Whats up peeps? It seems like sometimes the only people I think frequent this forum are either forum elders that have been here a while or people trying to find out info about entering school. Dont here much from all the SRNA's, RRNA's out there so just wanted yall to give a little shout out and tell us whats up, where you goto school, how you are doing, how long you have left, whats you favorite volatile, what you do on your free time, what beer you like, or just what ever. It seems as though in a sense the forum has started to fade off a bit, or at least if I compare it to 2-3 yrs ago when I was finding out valuable info here.
Ill start.
Program - Baylor ? yr, soon to be ?
I love it, but its tough as hell
Go out yeah right, have only stepped outside once this weekend to take the trash out:crying2:
Like BudIce light, cheap, lite, smooth and potent:idea:
Feel like I have begun the journey to enter a wonderful profession and am pumped.
Holler back, and good luck studying or in clinical ( although im not sure wishing someone good luck in the OR is the best thing)
Anyhow lets see how many SRNA's, RRNA's really do visit this forum. Holler, later.
Jewlecutt - I am learning a lot about tact and politics as I progress through my education. I like my program but learned early on that there's a lot to be said for putting your head down and not letting stuff get to you. Those skills will all be useful in the real world, so you're smart to just stick it out and work toward graduating. Feel free to PM if you want to chat/vent about specifics - I've had some difficult preceptors and instructors and can relate . . .
Yeah, what she said. Not to be a downer on this thread, but everything she said is true. We are in clinicals full-time now, classes are over. Seniors staff rooms solo - no CRNA around your entire senior year. Wait until you are doing the job of a CRNA, unstupervised, for 40-60 hours a week continuously - for free. Kinda wears you down after a while. Alot has changed with all of us from our first to second year. The BS and social fluff has disappeared. Here's to being a short-timer.
16 days of clinical left... then a month or so off to study for boards (our program is structured that way...) so - yeah i pretty much hate life right now - ready to be done - but still in the student role.. don't get me wrong - i love learning, but sometimes the overbearance is more than my self control wants to handle... LOL
i will remember this when one day i have senior students w/ me... LOL
What are we going to do about the AA issue and the doctorate degree situation? The AANA needs to realize that meeting a shortage cannot equate to decreasing the quality of graduating CRNAs. We need to take a look at the didactics of the AA programs and compare them to ours. There is not a big difference and how much of your nursing education do you really use in CRNA school? Some! The way that we must separate ourselves from the AA is to increase the critical care setting requirements. 1 year is not enough. There are many CRNA students that have a total of one year of nursing experience hired into an ICU as a new grad. We all remember that first 6 months out of school we were still trying to figure out how to write a verbal order, how to start IVs and had limited knowledge of pharmacology. I do not believe that the nursing benefit of the CRNA to AA can be appreciated without a minimum of 3 years of true critical care experience and a CCRN certification to identify those that have wanted to excel. I know that this will not be a popular stand to many on these threads but the patient care experience is what we use to sell ourselves over the AA for this to be legitimate, we must make it somewhat substantial. Doctorate? give us our own degree/title.
I knew how to start IVs for years prior to graduating, how to write verbal orders because of my experience as a nurse tech, how all of the CV gtts worked becasue of my experience as a nurse tech in the CVICU. I had wonderful preceptors both as a nurse tech and RN in the ICU that taught me a lot. I worked there for three years but would have been fine only working one year because I had previous medical background. That is the point, people who start out working in the ICU as a nurse usually have some sort of background and are very strong. If starting IV's and writing verbal orders are your biggest problems as a new nurse, then the ICU is probably not the place to start out. I'm not trying to be insulting, please don't take it the wrong way, but most nurses wanting to get into anesthesia school are very motivated and usually have extra classes and certifications under their belt prior to applying. You brought up good points though. When does anyone ever acknowledge what we did in the icu? I learned so much about critical care, pharmacology, and how to keep people alive there.
What are we going to do about the AA issue and the doctorate degree situation? The AANA needs to realize that meeting a shortage cannot equate to decreasing the quality of graduating CRNAs. We need to take a look at the didactics of the AA programs and compare them to ours. There is not a big difference and how much of your nursing education do you really use in CRNA school? Some! The way that we must separate ourselves from the AA is to increase the critical care setting requirements. 1 year is not enough. There are many CRNA students that have a total of one year of nursing experience hired into an ICU as a new grad. We all remember that first 6 months out of school we were still trying to figure out how to write a verbal order, how to start IVs and had limited knowledge of pharmacology. I do not believe that the nursing benefit of the CRNA to AA can be appreciated without a minimum of 3 years of true critical care experience and a CCRN certification to identify those that have wanted to excel. I know that this will not be a popular stand to many on these threads but the patient care experience is what we use to sell ourselves over the AA for this to be legitimate, we must make it somewhat substantial. Doctorate? give us our own degree/title.
I think you use alot more than "some" of your nursing experience in becoming a CRNA. Plus, I know RNs with their CCRN I wouldn't let take care of my dog. Then there are diploma nurses 6 months out of school that make me look seriously bad. What I'm trying to say is put it on the individual and their training. One year of critical care is really all that's needed. The educational difference of us and AAs is already apparent. You can be every major under the sun in undergraduate and go to AA school as long as you take a year of bio, inorg,org, calc or noncalc based physics and ingles(english for all the nonbilanguals). That alone gives us an advantage initially starting our respective programs and the first year or two of practice. Now the doctorate is a whole other story. I still don't know if I'm for or against it yet. " Hello Mrs. Hossenfeffer. I'm Dr. Blablabla, your nurse anesthetist". I can already see the drama. During our TANA (Texas Association of Nurse Anesthetist) conference, they discussed this. Of course no one in their right mind would introduce themselves as Dr. so and so, but you would have that one individual who had to prove a point, and it would mess it up for everybody. That's my fear. Plus, lengthening already long programs (>28months) wouldn't exactly help the shortage either.
Now this is going to be a very unpopular statement that i'm about to make but I'm going to say it anyway Are we doing to AAs what MDs are trying to do to us? (Things that make you go hmmmmmmm).
I can't start an IV worth beans. Second semester of CRNA school and stressing about it. I'm going to have to do some preop on my own time or something if clinical doesn't offer me more opportunities.
Don't sweat it too much Apais. I've had trouble actually getting IV's let alone starting them. every time I come to pre-op my pt. the holding nurse or someone else has already inserted the IV. this goes on while we are in an OR room giving anesthesia. One thing I have done is just arrived a little early to help with IV starts in the morning. funny thing is I may do IV's in the am, but it usually is not on my own patient. Our program requires 200 IV sticks. I try to get at least one per day. If you get one per day, you are at least keeping up your skills, and if you get to do a Bier block, that is 2 IV's, so go for the bier blocks. I also make an effort in down time to see if there are any IV sticks or anything.
Also, others have suggested to their coordinators to let them go with IV team for a day, just to get proficient. not saying you need this. it's just an idea. I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's like intubating. It will take some time. And being a student makes it much worse. You have to use the damn local (which I swear screws me every time). When I worked it CVSU w/ all 3rd spacing patients, I wasn't too bad. but since school started, I have missed more than I care too. we'll look like asses, but it goes with the territory I guess. If I miss, I try to stick around and watch the next person's technique to see If I could do something different the next time. veins that roll are the hardest for me.
Don't sweat it too much Apais. I've had trouble actually getting IV's let alone starting them. every time I come to pre-op my pt. the holding nurse or someone else has already inserted the IV. this goes on while we are in an OR room giving anesthesia. One thing I have done is just arrived a little early to help with IV starts in the morning. funny thing is I may do IV's in the am, but it usually is not on my own patient. Our program requires 200 IV sticks. I try to get at least one per day. If you get one per day, you are at least keeping up your skills, and if you get to do a Bier block, that is 2 IV's, so go for the bier blocks. I also make an effort in down time to see if there are any IV sticks or anything.
Also, others have suggested to their coordinators to let them go with IV team for a day, just to get proficient. not saying you need this. it's just an idea. I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's like intubating. It will take some time. And being a student makes it much worse. You have to use the damn local (which I swear screws me every time). When I worked it CVSU w/ all 3rd spacing patients, I wasn't too bad. but since school started, I have missed more than I care too. we'll look like asses, but it goes with the territory I guess. If I miss, I try to stick around and watch the next person's technique to see If I could do something different the next time. veins that roll are the hardest for me.
I agree! In the beginning of clinical, basic math (like for a drug calculation) was a challenge with certain instructors! I think that sometimes we are harder on ourselves than we need to be......my husband has to constantly tell me that "if I knew how to do anesthesia, then I wouldn't be in school"! The learning curve (at least mine) is steep!:smackingf Hang in there, it will come!
I think that sometimes we are harder on ourselves than we need to be......my husband has to constantly tell me that "if I knew how to do anesthesia, then I wouldn't be in school"! The learning curve (at least mine) is steep!:smackingf Hang in there, it will come!
apaisRN, RN, CRNA
692 Posts
Jewlecutt - I am learning a lot about tact and politics as I progress through my education. I like my program but learned early on that there's a lot to be said for putting your head down and not letting stuff get to you. Those skills will all be useful in the real world, so you're smart to just stick it out and work toward graduating. Feel free to PM if you want to chat/vent about specifics - I've had some difficult preceptors and instructors and can relate . . .