Nurses in anaesthesia
Who they are, what they do and which devices they use: a research-based profile for recruiting this target group for MedTech and pharma projects.
Overview
Nurses in anaesthesia prepare, co-deliver and conclude anaesthetics. They monitor circulation, breathing and other organ systems before, during and after the procedure, clinically and with medical technology. Depending on the role, they assist with general and regional anaesthesia on delegation from physicians or, as nurse anesthetists, deliver anaesthesia independently, from the pre-anaesthesia assessment through induction and maintenance to emergence. They provide pain management, stabilise patients in emergencies and perform resuscitation. They work in the operating room and in areas outside it, such as the emergency department, trauma bay, radiology, delivery rooms or ambulatory surgery centres. Documentation, quality and risk management and training new colleagues are part of the role.
Profession by country
Fields of use and typical tasks
Anaesthesia nursing
Evidence from: CH
- Preparing, conducting and concluding anaesthetics
- Assisting with regional and complex general anaesthesia
- Clinical and technical monitoring of circulation, breathing and other organ systems
- Pain management
- Emergency stabilisation and resuscitation
- Patient documentation and quality and risk management
Nurse anesthesia (CRNA)
- Delivering anaesthesia as advanced practice registered nurses
- Reassuring and comforting patients before, during and after procedures
- Sole anaesthesia provision in models without physician anaesthesiologists, for example obstetric care in rural hospitals
- Collaborating with surgeons, dentists, podiatrists and physician anesthesiologists
- Pre-anaesthesia assessment: reviewing medications, allergies and illnesses before anaesthesia
- Administering general anaesthesia
Specializations
Devices and systems they use
Who they work with
- Anaesthesiologists (delegation, supervision or collaboration)
- Surgical specialties, dentistry and obstetrics
- Perioperative nursing and recovery room
- Emergency department, trauma bay and radiology for anaesthesia outside the operating room
- Clinical engineering (anaesthesia and monitoring equipment)
Frequently asked questions
Do nurses deliver anaesthesia themselves?
That depends on the role. In anaesthesia nursing they work partly independently and partly on physician delegation; nurse anesthetists deliver anaesthesia independently.
Where do they work besides the operating room?
Among others in the emergency department, trauma bay, radiology, dental clinic, cardiology lab, delivery rooms and ambulatory surgery centres.
What are the prerequisites?
Nursing education with anaesthesia-specific further training; for nurse anesthetists also critical care experience, a graduate programme and certification.
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Sources
- Berufsbild Anästhesiepflege, Schweizerische Interessengemeinschaft für Anästhesiepflege (SIGA-FSIA), Fachverband des SBK (CH)
- CRNA Fact Sheet, American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) (US)
- Nurse Anesthetists, Nurse Midwives, and Nurse Practitioners, Occupational Outlook Handbook, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (US)