What are the steps to take from Highschool to crna?

My_brain_hurts · Oct 28, 2009

Hi there. Great you are interested in becoming a CRNA. Very first thing you should do is make sure you know what a CRNA does and what it requires and what you are getting into. Shadow one, or several, as soon as you can. The AANA (american association of nurse anesthetists) is a great place to learn about the profession and schools and requirements. You should also look at individual schools' requirements for BSN and for entrance into anesthesia programs. You are just getting done with highschool and it's great you a planning for the future. Some people will say "how can you want to be a CRNA so soon?", but man, if I had known at 20 that this is what I wanted to do I'd be done by now :)

What you will need for sure is to either get your BSN to become an RN, or get ASN, and if you get ASN most (if not all) CRNA programs will require a "related BS". So really, might as well get the BSN if you can. The classes required for BSN depend on the school, so you should look at the schools you are interested in. Lots of biology, chemistry, physiology, anatomy, pharmacology, etc. And you'll need basics, like english, algebra, history, gov, etc. All that fun stuff. You'll have clincal classes too. And then you graduate and take NCLEX to become an RN.

As an RN you need AT LEAST 1 yr of ICU experience to apply for CRNA school. And more then 1 yr is really better, but 1 is the required min. Schools can't accept you with less. Most schools require the GRE, some will take the MAT, and a couple don't require either. You need good grades from your BSN because it's very competitive. Also, taking college classes in organic chem, biochem, extra anatomy and physiology, statistics, things like that can really help you in the long run. That's a big overview. You really need to do some digging on your own. Just google CRNA or nurse anesthesia and you can find all kinds of info. Find nursing schools you want to go to and see what they require. That is the best way. Nursing is great even if you decide not to do anesthesia. There are a lot of things you can do with an RN after your name that people don't realize.

Bobonaut · Oct 29, 2009

Thank you! Excellent response! Some of my friends were suprised when I told told them I wanted to be a nurse! A typical response I got was "WOW you're going to be a male nurse??? A job as a nurse is the pits because you have to clean poop and shower people!" Lol

My_brain_hurts · Oct 29, 2009

Yeah, poo is one of my least favorite things, but you have to do it to get where you want to go. And I'll tell you, it's a whole different thing when it's an 80yr old man/woman who feels just terrible and embarrassed that you have to do such an unpleasant thing because they are too sick to get out of bed. I mean, would you want somebody wiping your but? I like to take care of that kind of thing my self, and heaven forbid I have to have someone else do it, well, it sucks for the pt and is sucks for the nurse. But when you can do it and help put the pt at ease in the process, it's kind of cool. Gross mind you, but makes you feel like you did something "good" for the patient.

But poop isn't that 'bad'. . . what is 'bad' is when you watch the pt you've been taking care of for 3 wks die in front of you, and see the family you got to know so well have to deal with that. You know what a "code" is? as in "code blue"? It's not like on TV, unless you watch the TLC station's trauma in the ER or whatever it's called. That's a glimps, but it's edited for TV of course. Codes are 'bad', horrible to watch what we have to do to try and rescusitate the pt. Crazy stuff you will see, stuff you can't even imagine, things you almost don't believe even when you do see it --both good and bad. Kind of brings the poop into perspective

Good luck to you! there are a lot of men in nursing. There are usually more guys in the ICU or ER it seems like. And in my class of 15 there are 7 guys, so lots of guys in anesthesia too.