As professionals, our number one consideration should be access to safe anesthesia care for all patients. Having a shortage of providers is not fulfilling our obligations to them. The MDAs are not turning out enough MDAs. The CRNAs are not turning out enough CRNAs. Those are facts that you can confirm on BOTH of their association sites and by government documents.
Speaking as a CRNA for my group, we are graduating many more CRNAs than we were ten years ago but it is still 1000 fewer CRNAs each year than we need. The average age of CRNAs is still going up, meaning there are not enough young CRNAs coming into the field to lower the age of the profession. I believe, but can not state as fact, that the MDAs are in the same sitution.
Even if the graduation rate of new MDAs and CRNAs was keeping up TODAY with the demand, it will not be enough for what is coming in the future. There is going to be a massive retirement in the next ten years, making the shortage critical.
Developing a third source of anesthesia providers is a reasonable response to the problem. If those providers are trained and can give safe anesthesia under the conditions determined ahead of time (AAs practice under MDAs) then I believe the only objection that one can raise is money.
Some of my fellow CRNAs can not post anything that does not revolve around money. If they can not raise any objection other than one about money and control, then I think they have lost site of the ultimate goal, to provide safe anesthesia to everyone within our nation.
SO here are my questions.
To my fellow CRNAs:
1. The ASA and AANA are not getting enough MDA and CRNA graduates out to prepare for the large numbers that are going to retire in the near future. So what solution can you suggest that does not involve AAs? ((And do not say, "Train more CRNAs" as that requires more RNs and there is a national shortage there also. I know you will not suggest "Train more MDAs! ))
2. If AAs are trained to provider safe anesthesia under the supervision of anesthesiologists, then what objection can you raise that does NOT involve money?
To the AAs, I ask a question:
Putting the issues of the AANA aside, could you work side by side with CRNAs or is the rift going to become so great that will not be possible?
To the MDAs, I ask a question:
On your website, it states the original plan was to have it set up so AAs could develop professional with college and training and become MDAs. Is that still the plan or do you feel it is being set up that "Once an AA, always an AA" with no clearly defined track to becoming an MDA?
(Please identify which group you are in when responding. If you can not make constructive comment, please do not comment at all.)
