I know it’s the common theme to downplay our critical care experience as if being an (ideally) seasoned ICU nurse has absolutely no bearing on one’s ability to progress rapidly in the field of anesthesiology. But I’m a CRNA. I’m also a former hospital code team leader (good enough that the ED physicians would rarely have input after they arrived when we ran codes), ICU charge nurse, and ICU nurse at a level 2 trauma center. Anesthesiology is intimately connected to critical care. A critical care nurse is not ready to practice anesthesiology. But studies show again and again that a critical care RN with 2.5-3 years of formal training in anesthesiology is capable of practicing anesthesia safely.

But I’m going to go on with a good faith argument here. I’m a CRNA in an anesthesia care team model. Are there times where I’m glad to have a second opinion on a complex case? Yes, mostly. Then again, the majority of the anesthesiologists in my practice are highly skilled providers who still practice independently. But still, if raw independence is the goal, a fellowship in critical care or a subspecialty anesthesiology area would probably be a benefit.

I can add more to this but you’d probably have to ask more specific questions.