Performance |
Standard |
Examples of Necessary Activities
(Not all inclusive) |
Ability to observe and communicate |
Nurse anesthetists must be able to observe and understand evidence about a patient’s status quickly and accurately and communicate rapidly and clearly with patients and members of the work team. |
This requires the ability to see both close and distant visual information; discern three-dimensional and spatial relationships; hear high and low pitched sounds, soft sounds and the spoken word; and communicate using the verbal and written word. |
Physical capabilities and motor skills |
Nurse anesthetists are required to have the capacity to move patients and position equipment as needed; to be sufficiently mobile to provide care to several patients at a time; and to have sufficient dexterity, hand-eye coordination and stamina to operate complicated instruments and perform procedures on patients for prolonged periods as medically required. |
This requires upper and lower body strength; gross and fine motor skills; mobility, speed and dexterity in small spaces; eye-hand coordination; tactile sense for percussion, palpation and therapeutic interventions such as invasive line placement and cardiopulmonary resuscitation; and stamina. |
Cognitive skills and intellectual capacities |
Nurse anesthetists are expected to be able to understand, synthesize and interpret complex medical information related to patient needs and care; to demonstrate the ability to transcribe and communicate that information quickly and accurately; and to be able to distinguish standard from non-standard patterns of patient response. |
This requires the capacity to understand and interpret complex information from multiple sources quickly; capacity to learn, integrate and apply new information; capacity to translate and document complex data; ability to recognize patterns of responses; ability to multitask when needed; ability to focus on the task at hand. |
Decision-making skills |
Nurse anesthetists are expected to demonstrate the capacity to gather, organize, prioritize and act on information appropriately and under pressure in a manner that facilitates the delivery of patient care. |
This requires the ability to intellectually organize information and prioritize actions; the capacity to identify cause/effect relationships; and make rapid decisions “on the fly.” |
Behavioral and social attributes |
Nurse anesthetists are expected to exhibit professionally appropriate behaviors at all times with patients, family members and with members of the health care delivery team. |
These behaviors include capacities for: establishing rapport and trust with people of various sociocultural and educational backgrounds; respect for team roles and norms; preserving confidentiality; clarity of communication with patients, their families and other health care providers; timeliness in completing work. This also requires emotional maturity; ability to work in small, closed, and dark spaces for long periods; effective coping skills; ability to adjust to social situations; discretion and ability to detach. |
