Outcomes

Graduates of the 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.

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.)
• Protect patients from iatrogenic complications.
• Participate in the positioning of patients to prevent injury.
• Conduct a comprehensive and appropriate equipment check.
• Utilize standard precautions and appropriate infection control measures.

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

• Provide care throughout the perianesthetic continuum.
• Use a variety of current anesthesia techniques, agents, adjunctive drugs, and equipment while providing anesthesia.
• Administer general anesthesia to patients of all ages and physical conditions for a variety of surgical and medically related procedures.
• Provide anesthesia services to all patients, including trauma and emergency cases.
• Administer and manage a variety of regional anesthetics.
• Function as a resource person for airway and ventilatory management of patients.
• Provide anesthesia services to all patients, including trauma and emergency cases.
• Administer and manage a variety of regional anesthetics.
• Function as a resource person for airway and ventilatory management of patients.
• Possess current advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) recognition.
• Possess current pediatric advanced life support (PALS) recognition.
• Deliver culturally competent perianesthetic care throughout the anesthesia experience (see Glossary: Culturally competent).
• Perform a comprehensive history and physical assessment.

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

• Apply knowledge to practice in decision-making and problem solving.
• Provide nurse anesthesia care based on sound principles and research evidence.
• Perform a preanesthetic assessment and formulate an anesthesia care plan for patients to whom they are assigned to administer anesthesia.
• 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 and appropriately respond to anesthetic complications that occur during the perianesthetic period.
• Pass the National Board Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists National Certification Examination with NBCRNA policies and procedures.

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

• Effectively communicate with individuals influencing patient care.
• Utilize appropriate verbal, nonverbal, and written communication in the delivery of perianesthetic care.

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

• Participate in activities that improve anesthesia care.
• Function within appropriate legal requirements as a registered professional nurse, accepting responsibility and accountability for his or her practice.
• Interact on a professional level with integrity.
• Teach others.
• Participate in continuing education activities to acquire new knowledge and improve his or her practice.
• Demonstrate knowledge of wellness and chemical dependency in the anesthesia profession through completion of content in wellness and chemical dependency.

Upon completion of the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program, the graduate will be able to achieve the following outcomes:

1. Initiate, facilitate and participate in professional, collegial and collaborative efforts.
2. Identify healthcare needs and interventions for individuals, families and populations.
3. Design, implement, manage and evaluate organizational systems to address complex healthcare delivery needs and problems.
4. Provide educational, clinical, and administrative leadership at the local/state/national levels.
5. Meet the challenges and needs of an increasingly complex health care delivery system as it relates to healthcare policy, standards of care and practice guidelines for advanced nursing practice.
6. Integrate high ethical, legal and professional standards into: a) decision making in clinical practice; b) application of research; and c) use of technology and information systems.
7. Design, monitor and evaluate clinical systems, processes, policies and procedures.
8. Generate a caring, collegial, collaborative nursing practice environment.
9. Analyze social, economic, political and policy components affecting healthcare planning and delivery.
10. Synthesize and integrate divergent viewpoints for the purpose of providing culturally competent healthcare.
11. Translate, evaluate and apply research for evidence-based practice.
12. Integrate knowledge from theories of nursing as well as natural and social sciences into clinical practice.