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As university faculty, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are expected to meet the same obligations as other members of the academy. The purposes of this investigation were to describe the educational preparation and role expectations of nurse anesthesia faculty. Following institutional human assurance committee approval, an investigator-developed questionnaire was mailed to the directors of 85 nurse anesthesia programs recognized by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Of the full-time faculty, 25% held doctoral degrees. CRNAs participated in all 3 traditional faculty roles of teaching, research, and service. Program administration and classroom teaching accounted for 66% of program directors' time. Assistant directors allocated 75% of their time to classroom teaching, clinical teaching, and program administration. Among all program faculty, limited time was reserved for research and scholarly activities. Increasing the percentage of doctorally prepared faculty and the amount of time allocated to research and scholarship are essential for full integration of nurse anesthetists into the university and to continue the development of nurse anesthesia's specialty knowledge.

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) have been identified as the predominant anesthesia providers in rural areas; however, little information is available about the types of services provided by rural CRNAs. The purposes of this study were to pilot test the Nurse Anesthesia Rural Practice Inventory (NARPI); determine whether CRNAs can provide the requested data; and provide data about characteristics of rural nurse anesthesia practice. The NARPI is a newly developed, self-administered questionnaire containing 39 items related to anesthesia practice. The survey was mailed to a stratified convenience sample of 146 actively practicing CRNAs living in rural areas. Of the 33 surveys returned (23%), 28 were usable for data analysis with descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that rural CRNAs provide a broad range of anesthesia and anesthesia-related services within and outside the operating room and support the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists' statement that CRNAs are the predominant anesthesia providers in rural areas. Significant differences were found in the employment settings of independent and medically directed CRNAs, the availability of certain anesthetic agents and monitoring devices, and the representation of surgical specialists based on community and hospital size. The NARPI has the potential to provide needed information about rural anesthesia practice in future studies.