First of all, there is a great past thread entitled "USAGPAN 2018" that contains others' experiences at their phase 2 interviews! I read those ahead of my own interview, and I would say my interview was fairly similar to what they had experienced in the past.
I do not live near any of the phase 2 locations, so I was flown out to Fort Hood in Texas. I stayed at a hotel that was within walking distance to CRDAMC. The phase 2 director contacted me prior to my interview and asked for a few materials, including my resume, GRE scores and transcripts. He also provided me with a chapter to read from an anesthesia textbook. Mine covered pharmacology. I was instructed to read it ahead of time and would be expected to answer a few questions related to the chapter. It seems as if others have been asked to read a chapter from a textbook in the past as well.
Over the course of the three days, most of your time is spent shadowing a SRNA and/or CRNA. I followed the same student the entire time, as the other SRNAs were on out rotations or on leave. The SRNA I followed was in the third year of the program. I was basically there from 0500-1500 or so on the the first two days, and was able to watch her set up her room before the cases started, watch her during the cases, and see what she did to prepare for the following day. I saw a variety of procedures, from a c-section, to several tonsillectomies and a procedure that required the use of a Da Vinci robot which I had never seen before and was cool to see in action! I was able to see a variety of airways and types of sedation used throughout these cases. It was a great time to also ask questions!
In addition to shadowing the SRNA, I also got a chance to meet the two CRNAs that would be interviewing me, as they were the faculty overseeing the SRNA during her cases. One of these CRNAs was the phase 2 director that I had emailed with a few times prior to the interview. It was nice because I saw how they instructed the student, and I was also able to get to know them before the formal interview. Both of them did ask me a few interview-like questions throughout my shadowing experiences, so they also got to know me ahead of time as well.
On day three, I watched the SRNA perform one case and then had my interview afterwards. I'm not sure how long it lasted, possibly 30-45 minutes. They reviewed my materials that I had given to them ahead of time, and asked a few questions related to my resume and transcripts. They emphasized the significant commitment that you would make by being in USAGPAN, as it is a total of eight years between the program and the five year commitment following completion of the program. At the end of the interview, they told me that they would recommend me to the program! They sent me a copy of the letter of recommendation the following day, and sent it directly to LTC Adams.
Overall, it was a great experience as you get to witness the day in the life of a SRNA that's currently in the program. It does seem pretty challenging, but I'm still very excited about it!
