy...just easier than people let on. For example, I went to an accelerated BSN program and all I ever heard was how hard it is from current students. One guy who spoke to us during orientation (a last semester student) said "Get used to B's...B's are awsome. You're never going to see another A again." It terrified me. Yet here I am at the end of the first semester and I've made straight A's with very little studying (2-3 hours before an exam total). So I wonder if anyone can give me some insight into what to expect really if I choose this route. Did anyone go to school and realize it wasn't nearly as difficult as people made it out to be...perhaps 1-2 hours of studying per day (with extra before exams) as opposed to this 10+ I keep hearing??

[SlyFoxRN, BSN, RN]

Quitting med school and being a nurse sounds like a really good idea.

Sometimes I wonder if people even read the posts before they comment...?

[mnurse13]

Hi,

I always did well in school, graduated w/ honors, did great on the GRE without really trying, etc. Everyone told me that CRNA was sooo hard. I thought, "OK, I can do hard." I am finishing my first year and I alternate between wishing I would flunk out so that I never have to go back to clinical to just minor depression. I have nearly all A's, I get good clinical feedback. It is just exhausting. Clinicals are harder than didatic. You are constantly being quized, like someone else said. You have a patient who is paralyzed and anestitized and dependent on you, because the surgeon sure does not give a crap about hemodynamics as long as the patient is still and not bleeding (because, oh yes, that is your fault). You get blamed for everything, I could go on. Like the previous post, one preceptor tells you to ALWAYS do it this way, then the next day, you get what is WRONG with you, NEVER do it that way. I am too far into debt to quit now, I only pray that when I graduate I find a job w/ decent cohorts.

I am also 33 and have a family. Although my younger class mates are varying on clinical depression w/ me, I think the course load is a little easier to bear for them.

I wonder all the time why I did not choose to do advance practice dermatology. Working at a med spa doing laser abrasion sounds pretty sweet right now.

(And I should be studying for pharm right now, but I don't even care any more, so I spend 20 minutes typing this out for you)

So in summary - CRNA class work is fine. I'm getting A's. Clinical is a whole different story!

[canchaser, BSN, RN]

Hi,

I always did well in school, graduated w/ honors, did great on the GRE without really trying, etc. Everyone told me that CRNA was sooo hard. I thought, "OK, I can do hard." I am finishing my first year and I alternate between wishing I would flunk out so that I never have to go back to clinical to just minor depression. I have nearly all A's, I get good clinical feedback. It is just exhausting. Clinicals are harder than didatic. You are constantly being quized, like someone else said. You have a patient who is paralyzed and anestitized and dependent on you, because the surgeon sure does not give a crap about hemodynamics as long as the patient is still and not bleeding (because, oh yes, that is your fault). You get blamed for everything, I could go on. Like the previous post, one preceptor tells you to ALWAYS do it this way, then the next day, you get what is WRONG with you, NEVER do it that way. I am too far into debt to quit now, I only pray that when I graduate I find a job w/ decent cohorts.

I am also 33 and have a family. Although my younger class mates are varying on clinical depression w/ me, I think the course load is a little easier to bear for them.

I wonder all the time why I did not choose to do advance practice dermatology. Working at a med spa doing laser abrasion sounds pretty sweet right now.

(And I should be studying for pharm right now, but I don't even care any more, so I spend 20 minutes typing this out for you)

So in summary - CRNA class work is fine. I'm getting A's. Clinical is a whole different story!

I hope there is a job for you at the end. I hear florida is saturated. The St louis area is saturated, they have three schools pumping students out annually. Good luck I just couldn't stand the treatment in the OR. Im going to FNP to open my own spa/ clinic with the HRSA governmental loan. LOTS of debt here too but I told hubby I would rather work 7 days a week and be appreciated than go back into that arena.

[wtbcrna, MSN, DNP, CRNA]

There is light at the end of the tunnel for SRNAs and jobs! You may have to move to get a decent job, but there are still plenty of jobs to be had. A lot of CRNAs actually have one full time job and one or more part-time jobs.

You will have good days and bad days in the OR, good preceptors, bad preceptors (preceptors you just want to murder and save the entire student population the grief of dealing with them), and preceptors that have forgotten how to how to work themselves since they constantly have students with them.

You will wonder why you ever did this one day and then the next day you will walk by ICU and see the nurses cleaning up the GI bleed patient while working with a mask on because it stinks so bad. Then all the reasons you went to anesthesia will come back to you and you will be happy again for at least 30 minutes or so.

Some unsolicited advice:

1. The OR can be cold.... No, real news flash there. Wear a scrub jacket, thermals under your scrubs, buy disposable hand warmers to stick in scrub pockets, become friends with Desflurane vaporizer (it can always use a lot of hands on attention during long cold cases), if your patient is doing fine/temp is okay poke a small hole in the upper body bare hugger where it blows right towards you, pace and do your charting at the same time.

2. Preceptors opinions are like buttholes. We all have one. Is what the preceptor telling you actually going to make a difference in patient care? Is the way you do it safe for the patient? Best advise I ever got: Keep doing it as you always do it until stopped. Most preceptors will let you do it your way if you are confident, smooth, and don't take forever doing it. This will take some time.

3. Take time for yourself once a week. Goto the movies with your spouse friends etc. Your brain can only process so much at one time you will do better by taking short breaks and then going back study.

4. All good things come to an end, and then you can have anesthesia students of your own that you can tape the eyes every direction. My personal favorite thing to do with brand new students is to have them tape one eye one way and the other a different way, and then tell them it is because of the different angle of the eyes that this is necessary. After said eyes are taped each way then you can proceed to bust up laughing thus relieving all the pent up tension that you know the new student has.

5. Be safe but have fun in the OR. You will sometimes actually miss your time as student when you become a CRNA. You will then immediately wonder if you need a psych evaluation, but you will miss it none the less.

[mnurse13]

canchaser - that sounds so nice, I hope your med/spa is a success!

wtbcrna - the advice was wonderful, thank you! I am still laughing about the tape. It is so true! I cannot wait to try it on a jr trainee! Can I come train w/ you???

IceGuy - you seem to want to know what kind of effort you need to put into school to be successful. Here is my typical day:

4:30 - wake -up (I live 45min from my hospital, sucks)

5:45 - in the OR, prepping my room

6:30-6:45 - in pre-op, evaluating my patient

7:15 - whenever the cases are done, usually around 1700-1730 - in the OR.

Drive home - listen to lecture that I recorded, try not to drive off the road (jk)

1800 - eat dinner, kiss my family

1900 - 2200 - study

2200 - bed

This is every day, I take Friday nights off for family time. I study 12-14 hours/day on Sat and Sun.

[loveanesthesia]

wtbcrna has great insite to share. It is common for a SRNA to sail through nursing school without breaking a sweat. Anesthesia school is different, the volume of information is huge and the clinical hours can get exhausting. Still the best thing I ever did, but I remember days just telling myself to concentrate on getting through the next 24 hours.

[MoLee228]

I know a lot of people have NOT addressed your original question, so I'll ignore all the other random comments that were tempting to respond to and answer your question.

My answer is: YES. I do find anesthesia school to be easier than it was made out to be. Now granted, I am not done yet...but from what upperclassmen in my program have said, I've already passed the hardest part.

I have always been strong academically, so I wasn't worried about classes. I will admit that I am studying longer and harder than I ever did before (I also completed an accelerated BSN), but it's nothing crazy. Certainly not 10+ hours a day! I still never miss Keeping Up With the Kardashians or The Bachelor, so clearly I've got some spare time lol. I also got my first B (GASP!) first semester, but whatever lol...I am doing fine in class and I'm not really breaking a sweat over it. I am a procrastinator and always have been, so I have a tendency not to study every night but to put in a solid 2 days and an early morning cram session before exams. I have also skipped class, shame on me! But my point is: it's not that bad.

As far as clinical goes, I also believe it is easier than I had expected. I expected constant torture from the CRNAs and the MDs...this is not the case at least at my clinical site. The vast majority of both CRNAs and MDs want to see the SRNAs learn and succeed. I had a surgeon patiently wait, scrubbed in, watching my put in my first central line. I thanked him for his patience when I was finished, and he told me I did a good job! Now, granted, I've also been shoved out of the way by cranky anesthesiologists who want the tube taped "just so" and in under 3 seconds after intubation, lol. But overall, I feel like the abuse level is way lower than people make it out to be, and I have been so impressed by the people who have gone out of their way to facilitate my learning. The hardest part about clinical is adjusting to long days. I do get up at 4:15 and in the OR by 5:30-5:45, and may not leave until 5-7. Some days we get lucky and our CRNA is done at 3, and sometimes they tell us to leave, too. But even 5:30-3:00 is a long day in the OR!

OK I'm rambling a little now, but my general message is not to let anyone scare you or deter you if you think CRNA is the route you want to take. I am SO happy I am doing it, I love being in the OR, and I can't imagine going back to ICU nursing now. You should probably know that I am married with a small dog and no children, so my husband pays the bills and helps pick up responsibilities like grocery shopping and feeding the dog (lol), and we have very few other responsibilities. I have classmates with 3+ kids who live an hour from school, and I can't imagine how they do it! Another thing to consider is that every program is different. A front loaded program will be different than an integrated one, and the location and culture of the clinical sites are very important. Do your research and go to the school that is right for you!

Good luck!

[MoLee228]

Some unsolicited advice:

1. The OR can be cold.... No, real news flash there. Wear a scrub jacket, thermals under your scrubs, buy disposable hand warmers to stick in scrub pockets, become friends with Desflurane vaporizer (it can always use a lot of hands on attention during long cold cases), if your patient is doing fine/temp is okay poke a small hole in the upper body bare hugger where it blows right towards you, pace and do your charting at the same time.

2. Preceptors opinions are like buttholes. We all have one. Is what the preceptor telling you actually going to make a difference in patient care? Is the way you do it safe for the patient? Best advise I ever got: Keep doing it as you always do it until stopped. Most preceptors will let you do it your way if you are confident, smooth, and don't take forever doing it. This will take some time.

3. Take time for yourself once a week. Goto the movies with your spouse friends etc. Your brain can only process so much at one time you will do better by taking short breaks and then going back study.

4. All good things come to an end, and then you can have anesthesia students of your own that you can tape the eyes every direction. My personal favorite thing to do with brand new students is to have them tape one eye one way and the other a different way, and then tell them it is because of the different angle of the eyes that this is necessary. After said eyes are taped each way then you can proceed to bust up laughing thus relieving all the pent up tension that you know the new student has.

5. Be safe but have fun in the OR. You will sometimes actually miss your time as student when you become a CRNA. You will then immediately wonder if you need a psych evaluation, but you will miss it none the less.

This is some of the BEST advice I have gotten lol! I especially like poking a hole in the bair hugger! I found myself practically hugging the bair hugger tube the other day in an ortho case lol! I also like that you try to laugh with students. We are an uptight bunch, and a little laugh can go a long way. You sound like a great preceptor! I am lucky to have lots of great ones at my clinical site, too. :)

[Spoiled1, MSN, RN]

Just curious, what program are you attending?

[MoLee228]

Just curious, what program are you attending?

Case Western Reserve :)

I know what you're thinking...oh her program must just be really easy...believe me, it's not. It's just not as bad as I expected it to be after all the horror stories and 12h+ days of studying week in, week out that people have reported on here. It is hard. But it's totally do-able.

[beardedhalo]

I just completed my nurse anesthesia program in December and passed boards a few weeks ago. It was a very demanding 2 1/2 years of hard work and dedication. We are taught from the same textbooks as medical students and anesthesia residents. Hence, CRNAs can do everything MDAs can more cost-effectively and this is starting to reflect in my region of hospitals and anesthesia management corporations eliminating more MDAs and hiring more CRNAs. Furthermore, CRNAs can work independently without medical supervision if they desire.

[Spoiled1, MSN, RN]

Actually I was thinking your program sounds awesome! Sounds a like a place I need to be applying! :)

Case Western Reserve :)

I know what you're thinking...oh her program must just be really easy...believe me, it's not. It's just not as bad as I expected it to be after all the horror stories and 12h+ days of studying week in, week out that people have reported on here. It is hard. But it's totally do-able.