Core Anesthesia's CRNA blog publishes written articles for student registered nurse anesthetists and practicing CRNAs, covering board preparation, clinical topics, and continuing education credit.
To maintain NBCRNA certification, CRNAs complete the NBCRNA MAC Program, a four-year cycle that includes continuing education, professional development, and MAC Check. Each cycle consists of three parts, Class A credits (MAC Ed), Class B credits (MAC Dev), and the MAC Check, a quarterly knowledge check.
The CRNA job outlook is strong, and nurse anesthetists are genuinely in demand right now. The numbers that back this up vary quite a bit though, which means the data behind them deserves a closer look.
This nurse anesthesia blog also serves nurses who are still deciding whether to apply to school, along with SRNAs working through a program and CRNAs earning MAC Ed credits, formerly known as Class A credits, for CRNA recertification. Every article is written or reviewed by a practicing CRNA, the same people behind the Core Anesthesia podcast, so the answers here come from someone who has actually sat where you’re sitting. Browse this nurse anesthesia blog by where you are in your career below, or scroll straight to the latest articles.
The Core Anesthesia CRNA blog covers the material that comes up most in nurse anesthesia practice and training: pharmacology reviews, airway and regional technique write-ups, NCE and SEE preparation, and guidance on MAC Ed and Class A credit rules. Every article is a free CRNA resource, with no account, login, or subscription required to read it. If you know Core Anesthesia from the podcast, this blog holds much of the same clinical material in written form, plus topics the show hasn’t covered yet, in a format you can scan when reading works better than
listening. New articles publish regularly within the categories below.
These CRNA blog articles are organized by career stage, because a nurse considering CRNA school, an SRNA preparing for boards, and a practicing CRNA completing MAC Ed (Class A) credit requirements each have different questions. Browse whichever stage fits you: getting into CRNA school, articles for SRNAs working through a program, or Class A CE credit articles for CRNA continuing education. Each heading below links to the full archive for that group.
This category covers what it takes to get into CRNA school: admission requirements, the ICU experience programs look for, GRE and CCRN questions, and how to choose a program. These CRNA school articles are the newest on the blog, so expect the archive to grow as more publish.
This SRNA blog archive holds most of what’s here, including anesthesia study tips for didactic and clinical years, CRNA boards prep for the NCE and SEE, and clinical topic reviews covering pharmacology, airway management, and hemodynamics. This content applies to either a program or a nurse anesthesia residency.
This category is for CRNA continuing education, with guidance on how MAC Ed (Class A) credits work, what MAC Check participation involves, how to stay current with NBCRNA recertification requirements, and clinical refreshers on topics you may not have revisited since school. New MAC Ed articles are added as the CE library grows.
This nurse anesthesia blog is written by Cole Dill and Tanner Hulin, two practicing CRNAs who started Core Anesthesia as a podcast based on conversations they had during their commute to clinical. Other practicing CRNAs also contribute clinical articles, and every clinical piece is written or reviewed by a practicing CRNA. Each author’s name links to a page listing their program, credentials, and current practice setting. The podcast behind this blog has grown to more than 185
episodes and over a million plays. Read more about the CRNAs behind Core Anesthesia.
A few common questions about the CRNA blog, CRNA boards prep, and CRNA school articles are answered below, before you read through the archive. If yours isn’t covered here, the category pages above go into more detail for wherever you are in your career.
No. Earn MAC Ed (Class A) credit by completing the full course, quiz, and survey in the Core Anesthesia app. After you pass, the credit is recorded to your AANA profile using your AANA number. Blog articles give you background and clinical context on the topics those courses over, but reading one alone doesn’t add credit to your total.
New articles publish weekly. Older articles are reviewed on a rolling basis whenever a certification requirement or clinical recommendation changes, and every article carries both a published date and a last-updated date so you can see how current it is before you rely on it.
Yes. CRNAs and SRNAs can send topic requests or a pitch through the contact form, and guest submissions are accepted from practicing CRNAs. Every guest piece is reviewed by Cole or Tanner before publishing and runs with the author’s own byline and credentials.
Can’t find the answer you’re looking for? Get in touch and we’ll be happy to assist.
The Core Anesthesia app goes beyond the blog, offering full podcast episodes, cheat sheets, post-episode knowledge checks, unified search, and MAC Ed (Class A) credit tracking to help with CRNA continuing education and staying prepared for MAC Check. It’s free to download, and free CRNA resources are available before you decide whether to subscribe. If an article here answered your question, you can earn Class A credits in the app next.
