title: CRNAs: an enviable legacy of patient service.
abstract: The profession of nurse anesthesia and the role of the certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) is chronicled to acquaint the general nursing population and those within advanced practice specialties of nursing to the discipline of anesthesiology. Historical highlights, professional definitions, scope of practice, insights into the educational preparation of CRNAs, employment settings, and marketplace opportunities are described. Professional challenges and opportunities facing CRNAs have come from both within and outside the nursing community. By facing these challenges CRNAs have demonstrated their tenacity in professional commitment to the delivery of quality patient care for more than 100 years.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, University of California, Los Angeles Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, USA.
authors.forename: W R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Waugaman
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Foster
mesh_terms: D049673:History, 20th Century; D007587:Job Description; D009719:Nurse Anesthetists / Q000266:history*; D014481:United States