Nurse Anesthetist

Common tasks

• Manage patients' airway or pulmonary status, using techniques such as endotracheal intubation, mechanical ventilation, pharmacological support, respiratory therapy, and extubation.
• Respond to emergency situations by providing airway management, administering emergency fluids or drugs, or using basic or advanced cardiac life support techniques.
• Monitor patients' responses, including skin color, pupil dilation, pulse, heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, ventilation, or urine output, using invasive and noninvasive techniques.
• Select, order, or administer anesthetics, adjuvant drugs, accessory drugs, fluids or blood products as necessary.
• Select, prepare, or use equipment, monitors, supplies, or drugs for the administration of anesthetics.
• Assess patients' medical histories to predict anesthesia response.
• Perform or manage regional anesthetic techniques, such as local, spinal, epidural, caudal, nerve blocks and intravenous blocks.
• Develop anesthesia care plans.
• Obtain informed consent from patients for anesthesia procedures.
• Perform pre-anesthetic screenings, including physical evaluations and patient interviews, and document results.

Most important skills

Reading Comprehension

Reading work-related information.

Critical Thinking

Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

Speaking

Talking to others.

Judgment and Decision Making

Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

Active Learning

Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

Complex Problem Solving

Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

Active Listening

Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

Monitoring

Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.