Nurse Anesthesia

The Nurse Anesthesia program prepares graduates to manage the anesthesia needs of patients of all ages. Students will develop expertise in the areas of pre-anesthetic assessment and evaluation, anesthesia planning, anesthesia administration and monitoring, and postanesthetic care. The program prepares graduates to administer all types of anesthesia, including general, regional and neuraxial anesthesia, along with sedation techniques. The BSN-DNP Nurse Anesthesia program is designed to equip future nurse anesthetists with the knowledge and skills to translate and implement best evidence into practice.  Additional doctoral education and experiences, in areas such as systems leadership, provide the nurse anesthesia student with foundational elements to improve the quality of nurse anesthesia practice, enhance the safety of patient care, and provide cost-effective care to all patient populations. Graduates of the program are eligible to take the National Certification Examination (NCE) for Nurse Anesthetists offered by the National Board on Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA). 

Cizik School of Nursing is the first and only public university in the State of Texas to offer the BSN-DNP in Nurse Anesthesia. The curriculum, approved by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs, consists of 112 credits and is nine semesters (36 months) in length.

Pass rates on the National Certifying Examination (NCE) - administered by the National Board on Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA) - for nurse anesthetists graduating from the nurse anesthesia program at UTHealth School of Nursing are high, while programmatic attrition rates remain low.

• 100 percent of May 2019 BSN-DNP nurse anesthesia program graduates passed the NCE.
• Seven recent graduating classes have achieved 100-percent pass rates on the first attempt of the NCE (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018)
• The NCE first-time test-taker pass rate (initial examination) for the most recent five-year composite (2015-2019) was 98.9 percent.
• For the past five years, 100 percent of new UTHealth nurse anesthesia graduates (MSN and BSN-DNP) have been employed as nurse anesthetists within six months.

Sample Curriculum Plan

Course #Course TitleHours

Nurse Anesthesia Student Profile

The nurse anesthesia program conducts a holistic review of applicants and considers a variety of factors when determining admission. The following information is based on past admission classes and it is important to note that the profile can change based on the pool of applicants.

• 3.6 GPA
• GRE (mean)
  • Quantitative 151
  • Verbal 152
• 31% were from diverse populations
• 2.5 years of ICU experience (average)

Accreditation

The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, master’s degree program, Doctor of Nursing Practice program, and post graduate APRN certificate programs at the Cizik School of Nursing are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).

The UTHealth Nurse Anesthesia program (BSN-DNP nurse anesthesia program) is accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA).

222 S. Prospect Avenue
Park Ridge, IL 60068
Phone: (847) 692-7050; FAX: (847) 692-6968

COA List of Accredited Educational Programs

List of UTHealth Nurse Anesthesia clinical sites