MSU’s nurse anesthetists are celebrating their program’s five-year milestone, and 126 years of anesthesia being delivered by nurses.
Henry Talley has been involved in both anesthesia and the Michigan Association of Nurse Anesthetists for years, and says becoming the founding director of MSU’s program was one of the best moves he’s ever made.
“We had been, up until about six years ago, one of the best-kept secrets in health care,” said the associate professor in MSU’s College of Nursing. “And now, the secret’s out.”
There are nearly 30,000 certified registered nurse anesthetists in the nation today, and they administer over 65 percent of the anesthesia in the United States, according to the Michigan Association of Nurse Anesthetists.
With the spike of popularity in nurse anesthesia, MSU now offers some unique supplements to what Talley said is a “very tough, but amazingly rewarding program.”
“On their first orientation day, we like to bring in the families – the friends of our students,” said Talley. “We have a family luncheon where the family, faculty and the students discuss some of the things the students will be going through and how the family can help support the students the best they can.”