Advanced Practice Nurse (Certified Nurse Anesthetist)

About the role

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants are ineligible to apply.

Responsibilities

• The CRNA is responsible for the provision of direct care, assessing monitors, providing IV sedation, conduction anesthesia or general anesthesia for patients.
• Performs pre-operative evaluation for surgical patients.
• Participates in a team approach to ensure appropriate patient assessments, anticipate patient care needs, prevent avoidable complications and achieve optimal patient conditions and outcomes.
• The CRNA acts in adherence of nursing care in accordance with ethical principles and functions within the scope of practice.
• The CRNA is responsible and accountable for maintaining BLS and ACLS training to performing activities that reflect the educational, experiential and competency requirements: Nursing Practice, Quality of Care, Performance, Educational/Career Development, Collegiality, Ethics, Collaboration, Research, Resource Utilization.
• Maintain confidentially of electronic, written and/or verbal patient/employee information.
• Demonstrate working practices that include adherence to infection control standards and the safe use and operation of equipment and adherence to safety practices.
• Conform with all medical center and service/service line safety policies, procedures and protocols to avoid injury and/or illnesses to self or others.
• Employee prepares all reports and documentation pertaining to injuries within established time frames utilizing the ASISTS Program.

Requirements

The following Education, Experience, and Knowledge, Skills and Abilities must be met for Advanced Practice Nurse (Certified Nurse Anesthetist) II:

• Meets basic education requirement for an APN (CNA).
• Nurse II is considered the entry grade level for APN (CNAs); no experience is required.
• Ability to translate into anesthesia care the principles of professional nursing practice including the patients' rights to autonomy, dignity, privacy, and safety.
• Knowledge of current research and practice guidelines to frame anesthesia practice including up to date techniques, pharmacology, and equipment.
• Ability to obtain, document and verify informed anesthesia consent and perform a pre-anesthetic patient history and physical, which includes managing pre-operative consults and interpreting data.
• Ability to formulate a patient-specific anesthetic plan and describe salient anesthetic risks, benefits, and options to the patient.
• Ability to administer inhalational, regional, intravenous, local, and topical anesthetics.
• Skill in detecting and treating anesthesia or surgically related physiologic changes and ability to treat accordingly in order to maintain homeostasis.
• Skill in assessing patient status for appropriateness of transfer of care to another healthcare provider and communicating essential patient information to other providers effectively.
• Ability to participate in collaborative responsibility for proper patient positioning, physiologic monitoring, infection control and anesthesia documentation.
• Skill in responding to emergency situations by providing airway management, fluid and medication administration, invasive line insertion and management and the use of advanced cardiac life support techniques.
• Ability to provide patient care that is abreast of changing concepts and advancements in the profession, (e.g., ultrasound techniques.)
• Ability to practice anesthesia in an interdisciplinary environment utilizing a collaborative concept of anesthesia care.
• Knowledge of quality improvement processes to maintain ongoing review and evaluation of anesthesia care to improve outcomes.
• Ability to demonstrate a practice emphasis on safety, current established guidelines and protocols while recognizing the duty to report unsafe conditions or errors.

Qualifications

Advanced Practice Nurse (Certified Nurse Anesthetist) Basic Requirements:

• Education. A masters or doctoral degree in nurse anesthesia. (Applicants pending the completion of educational requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until the education requirements are met.) Nursing education must be from a school of professional nursing anesthesia accredited by Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Education Programs (COA) at the time the program was completed by the applicant.
• Licensure and Certification. The following licensure and certification requirements are considered conditions of employment.
  • License. All APN (CNAs) must maintain an active, current, full and unrestricted license to practice as a CNA or equivalent, in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States or in the District of Columbia.
  • Basic Certification. All APN (CNAs) must maintain full and current certification by the National Board of Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA) or an equivalent Nurse Anesthetist certification recognized by the COA.