Considering a career as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthesiologist (CRNA) is something I can stand behind. As an independently practicing CRNA, I highly recommend the profession. Here are 5 reasons you should become a CRNA.

Purposeful Work

Anesthesia providers spend much of their time in the operating room.

It’s the anesthesia provider’s responsibility to create and execute an anesthetic plan that simultaneously allows the surgeon to operate and the patient to emerge from anesthesia and awaken pain free. Seeing a patient in the recovery room free from pain is one of the most rewarding experiences.

Despite anesthesia being very safe, patients are often uneasy leading up to their operation. Understandably so. Creating rapport with patients has a significant impact on their overall experience. In the independent setting, CRNAs manage far more than scheduled elective surgeries.

We manage pain control for obstetric patients. It is satisfying to successfully place an epidural catheter and see a laboring mom become comfortable moments later. If a caesarian section is in their future, it’s in ours as well. It’s so cool to work with both ends of the lifespan.

We are also responsible for airway management and vascular access in the emergency department, intensive care unit, and med-surg unit. Sometimes we are consulted to perform these services, other times, we act as backup.

I wear many hats during the workday (and night if on call). It’s a real pleasure to work with such a variety of patients.

Compensation

It’s ignorant to think compensation isn’t a major factor in career selection. CRNAs do really well. The average earning CRNA brings in $203,000 annually. That’s 3x the average American household!

Opportunity cost for the profession is high – no doubt. CRNAs must have an undergraduate nursing degree, gain work experience in an intensive care unit, then complete a doctoral program to achieve the required education. This comes at a significant cost, but time and money. If a prerequisite degree costs less than 1 year salary, it’s a reasonable opportunity cost. Most CRNA programs cost less than the average CRNA income, so the cost is manageable.

If you are looking to pay those pesky loans off or put away cash for a rainy day, the current market allows for many opportunities to pick up work, so there is room to make far more than $200,000 annually.

New grad CRNAs who maintain a low cost of living after graduation set themselves up in just a few short years. I’m looking for financial independence at age 35, so yeah, the money has the potential to be unbelievably good.

Job Diversity

CRNA demand is high in many settings and locations.

There are plenty of urban and rural job opportunities. In the urban areas, you can specialize to work with specific cases or patient populations. Maybe you like working with kids. Maybe you enjoy cardiac cases. There are many options.

I work in a rural setting. I’m not a big city guy, so the lifestyle fits me a bit better. There are plenty of small towns looking for CRNAs.

I work to the top of my scope of practice. I manage the entire perioperative process. This job typically requires a bit of call; however, call is taken from home.

One advantage of working in a rural area is the time away from work. I currently work 3 weeks, then have 1 week off. Other full-time positions may be 2 weeks on, 1 week off or the coveted 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off. Yep, a full time job with 26 weeks off per year.

Healthcare jobs are notorious for undesirable hours. If you want a 7 to 3 job, no nights, no weekends, no call – that’s an option at most surgical centers. Many urban CRNAs don’t take call from home. Call is in-house and paid hour for hour. So a single overnight shift counts as 16 hours towards your 40 per week.

Urban facilities offer a great lifestyle balance that still includes 6 weeks PTO. Pick up the kids every day at 1530 and attend the choir concert at 1900.

If you want weekdays off just like the nursing days, there are options for 4-10s and 3-12s. Taken to the extreme, there are 24-hour in-house OB positions. 8 shifts per month is considered full time. That’s a lot of time away from work to be used for seeing the country or whatever you please. There is a job out there for everyone.

Transition from Bedside Nursing

There is nothing wrong with working as a Registered Nurse as nurses are the backbone of the healthcare system. But if there is one complaint, I hear from nurses it’s, “I can’t work at the bedside forever.” And I don’t blame anyone for saying that.

Bedside nursing is tough on the body, both mentally and physically. CRNAs have a different kind of stress, much of which comes during the training phase. Delivering anesthesia is two minutes of sheer terror followed by 3 hours of boredom. Not a bad ratio in my book. And way less charting.

There are quite a few gray-haired anesthesia providers. One could argue that anesthesia school caused the gray hairs, but for the most part, it’s the career longevity that eventually leads to the sleek silver look.

CRNAs always manage the patient’s head and airway, so no back injuries moving patients. And the maintenance phase of anesthesia is spent seated in a chair – preferably with wheels and armrests. Really though, no one touches my chair. The stereotype is real.

Job Security

The job itself will certainly be around 20 years from now. Patients will still need anesthesia. The cost-effective model of CRNAs delivering anesthesia is sustainable and quite attractive to many facilities. Good news for jobs during an economic recession.

Artificial intelligence will not be taking over the career field any time soon. Assisting, sure. Takeover, unlikely.

Programs are accepting more students each year, but the clinical spots are limited, so there is a cap on the number of CRNAs that can be produced each year. Great news for those who make the cut.

The profession itself is great. Current CRNAs are great. I don’t see CRNAs “eating their young.” It’s not a career I see myself leaving any time soon.

Consider it. Reach out with any questions or rumors you may have heard about becoming a CRNA. Thanks for reading.