Barking up the wrong tree?

MHaffer · Mar 13, 2009

I am not a CRNA or even an SRNA (yet) but it has been my dream to become one long before nursing school, since when I worked as a surgical assistant for an oral surgeon and I got to see the work that CRNA's do. So I don't have first-hand advice to give, but I have perused these boards and picked the brain of every CRNA I come into contact with so I think I can help answer your questions.

While money and scheduling should definitely not be your only motivation, any CRNA would by lying if they said it didn't impact their decision to go into the field. However, I think those who use it as their main reason for entering a CRNA program are the same ones who drop out after first semester. I think the rule of thumb should be: would you want to do the job of a CRNA if you made the same $$ as an RN? For me, the answer to this is YES. I just find anesthesia to be fascinating and I would rather do that than just about anything, regardless of what I made. The $$ will be a welcome perk of the job, though! And really, CRNA's deserve it with the responsibility and stress of the job, not to mention the tens-dare I say hundreds-of thousands of dollars they probably accumulate in student loans.

Another thing to consider: do you work in critical care now? If so, do you like it? If you thrive off of the really acute cases then you probably will like being a CRNA. If you hate ICU, you might hate being a CRNA.

As for your question about seeing your kids during school, look at one of the several posts about "a day in the life" of a CRNA. There are quite a few parents who have posted their daily schedule and how much family time they get. The impression I get is that something's got to give: it doesn't have to be your kids, but maybe your sleep, haha!? Good luck to you!

Jo Dirt · Mar 13, 2009

You sound JUST LIKE me! I used to fantasize about being a stay-at-home-mom and spending time with my children and having a garden and raising chickens and taking fun trips...but my husband is sorry and I have to make the living. I don't want to settle. I heard you basically have no life outside of school and sleep and family is basically forgotten for the time you are in school but what else will we do? As the breadwinner for our families all we can expect are hard times as a mere RN. I've got four kids and $50-60k a year just isn't going to cut it. Just to have the basics and keep from having too much month at the end of the money we're going to have to do better. We don't drive expensive cars or have a fancy house, either.

alterego33 · Mar 13, 2009

You will not like this answer, but I am being honest with you.

It is unlikely that you will get accepted into any anesthesia program in this country. Money motivation is a turn off to admissions committees and they are skilled at picking up your reasons in a second.

Getting admitted into anesthesia school is incredibly competitive and you have to shine above the other applicants in order to be considered. In your post, you did not talk about anything but money and time commitment which makes me think that you have no idea what being a CRNA is all about.

Sorry.

perkizme · Mar 13, 2009

do not go into it just because you want to make more money- there are other ways to increase one's salary in nursing (do some research).. IMO this field needs people who are hard-core dedicated to the work and development of the advanced nsg practice of anesthesia not just their wallets

Jo Dirt · Mar 14, 2009

I would imagine only the most arrogant jerk would go into an interview and talk about or even bring up money.

On the other hand, I can't believe admissions people would think everyone is going into anesthesia for the sheer love of it with no consideration of the money they will make.

For that matter, it doesn't appear to me that CRNAs live the uptown lifestyle as some people probably think. One of my BSN instructors for my elective is a teaching assistant and CRNA. If her salary was all that I don't know why she would be doing this.

I have heard only the best an brightest are ICU nurses as well. This has to be a joke because we had an ICU nurse come to the nursing home and she couldn't catch on to working in the nursing home. She would leave the 3pm-11pm shift at 2am in tears because she couldn't manage her time.

This is not to minimize the hard work and dedication that it obviously takes to become a CRNA, I just don't think it necessarily leads to the Promised Land as some people seem to think.

But then, what do I know...

Home Health Columnist / Guide · Mar 14, 2009

crna programs revolve around textbook reading/prep work for classroom and clinical's, break for meals then hitting books again upon returning home with 4-6hrs sleep..... our members tell it best: a day in the life of a srna

Jo Dirt · Mar 14, 2009

crna programs revolve around textbook reading/prep work for classroom and clinical's, break for meals then hitting books again upon returning home with 4-6hrs sleep..... our members tell it best: a day in the life of a srna

yes, i'm very familiar with that thread. it was espexially touching to read about the mother who decided her children were more important than na school yet was trapped. i guess that is a part of the human condition and we will always yearn for the road we didn't take.

bucknangler · Mar 15, 2009

You will not like this answer, but I am being honest with you.
It is unlikely that you will get accepted into any anesthesia program in this country. Money motivation is a turn off to admissions committees and they are skilled at picking up your reasons in a second.
Getting admitted into anesthesia school is incredibly competitive and you have to shine above the other applicants in order to be considered. In your post, you did not talk about anything but money and time commitment which makes me think that you have no idea what being a CRNA is all about.
Sorry.

You will not like this answer, but I will be honest with you....your answer is dumb...no offense. How can you base that he will not get into anesthesia school based on a paragraph? A paragraph where he is not talking about his grades, experience, or skills; but rather, asking a general question about feeling guilty about pursuing and obtaining monetary goals? So what if he talks about money? He has a family to raise and kids to put through college. Money drives our economy, our hospitals, and our world. So give him a break. He is blessed to be a nurse and more importantly, a nurse with the oportunity to become a CRNA to better his life and his family's life. Secondly, pursuing CRNA for the money is not a big deal. The average salary for a CRNA in this country is $165,000, which is more than the average lawyer, dentist, and general physician. AND count in some OT, on call pay.... you will have the opportunity to make easily make over $200K. So why do you see that as a problem? Because I see that as a blessing!

alterego33 · Mar 15, 2009

You will not like this answer, but I will be honest with you....your answer is dumb...no offense. How can you base that he will not get into anesthesia school based on a paragraph? A paragraph where he is not talking about his grades, experience, or skills; but rather, asking a general question about feeling guilty about pursuing and obtaining monetary goals? So what if he talks about money? He has a family to raise and kids to put through college. Money drives our economy, our hospitals, and our world. So give him a break. He is blessed to be a nurse and more importantly, a nurse with the oportunity to become a CRNA to better his life and his family's life. Secondly, pursuing CRNA for the money is not a big deal. The average salary for a CRNA in this country is $165,000, which is more than the average lawyer, dentist, and general physician. AND count in some OT, on call pay.... you will have the opportunity to make easily make over $200K. So why do you see that as a problem? Because I see that as a blessing!

If you want an argument you came to the right place. You can say and think all you want about the big paychecks CRNAs make, but I can tell you, that won't fly in an interview for anesthesia school. I am a CRNA, have a nice income and love my work. I understand the value of administering anesthesia and think my income is appropriate to that value.

I just won't agree with you that pursing a CRNA career for the money is not a big deal. Let me ask you this, would this field be as attractive if money were not a consideration? What so many of you don't understand is that to make the big bucks you may have to work in a geographical undesirable place in the country, work long hours (24/7, year round), give anesthesia to very high risk and trauma cases, alone in the middle of the night or in a plastic surgery office all alone when the equipment fails.

No one loves this profession more than I do and part of my love for it is to make sure everyone who considers it is realistic about the rigors of the education, the political constraints that are constant, and the difficult situations who will encounter on a daily basis in the OR. There are days when I would do this wonderful job without pay and days that they can't pay me enough.

One last thing that is also not going to popular. Health care economics is changing rapidly and just maybe, those high salaries will be a thing of the past.

AE

Jo Dirt · Mar 15, 2009

You will not like this answer, but I will be honest with you....your answer is dumb...no offense. How can you base that he will not get into anesthesia school based on a paragraph? A paragraph where he is not talking about his grades, experience, or skills; but rather, asking a general question about feeling guilty about pursuing and obtaining monetary goals? So what if he talks about money? He has a family to raise and kids to put through college. Money drives our economy, our hospitals, and our world. So give him a break. He is blessed to be a nurse and more importantly, a nurse with the oportunity to become a CRNA to better his life and his family's life. Secondly, pursuing CRNA for the money is not a big deal. The average salary for a CRNA in this country is $165,000, which is more than the average lawyer, dentist, and general physician. AND count in some OT, on call pay.... you will have the opportunity to make easily make over $200K. So why do you see that as a problem? Because I see that as a blessing!

WOW!!!

You had the guts to say what I'm sure I would have been edited out for saying.

But every word you said was right on. This is what I'm talking about when I say some people want to perpetuate this idea that being a CRNA can only be achieved by the very few and the brave, like it's some magical road and you can't get in the gates without the special key...who said it wasn't hard? Who said everyone has what it takes to do it? I think this is part of what is wrong with the nursing profession, seldom is heard an encouraging word and the skies are cloudy all day. Instead of building each other up some people feel the need to say I'm part of a special club and you can never be in it.

The OP should not feel like he/she should have any explaining to do AT ALL.

nurselizk · Mar 15, 2009

How can you base that he will not get into anesthesia school based on a paragraph? A paragraph where he is not talking about his grades, experience, or skills; but rather, asking a general question about feeling guilty about pursuing and obtaining monetary goals?

Admission committees have a well-honed ability to detect those who are motivated primarily by money. Someone whose main motivation is money will not be willing to put themselves through 2+ years of hell to complete an anesthesia program. Even those of us who want it because we have a passion for it, have many occasions where we wonder whether it's worth putting up with this life for more than 2 years, putting every ounce of energy we have--and then some--into school, borrowing massive amounts of money, getting way too little sleep, never seeing family or friends. And that's not even mentioning the incredible amount of responsibility we have for patients, to manage their homeostasis despite wild hemodynamic swings, coexisting diseases and surgical complications which the surgeon may not even mention to you. It's utterly sobering when I think about what I take responsibility for. And I'm finding, even as a student, that those of us who are passionate about anesthesia feel protective of the profession, its standards and our commitment to patients--we know that anyone motivated mainly by money is a potential threat to all of those things.

I see that you are a recent grad, who has in previous posts asked whether you should 'play the race card' when applying to anesthesia programs, and, before that, suggested you may be able to negotiate a higher starting salary as a nurse, by virtue of your male gender. Perhaps others would be more qualified to weigh in on this matter. You can learn a lot more here, in nursing, in anesthesia school, and in life, with at least a modest dose of humility.