Nurse Anesthetists

Also called : Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), Nurse Anesthetist, Staff Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (Staff CRNA), Staff Nurse Anesthetist

What they do

Administer anesthesia, monitor patient's vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia. May assist anesthesiologists, surgeons, other physicians, or dentists. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.

On the job, one would

KNOWLEDGE

Medicine and Dentistry
Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

Biology
Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Customer and Personal Service
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Chemistry
Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

SKILLS

Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Coordination
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Learning Strategies
Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.

Time Management
Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Writing
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

ABILITIES

Problem Sensitivity
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Information Ordering
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

Oral Comprehension
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Written Comprehension
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Deductive Reasoning
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

PERSONALITY

People interested in this work, will do well at jobs that need;

Attention to Detail
Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Stress Tolerance
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.

Integrity
Job requires being honest and ethical.

Concern for Others
Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.

Adaptability/Flexibility
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

Analytical Thinking
Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.

Self-Control
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Cooperation
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Achievement/Effort
Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Related Occupations

Clinical Nurse Specialists

Physician Assistants

Nurse Practitioners

Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists

Physical Therapists

TECHNOLOGY

Medical software

Word processing software

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Preparation
Extensive Preparation Needed
Education
Graduate Degree or higher.
Experience
Extensive skills, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations.
Jobtraining
Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.