mammothsnw

It all depends on where you live, how hard you want to work, and what type of practice you are in. My main job is with a private group in Cincinnati (not a bad city but definitely would not put it in the highly desirable bracket) My malpractice is covered by the group and base salary plus 2 - 3 days per month of call is 190K. The group also pays 100% of medical premiums and contributes to an HSA, continuing education, and a cafeteria plan. I also moonlight as an independent contractor at some plastic and GI centers 2-3 days a month and make roughly another 30-40k /year doing that. If i didn't take call and didn't moonlight it would about 150K which is probably average across most states. I also have friends in rural wyoming making 300k + per year and friends in Colorado making 110K. I dont believe the person who said they were making 105 in indiana...its a pretty crna unfriendly state but I know people there making 150 -180's depending on the area. All that being said I would not recommend this job to anyone doing it for the money. There are plenty of jobs out there where you can make better money with less stress. Plus with Obamacare I doubt our incomes will stay where they are and if they do roughly 40-50% will be taken in taxes anyway.

If your doing it for the money...don't do it...its a very stressfull job, most work 40+ hours, and there's a lot of political BS between CRNAS and MDAS

Hi Missy...I really do not know how the alternate system works. I can ask someone (the guy that sits next to me was an alternate) tommorrow to see if he knows. Good luck ..I hope you make it.

I actually took the GRE for my accel BSN program...trust me...it is a hoop you must jump through as part of the admission requirements at some Universities that CRNA schools are associated with....it has no bearing on how well you will do in anesthesia school...thats why Kaiser doesn't require it. Again..no BS here. Good luck

I'm in my second year in the Kaiser program. This program was my top choice when I was applying and now that I am nearing the end I can say that I have not been disappointed with my training. The program is ranked high for a reason...John Nagelhout...and the rest of the professors. At this school the goal is not to beat you down or overwhelm you with details..Their goal is is to make you a strong, independent, diversified, anesthesia provider. They accomplish this by having affiliations with not only several Kaiser hospitals in the So Cal area...but also many other great teaching hospitals like UCLA, Riverside Co., and Navy hospital...and many others....The BEST part...your cases are your cases...no competition with residents like other programs. This a no BS program. It is integrated and you get into clinicals after your first semester. You work hard...but come out with more than double the AANA required numbers to graduate. I am from OH..and although the traffic sucks...coming out here for school was definitely worth it. Hope that helps

Kaiser is a great program for several reasons but number one is amount and variety of cases you will get. I'm finishing up my first year and am on track to have over 1500 cases by graduation - And these are not shared cases with residents...its all you...great training..and it consistently ranks in the top 10 of all CRNA programs...and Nagelhout is the director

I'm getting close to finishing my first year of anesthesia school and I have wife and 2 boys (3 and 5). Anesthesia is hard but not like some make it out to be. If you use your time wisely, and make a commitment to spending quality time with your family you can do it. As for the finacial aspect...If this is really what you want to do...Beg, borrow, or steal to get the money you need to do it. It will be worth it in the long run and there are plenty of banks willing to loan money to graduate nursing students. Good luck.

congrats murse 07..I'm in Kaiser class of 2010...get ready for a great (and wild) ride :)

OK so...$645 is .0043% of the avg CRNA yearly salary....most make more than that in a day. I'm an SRNA with $0 income and I probably spend that much on coffee in a year...I have to agree with Mr. Zwerling...The AANA is a great advocate for our profession, and I would glady pay double those dues...

Question for JWK.... I am an SRNA in CA so I do not know anything about AA's...I have never seen or heard of them in CA or on the west coast for that matter. So in what states can you practice?? In the states where you can practice...does your license allow you the freedom to practice at all hospitals/ASC's? (ie can you go do per diem work wherever you want?) or..are you limited to working within the ACT model?? Can you specialize in regional anesthesia, peds, etc..? How are your services billed??..are they directly billed to insurance/medicare?? It sounds like you are held to very high standards so I'm just wondering how much autonomy/ scope of practice you are entitled in return. Thanks

When I first began to seek shadowing experiences I too was turned down over the phone. Next I went to the hospital and asked to speak with someone in the anesthesia department. Once you are face to face with someone and they see how serious you are about wanting to learn about their profession...your chances of them helping you get into the OR are definitetly better than over the phone. Also I would try to go to a large teaching hospital where new faces (students, residents, etc..) in the OR are the norm...this is easier than going to a provate hospital where are afraid they will be sued for HIPAA violations. Be persistent, and spend some time with a few differnt CRNA's..maybe even in a few different settings if possible. There is so much more to this field than what may appear at first glance...don't get me wrong...I believe it is the best job in healthcare...but you need to make sure YOU have the mentality to want to eat, drink, and sleep anesthesia for 2+ years in school and for the rest of your career. Good luck in finding a place to shadow.

Have you shadowed a CRNA to see what the job entails??

GRE 1200 (which my anesthesia school did not require..it was an accel BSN requirement though) BSN 4.0 Prior BS in OT 3.6 1 year SICU @ Level 1 BLS, ACLS, PALS

I would highly recommend the Accel-BSN route...MOST CRNA programs consider it a good indicator of your ability to digest a lot of info in a short time....Just keep your grades up from the beginning. I was in your shoes 3 years ago and now I have 18 mos to go till I'm a CRNA!! It is not an easy road but definitely doable.

If you want to be as competitive as possible...I would go to a Level 1. Out of the 36 in my program I would guess there are 5 who were at smaller community hospitals...and they have several years of experience there. If you're willing to move out of state ...make it worth your while and find a level 1 if you want to go the CRNA route.