Doctor of Nursing Practice: Nurse Anesthesia ProgramHenry Predolin School of Nursing, Business, Education, and Health Sciences

To be eligible for admission, applicants must submit or complete the following:

1. Provide evidence of a baccalaureate or more advanced degree from a nursing program accredited by a national nursing accreditation body with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for regular admission status. (The cumulative grade point average is computed on the highest degree held at the time of application to the Edgewood College graduate program).
2. Complete and submit an online graduate application.
3. Request official transcripts for all undergraduate and graduate academic credits received be sent to Edgewood College University.
4. Three professional references with knowledge of applicant, reference examples include: nursing unit supervisor, faculty/instructor from college or university, colleague that can speak to your professionalism and work experience, and a CRNA (or anesthesiologist if CRNA not available) from shadowing experience.
5. Clinical nursing experience as specified by the concentration.
6. Hold a current unencumbered license as a registered professional nurse in any state, with eligibility for licensure in Wisconsin.
7. Submit a written statement of no more than 500 words, addressing your ambition to be admitted specifically into the Edgewood College DNP-Nurse Anesthesia Program. Please also comment on your past educational and professional experiences that will foster your growth and success.
8. Applicants must have at least one year of full-time, critical care nursing experience within the previous two years at the time of application.**
9. Applicants must successfully complete the admission interview process.
10. A completed Nurse Anesthesia Practice Survey Form.
11. Maintain Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification throughout the entirety of the program, from matriculation through graduation.
12. Critical Care Certification (CCRN) certification strongly encouraged.
13. Prerequisite coursework with 8 credits of anatomy and physiology, 8 credits of inorganic and organic chemistry, 3-4 credits of microbiology and 3-4 credits of pharmacology.

** Critical care experience must be obtained within the U.S., U.S. territories or a U.S. military hospital. During this experience, applicants must develop critical decision making and psychomotor skills, competency in patient assessment, and the ability to use and interpret advanced monitoring techniques.

A critical care unit comprises one or more of the following: invasive hemodynamic monitors (e.g., pulmonary artery, central venous pressure, and arterial catheters); cardiac assist devices; mechanical ventilation; and vasoactive infusions. Critical care units include surgical intensive care, cardiothoracic intensive care, coronary intensive care, medical intensive care, pediatric intensive care, and neonatal intensive care. Applicants with experience in other areas may be considered if they demonstrate competence with managing unstable patients, invasive monitoring, ventilators , and critical care pharmacology.

School of Nursing Admission, Progression, and Academic Policies

Following receipt of all the application materials and screening for the College requirements, eligible applications will be forwarded to the Program Review Committee. The Review Committee will further screen the applications for program specific requirements and extend an invitation for a personal interview to qualified applicants. After interviewing all applicants, the Review Committee will make its recommendations for program admission.

* Admission is on a competitive basis for a limited number of positions. As a result, applicants may meet minimum admission requirements but may not be selected for a personal interview or admission.

Nondiscrimination Policy (Admission)

Nondiscriminatory practice is the practice of treating all individuals, including applicants, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, religion, age or disability, consistent with law. Although an applicant should not be required to provide information regarding any protected characteristics, he or she can provide such information on a voluntary basis. An applicant may be asked if he or she can perform the essential tasks or functions of a nurse anesthetist. 

Program Tuition

Estimated Additional Costs*

*Estimated costs are calculated as average and subject to change. Individual student costs may vary from the calculated average.

Graduates of the DNP-NAP will have acquired knowledge, skills, and competencies in patient safety, perianesthetic management, critical thinking, communication, and the competencies needed to fulfill their professional responsibility per the standards set forth by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA).

Patient Safety is demonstrated by the ability of the graduate to:

• Be vigilant in the delivery of patient care.
• Refrain from engaging in extraneous activities that abandon or minimize vigilance while providing direct patient care (e.g., texting, reading, emailing, etc.).
• Conduct a comprehensive equipment check.
• Protect patients from iatrogenic complications.

Individualized perianesthetic management is demonstrated by the ability of the graduate to:

• Provide individualized care throughout the perianesthesia continuum.
• Deliver culturally competent perianesthesia care.
• Provide anesthesia services to all patients across the lifespan.
• Perform a comprehensive history and physical assessment.
• Administer general anesthesia to patients with a variety of physical conditions.
• Administer general anesthesia for a variety of surgical and medically related procedures.
• Administer and manage a variety of regional anesthetics.
• Maintain current certification in ACLS and PALS.

Critical thinking is demonstrated by the graduate’s ability to:

• Apply knowledge to practice in decision making and problem solving.
• Provide nurse anesthesia services based on evidence-based principles.
• Perform a preanesthetic assessment before providing anesthesia services.
• Assume responsibility and accountability for diagnosis.
• Formulate an anesthesia plan of care before providing anesthesia services.
• Identify and take appropriate action when confronted with anesthetic equipment-related malfunctions.
• Interpret and utilize data obtained from noninvasive and invasive monitoring modalities.
• Calculate, initiate, and manage fluid and blood component therapy.
• Recognize, evaluate, and manage the physiological responses coincident to the provision of anesthesia services.
• Recognize and appropriately manage complications that occur during the provision of anesthesia services.
• Use science-based theories and concepts to analyze new practice approaches.
• Pass the National Certification Examination (NCE) administered by the NBCRNA.

Communication skills are demonstrated by the graduate’s ability to:

• Utilize interpersonal and communication skills that result in the effective exchange of information and collaboration with patients and their families.
• Utilize interpersonal and communication skills that result in effective interprofessional exchange of information and collaboration with other healthcare professionals.
• Respect the dignity and privacy of patients while maintaining confidentiality in the delivery of interprofessional care.
• Maintain comprehensive, timely, accurate, and legible healthcare records.
• Transfer the responsibility for care of the patient to other qualified providers in a manner that assures continuity of care and patient safety.
• Teach others.

Leadership is demonstrated by the graduate’s ability to:

• Integrate critical and reflective thinking in his or her leadership approach.
• Provide leadership that facilitates intraprofessional and interprofessional collaboration.

Professional responsibility is demonstrated by the graduate’s ability to:

• Adhere to the Code of Ethics for the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist.
• Interact on a professional level with integrity.
• Apply ethically sound decision-making processes.
• Function within legal and regulatory requirements.
• Accept responsibility and accountability for his or her practice.
• Provide anesthesia services to patients in a cost-effective manner.
• Demonstrate knowledge of wellness and substance use disorder in the anesthesia profession through completion of content in wellness and substance use disorder.
• Inform the public of the role and practice of the CRNA.
• Evaluate how public policy making strategies impact the financing and delivery of healthcare.
• Advocate for health policy change to improve patient care.
• Advocate for health policy change to advance the specialty of nurse anesthesia.
• Analyze strategies to improve patient outcomes and quality of care.
• Analyze health outcomes in a variety of populations.
• Analyze health outcomes in a variety of clinical settings.
• Analyze health outcomes in a variety of systems.
• Disseminate scholarly work.
• Use information systems/technology to support and improve patient care.
• Use information systems/technology to support and improve healthcare systems.
• Analyze business practices encountered in nurse anesthesia delivery settings.