Nurse Anaesthetist
Healthcare
Administer anesthesia, monitor patient's vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia. May assist anesthesiologists, surgeons, other physicians, or dentists. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.
What you'd do all day
The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.
- 1Manage patients' airway or pulmonary status, using techniques such as endotracheal intubation, mechanical ventilation, pharmacological support, respiratory therapy, and extubation.
- 2Respond to emergency situations by providing airway management, administering emergency fluids or drugs, or using basic or advanced cardiac life support techniques.
- 3Monitor patients' responses, including skin color, pupil dilation, pulse, heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, ventilation, or urine output, using invasive and noninvasive techniques.
- 4Select, order, or administer anesthetics, adjuvant drugs, accessory drugs, fluids or blood products as necessary.
- 5Select, prepare, or use equipment, monitors, supplies, or drugs for the administration of anesthetics.
- 6Perform or manage regional anesthetic techniques, such as local, spinal, epidural, caudal, nerve blocks and intravenous blocks.
- 7Assess patients' medical histories to predict anesthesia response.
- 8Develop anesthesia care plans.
- 9Obtain informed consent from patients for anesthesia procedures.
- 10Perform pre-anesthetic screenings, including physical evaluations and patient interviews, and document results.
- 11Prepare prescribed solutions and administer local, intravenous, spinal, or other anesthetics, following specified methods and procedures.
- 12Calibrate and test anesthesia equipment.
- 13Evaluate patients' post-surgical or post-anesthesia responses, taking appropriate corrective actions or requesting consultation if complications occur.
- 14Administer post-anesthesia medications or fluids to support patients' cardiovascular systems.
- 15Select and prescribe post-anesthesia medications or treatments to patients.
- 16Perform or evaluate the results of diagnostic tests, such as radiographs (x-rays) and electrocardiograms (EKGs).
- 17Select, order, or administer pre-anesthetic medications.
- 18Insert peripheral or central intravenous catheters.
- 19Insert arterial catheters or perform arterial punctures to obtain arterial blood samples.
- 20Discharge patients from post-anesthesia care.
- 21Read current literature, talk with colleagues, and participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in nursing.
- 22Request anesthesia equipment repairs, adjustments, or safety tests.
- 23Instruct nurses, residents, interns, students, or other staff on topics such as anesthetic techniques, pain management and emergency responses.
- 24Disassemble and clean anesthesia equipment.
Also known as
What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.
- CRNA
- Staff CRNA
- Nurse Anesthetist
- Nurse Anesthetists
- Anesthesia Physician
- Anesthesia Specialist
- Staff Nurse Anesthetist
- Certified Nurse Anesthetist
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
- Staff Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (Staff CRNA)
How far is this from you?
Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.
1
Entry straight after SPM
2
SPM + sijil / short TVET course
3
Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)
4
Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)
Typical entry
Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route
Subjects that matter here
The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.
What you'd need to know
The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.
- Medicine and Dentistry97%
BiologyChemistry
- Customer and Personal Service93%
- Biology93%
BiologyAdditional Science
- Chemistry87%
Chemistry
- Education and Training85%
- Mathematics85%
Additional MathematicsMathematics
What the work feels like
Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.
- Face-to-face discussionsEvery day
- Contact with other peopleConstant contact
- Dealing with customers or the publicVery high
- Leading or coordinating othersVery high
- Handling conflict situationsOften
- Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
- Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
- Noisy environmentEvery day
AI and demand for this job
A few real, dated data points — not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.
Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)
This estimate is from 2023 — already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.
US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, not Malaysian. Shown because it's the only forward-looking demand estimate we have for this job.
Pay in Malaysia
We don't have a sourced Malaysian salary range for this job yet, and we'd rather show nothing than a number we can't stand behind.
Where to check:
- JobStreet and Hiredly job ads for this title
- DOSM Salaries & Wages Survey
- SSPA scheme tables, if you're aiming for a government post
Check what you may qualify for
Enter your SPM grades and see which routes and programmes you may qualify for. An estimate to plan with, not an offer.
How to get here
Post-SPM pathways with programmes in this career's fields. Tap one to see real programmes and entry requirements.
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About this information
This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.
O*NET occupation: Nurse Anesthetists
Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org