The Minneapolis VA is seeking an exceptional Permanent Full - Time Certified Nurse Anesthetist to join our team of excellence. The Minneapolis VA is a teaching hospital, with a full range of patient care services and state-of-the-art technology. We work as a cohesive anesthesia team to provide anesthesia and critical care services to the patients who are undergoing surgical procedures at the Minneapolis VA Health Care System.

Duties

The Minneapolis VA Anesthesia Service provides veteran patients with anesthesia procedures for both ambulatory and inpatient surgical procedures. The services include: rendering patients insensate for surgical procedures (general anesthesia), major neuroaxial blocks for surgical procedures (spinal and epidural anesthesia), nerve block for surgical procedures, monitored anesthesia care, procedures to alleviate post-operative pain and resuscitation services. Anesthesia services are available 24 hours a day 7 days a week. The department utilizes anesthesiologists (physicians who specialize in anesthesiology) and nurse anesthetists (nurses who specialize in anesthesia). We work in an anesthesia team to provide anesthesia and critical care services to the patients who are undergoing surgical procedures at the Minneapolis VAMC. At the Minneapolis VA, the physician anesthesiologist directs the anesthesia care team. Duties and Responsibilities: - Provision of care in the most complex surgical procedures - Perform and document a preanesthetic evaluation of the patient before surgery including requesting consultations, additional diagnostic and/or laboratory studies in consultation with the anesthesiologist - After concurrence with the plan by the anesthesiologist, initiation of the planned anesthetic technique that may include general, regional, MAC, or local anesthesia. Interventions include administration of fluids, medications, ventilator support, provision of homeostasis, provision of adequate pain relief and management of anesthesia and surgical side effects - Induction of general anesthesia and initial airway management - Endotracheal intubation for surgical or procedural cases - Placement of endobronchial tubes or blockers for procedures requiring one lung ventilation or lung isolation - Central line placement; Pulmonary artery (Swan-Ganz) catheter placement - Peripheral nerve blocks.- Central neuroaxial blocks - Epidural blood patches - Adjustment of anesthetic drugs and techniques utilized in the maintenance of anesthesia - Sedation for field blocks or MAC as discussed in the anesthetic care plan - Manages emergence from anesthesia after discussion and concurrence from the anesthesiologist - Provide anesthetic for: electroconvulsive therapy not requiring intubation; routine eye surgery not requiring general anesthesia; elective cardioversions; ICD checks - Participates on the Code Blue Team, primarily to manage the patient's airway, but also to perform other tasks which they are qualified to perform, as directed by the Code Team Leader - Emergency airway management throughout the facility, following the ASA Difficult Airway Algorithm and department protocols, as requested - Administer sedation or local anesthesia to facilitate urgent/emergent endotracheal - Placement of intravenous lines throughout the facility, as requested - Management of epidural catheters for post-op pain relief within a protocol guideline ordered by the anesthesiologist - Off-shift cardioversions when an anesthesiologist is not in-house - Placement of arterial lines as requested by the ICU's - Initiation of an anesthetic in an emergency that threatens the patient with loss of life or limb prior to the arrival of the anesthesiologist on-call - Participation in staff meetings, mortality and morbidity conferences and other committees as assigned by the Chief Nurse Anesthetist or Chief Anesthesiologist - Maintains anesthesia equipment in constant readiness and cleans equipment in accordance with hospital guidelines, SOPs, manufacturer's recommendations and CDC guidelines - Prepares drugs properly for use in anesthesia administration - Precepts CRNA students - Ensures that OR/anesthesia safety regulations and procedures and infection control policies and procedures are observed - Complies with Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals - Fully complies with medical center Correct Site/Universal Protocol requirements, including pausing activities during pre-operative time-out - Complies with VA and Joint Commission documentation requirements - Labels specimens according to medical center policy - Participates in continuous improvement activities - Participates in outcomes evaluation and recommendations for practice improvements - Conducts in-service programs for the department and other services within the medical center - May assist or conduct approved research projects - Eligible to take weekend call when all criteria are met Work Schedule: Monday - Friday. Days Requires rotating call coverage, weekdays, weekends and holidays

Requirements

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. NOTE: Grandfathering Provision - All persons currently employed in VHA in 0610 series and an APN (CNA) assignment that are also performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of the standard (1/29/2024) are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education and licensure/certification. The following Education, Experience, and Knowledge, Skills and Abilities must be met for Advanced Practice Nurse (Certified Nurse Anesthetist) II: Exception to Licensure for Graduate Nurse Technicians. Candidates who otherwise meet the basic requirements, but do not possess the required APN (CNA) licensure and/or certification, may be appointed at the entry step of the Nurse II, as a Nurse Anesthetist on a temporary appointment up to any period not-to-exceed one year and a day under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405(c)(2)(B). Education and Experience Requirement. Meets basic education requirement for an APN (CNA). Nurse II is considered the entry grade level for APN (CNAs); no experience is required. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. The following list of knowledge, skills and abilities present the minimum skill set expected of an Entry Level CNA. Entry level into practice may include but are not limited to the following: 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. The following Education, Experience, and Knowledge, Skills and Abilities must be met for Advanced Practice Nurse (Certified Nurse Anesthetist) III: Education and Experience Requirement: Meets basic education requirement for an APN (CNA) AND One year of specialized APN (CNA) experience equivalent to the APN (CNA) II grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Progressively responsible experience in the administration of anesthetics as indicated in the knowledge, skills and abilities listed below. Ability to plan, administer and manage anesthesia for a broad range of complex surgical procedures skillfully employing continuous assessment and anesthetic adaptation based on patient response and comorbidities. Work assignments will vary by facility. Ability to participate in assignments that are technically challenging, encompass a variety of anesthetizing locations and utilize advanced equipment and procedures while adapting techniques to solve various complex anesthesia problems including the development of individualized programs of post-op anesthesia care. Skill in responsibility and accountability to perform to the extent of the CNA standards of practice as a licensed healthcare professional in any model of anesthesia practice. Ability to contribute to the educational mission as a mentor or preceptor providing didactic and clinical instruction in anesthesia to student nurse anesthetists, medical and dental residents, and other health care trainees. Knowledge to participate in the development, implementation and maintenance of auditing processes that ensure and improve the quality and consistency of anesthesia and associated documentation. Ability to contribute to departmental administrative processes through quality assurance, shared governance, or committee representation as applicable. Ability to serve as a representative on interdisciplinary teams to establish and maintain guidelines and communication. Skill demonstrated in the ability to embrace the safety culture emphasis by continuously assessing for safety risks, actively reporting safety concerns, and maintaining a just culture by identifying faults in systems rather than individuals. Physical Requirements:This position requires a pre-employment physical. Eligible applicants must be physically and mentally able to perform efficiently the essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation, without hazard to themselves or others. Depending on the essential duties of a specific position, usable vision, color vision, hearing, or speech may be required. However, in most cases, a specific physical condition or impairment of a specific function may be compensated for by the satisfactory use of a prosthesis or mechanical aid. You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Minneapolis VA Medical Center One Veterans Drive Minneapolis, MN 55417 US
• Name: Joanne Donnelly
• Phone: 612-725-3180
• Email: [email protected]