What are the physical demands of the nurse anesthesia profession?

WntrMute2 · Nov 10, 2004

Hi Everyone,
I am interested in finding out what the physical demands of nurse anesthesia are? Do you have to do a lot of standing like in bedside nursing, or lifting, pulling, etc.. I have recently developed pain in my legs due to poor circulation from standing on my feet for long periods of time. One of my concerns of this job is that i don't want to choose another path in which I will be doing just as much standing as I do with bedside nursing. Another question I have may sound silly but do you get plenty of "potty breaks" or do you have to hold your bladder for long periods of time like you do in cc nursing? Any help with this from experienced crna's would be helpful.
sushinurse

You'll probably stand most of the day. There will be times you can sit but vigilance as to what is happening on the field is the hallmark of good anesthesia. This doesn't mean you can't sit, no one will say to you "stand" at least once your training is accomplished, I just don't see how you can be on top of things if you aren't looking over the drape most of the time. As to bathroom breaks, between cases - sure, during cases is more iffy. Usually every couple of hours on day shift, less frequently overnight when you may be the only one passing gas in the whole place.

Quincke · Nov 11, 2004

What I have found so far is...You will definitely be standing for a large part of the day. There are chances to sit, but I like to see what is going on with the surgery. There are also times that you have to be standing to best access the pt. As for moving, you move the pts to the stretcher, but you control the head and the airway. You may also have to help move the pt up or down in the bed. Bathroom breaks depend on the institute you are at. Sometimes you have time between cases, but sometimes it is 6 hrs (or more) before you get a break. All depends on how the cases are lined up and if anyone is available to give you a break:)

yoga crna · Nov 11, 2004

I think anesthesia is somewhat physically demanding, more so than you may think. Unlike the students, I sit through most of my cases--that is how I was taught to do anesthesia. But I am up and down a lot, assisting with positioning patients, moving them to recovery bed, etc.

You may not be happy with my response, but it is my opinion that you must be in good physical and mental health to be a CRNA. It is not a good field for the unhealthy, because you are alone most of the time, cannot leave the patient to attend to your personal needs and must have the stamina to take call, answer codes, etc. Even in a group type practice, it is unlikely that there will be someone available or willing to give you relief for bathroom breaks or so you can rest. You may want to consider a less demanding field. This is from a CRNA who is over 66 and has worked in all types of practice settings. The most sympathy I ever get is to be offered some advil and a glass of water.

Yoga

TraumaNurse · Nov 11, 2004

I think every clinical area of nursing is very physically demanding. It's the nature of the beast! If you need to work in a less physically demanding environment, I suggest non-clinical nursing such as education or research. I'm sure there are other areas, but I can't think of them off the top of my head. Oh yeah, maybe NICU...those premies aren't to hard to turn and they don't fight with you! They also seem to have a lot of rocking chairs in NICUs so that doesn't seem so bad!

sushinurse · Nov 11, 2004

Thank you to all of you for responding. I am only 31 years and consider myself to be in good physical shape, I run 3-4 times per week, eat right, etc. I just started wearing support hoses and this has helped a lot. Your responses has certainly shed some light on this field. I have two friends who are srna's who told me not to worry that they sit down a lot but I wanted to get an idea from experienced crna's who know what it is really like when you get out in the field. I agree, if you really want to be on top of things you would need to stand up to see what is going on and better assess your patient.

sushi nurse