Post Baccalaureate Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with Specialization in Anesthesiology
Rebecca Lee, DNP, CRNA, APRN, Program Director
Program Overview
The Post Baccalaureate Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with a specialization in anesthesiology program is a practice-focused doctoral program. The program prepares registered nurses with a bachelor’s degree, a strong science background, and critical care nursing experience for advanced nursing practice in the specialty of anesthesiology. In this thirty-six month technologically enhanced and residency designed program, students complete more than 1000 hours of didactic or classroom instruction and approximately 3,500 hours of clinical instruction at Barry’s partner health care affiliations in five clinical regions of Florida. Students graduate with the specialized knowledge, skills, and judgement needed to administer anesthesia in a variety of settings to patients of all ages after passing the National Certification Examination for Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA). The curriculum is lockstep encompassing a total of 86 credits for completion. The Program is accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs, 222 South Prospect Avenue, Suite 304, Park Ridge, IL 60068, and (847) 692‑7050. accreditation@coacrna.org
Philosophy and Mission
The Graduate Nursing programs embrace the core commitments and values expressed in the University Mission, which includes providing the highest academic standards in graduate and professional education. The programs provide educational experiences which are transformative and inclusive by building on the knowledge, skills and values of the baccalaureate-prepared nurse. The faculty support a scholarly approach to the discipline and a commitment to advancing the profession. The programs seek to educate advance practice nurses and scholar/scientists who honor and respect human dignity and who are prepared to serve as senior level nurses in key leadership positions that influence health care delivery locally, nationally and globally.
Mission for the Anesthesiology Program
The anesthesiology programs additionally seek to provide curricula that prepare advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) at the doctoral level to deliver safe, competent, and ethical anesthesia and anesthesia-related care to patients for diagnostic, therapeutic, and surgical procedures. The curricula are designed to cover the full scope of nurse anesthesia practice with the following focal areas: patient safety, perianesthesia care, critical thinking, communication and leadership, and the professional role of the certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA).
General Goals:
The goals of the DNP in Anesthesiology Program for baccalaureate-prepared Registered Nurses support the Mission and Core Commitments of Barry University and the Mission and Goals of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Program Goals
- Create a practice environment for entry into practice as nurse anesthesia professionals at the practice-doctoral level to provide safe, competent and ethical care to patients within the full scope of practice.
- Prepare graduates to engage in scholarship and life-long learning in order to improve the quality of therapeutic and anesthetic care and to advance the specialty of nurse anesthesia.
- Engage graduates to assume leadership roles in the healthcare policy making and advocacy process in order to promote social justice and to improve access to quality healthcare.
Student Learning Outcomes
The terminal objectives of the DNP in Anesthesiology Program correlate with the six domains of the Graduate Standards as set forth by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs as follows:
- Patient Safety
- Perianesthesia
- Critical Thinking
- Communication
- Leadership
- Professional Role
Upon successful completion of the DNP in Anesthesiology Program, the graduate shall have acquired the knowledge, skills and competence in these domains as evidenced by the ability to:
- Patient Safety
- Incorporate measures into therapeutic and anesthetic plans of care that promote patient safety and prevent iatrogenic complications, including comprehensive equipment check.
- Remain vigilant in the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Refrain from engaging in activities that abandon or minimize vigilance while delivering direct therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Perianesthesia
- Deliver individualized and culturally competent care to patients across the lifespan and throughout the therapeutic and perianesthetic continuum.
- Perform a comprehensive history and physical assessment and incorporate differential diagnoses into therapeutic and anesthetic plans of care.
- Administer and manage therapeutic and anesthetic care to patients with a variety of physical conditions and for a variety of surgical and medically related procedures.
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills in resuscitative care as evidenced by BCLS, ACLS and PALS recognition by the American Heart Association.
- Critical Thinking
- Apply scientific knowledge and evidence-based principles to decision-making and problem-solving processes in the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Perform an assessment and formulate a plan of care prior to providing therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Formulate diagnoses based on the interpretation and utilization of data, including data from noninvasive and invasive monitoring modalities, during the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Recognize, evaluate, and appropriately manage physiological responses and complications that occur during the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Recognize and appropriately manage anesthetic equipment-related malfunctions.
- Calculate, initiate, and manage fluid and blood component therapy for patients across the lifespan undergoing a variety of surgical and therapeutic procedures.
- Incorporate new practice approaches to therapeutic and anesthetic care through the analysis of science-based theories and concepts.
- Pass the national certification exam for nurse anesthesia professionals in accordance to the policies and procedures of the certifying entity.
- Communication
- Utilize interpersonal and communications skills that result in the effective exchange of information and collaboration with other healthcare professionals, including comprehensive, timely, accurate, and legible healthcare records.
- Utilize interpersonal and communication skills that result in the effective exchange of information and collaboration with patients and their families.
- Provide therapeutic and anesthetic care in a manner that maintains the dignity and privacy of patients while maintaining confidentiality in the delivery of inter-professional care.
- Utilize interpersonal and communication skills that ensures continuity of care and patient safety during the transfer of responsibility for care of the patient to other qualified providers.
- Utilize interpersonal and communication skills that effectively educate and guide patients through complex health and situational transitions.
- Leadership
- Provide leadership in a manner that integrates critical and reflective thinking that facilitates inter- and intra-professional collaboration.
- Professional Role
- Interact on a professional level with integrity and in accordance with the ANA Code of Ethics and the Code of Ethics for the CRNA.
- Apply ethical principles to the decision-making process in the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Function within legal and regulatory requirements in the delivery of therapeutic and anesthetic care.
- Incorporate knowledge of wellness and chemical dependency into practice, including the duty to be appropriately rested and fit to provide therapeutic and anesthetic care
- Accept responsibility and accountability for practice.
- Utilize information systems and current technology to support and improve patient care and integration in healthcare delivery.
- Utilize sound and ethical business practices in the delivery of therapeutic and anesthesia services.
- Analyze, evaluate and advocate for healthcare policy changes to promote social justice and improve access to quality patient care to the under-served.
- Participate in education and training of student nurse anesthesia professionals that promote the advancement of the nurse anesthesia specialty.
- Participate in scholarship and professional activities that promote the advancement of the nursing profession.
- Function as a role model to mentor and support other Registered Nurses to uphold excellence in nursing practice.
In accordance with The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Practice Nursing of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), 2006, the faculty identified the following expected outcomes of each student at the completion of the DNP Program. Essentials 1‑8 are foundational: I. Scientific Underpinnings of Practice; II. Organizational and Systems Leadership; III. Clinical Scholarship and Analytical Methods; IV. Information Systems/Technology; V. Health Care Policy/Advocacy; VI. Interprofessional Collaboration for Improving Patient and Population Health; VII. Clinical Prevention and Population Health; and VIII. Advanced Nursing Practice.
All graduates will be able to:
- Synthesize, integrate, and apply nursing science with knowledge from the arts and sciences, and clinical expertise to delivery nursing and health care services to diverse populations (Advanced Practice; Leadership; Clinical Scholarship).
- Assume leadership roles in the evaluation, design, organizations, and improvement of health care delivery (Advanced Practice Leadership; Clinical Scholarship).
- Discover, integrate, connect, disseminate, and translate research across disciplines to reduce risk, promote safety, and enhance quality in clinical practice (Advanced Practice; Leadership; Clinical Scholarship).
- Use technology resources and demonstrate information and data literacy to manage complex health care decisions and advance quality of care (Information Systems/Technology; Advanced Practice Leadership; Clinical Scholarship).
- Advocate for changes in healthcare policy formation, financing, regulation and practice to remediate health disparities locally and globally (Leadership; Professionalism; Advocacy).
- Employ effective communication and interdisciplinary collaboration skills to solve complex problems, facilitate change, and promote improved quality of care in organizations (Interdisciplinary Collaboration for Improving Patient and Populations Outcomes; Advanced Practice Leadership).
- Develop, implement, and evaluate evidence-based clinical prevention and population health services for individuals and groups (Clinical Prevention and Population Health; Scientific Underpinnings for Practice).
- Engage in safe, effective, and efficient advanced nursing practice within a defined specialization (Advanced Practice; Leadership; Advocacy).
Admission Requirements
Application requirements reflect criteria for admission set forth by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs and Barry University. Candidates are selected for admission on the basis of high promise for program completion and academic success in graduate education. These include:
- A baccalaureate of science in nursing (BSN) degree granted by a regionally accredited or internationally recognized college or university in nursing or an appropriate science. Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be submitted directly to Barry University.
- Graduation from and accredited School of Nursing and a current, unrestricted license as a professional registered nurse in the United States. Out-of-state applicants must be eligible for endorsement by the Florida Board of Nursing. An unrestricted Florida license must be received prior to starting the Program and maintained throughout enrollment in the Program.
- A minimum of one-year, full time clinical experience as a registered nurse in a critical care setting within the last three years. Clinical experience should be direct hands on patient care. The “critical care setting” is not limited to a specific work area. However, the complexity of the patient population’s health problems should be routinely requiring non-invasive and invasive monitoring, continuous pharmacologic infusions, and mechanical ventilation. Other desired skills are outlined in the Program application form. The critical care certification for registered nurses (CCRN) serves as evidence of required knowledge and experience and is required.
- Current certification in Basic Life Support (BCLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS).
- A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.2 on a 4.0 scale. Deference is given to the last sixty hours of undergraduate work. Applicants with a master’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited college or university will have their graduate GPA included for admission consideration.
- Official satisfactory scores, as determined by the Admissions Committee, from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) taken within five years of application. GRE scores are evaluated in the context of the overall application package submitted by the applicant.
- Successful completion (grade B or better) of one college chemistry course with laboratory component. The course (not laboratory component) must have been taken within five years of beginning the Program. Organic chemistry or biochemistry is strongly preferred. In addition, one previous additional science/mathematics course (examples include: anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, physics, genetics, statistic, algebra) is required.
- Two references from health care professionals who are knowledgeable of the applicant’s academic potential and clinical aptitude.
- Documentation of the understanding of the role of the nurse anesthetist with an essay submission in APA format. Applicants are required to arrange an observation of and discussion with a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) and provide documentation of a shadowing experience.
- Attendance at a personal interview at the invitation of the Program’s Admission Committee. This interview is required for admission.
- International applicants must meet all requirements for international applicants listed in the general admissions section of the graduate catalog.
- Applicants may be required to fulfill specific prerequisites or other conditions of admission prior to an admission decision.
Admission is on a competitive basis for a limited number of positions. As a result, applicants may meet minimum admission requirements, but may not be selected for a personal interview or admission. At the time of interview, applicants must be prepared to affirm that they have sufficient financial resources and/or planning sufficient to complete the program of study without reliance on outside employment (See Graduate Catalog section for tuition and fees). Applicants are advised to contact the Office of Financial Aid to investigate funding options at the time they are considering submission of their application package.
All applicants must affirm and attest to sound physical health, emotional stability, and personal integrity that will enable them to successfully complete the educational program, comply with criteria for nursing licensure, and adhere to American Association of Nurse Anesthetist’s professional codes of conduct and practice. Applicants must affirm and attest that they are free of addiction to substances of abuse, are not restricted in their practice of nursing or under investigation by any Board of Nursing, and are willing to adhere to Drug Free Workplace policies and procedures of affiliate clinical training sites, to include submission to randomized drug testing and/or testing for cause and upon Program demand.
At the time of application, all applicants will be made aware of the capabilities required to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist and will be provided with the list of Core Performance Standards for admission, progression, and graduation from the Program. When applying to the Program, all applicants must declare that they are unaware of any deficits which would prevent them from functioning as a CRNA. The Core Performance Standards address the following required capabilities: the ability to observe and communicate, physical capabilities and motor skills, cognitive skills and intellectual capabilities, decision-making skills, and behavioral and social attributes.
Applicants who wish to defer an invitation for admission or withdraw from the program and desire readmission must submit a written request to the College of Nursing and Health Sciences Admissions Office and the Chair of the Program’s Readmissions Committee. Admission to a previous matriculating year does not guarantee admission to a new start term. Those applicants will be considered for admission along with the applicant pool for the requested start term. Additional credentials might be required to update their application.
Admission Process
All application materials must be complete and be received by the College of Nursing and Health Sciences Admissions Office by November 1 for admission to the Program at the start of the summer semester in May. Applications received after November 1 will be considered on a space available basis.
Application materials should be requested directly from the College of Nursing and Health Sciences Admissions Office by calling 305‑899‑3379 or 800‑756‑6000 extension 3379. Only those candidates with a completed application package on file, inclusive of all documentation noted above, will be considered for admission. The above criteria are evaluated as a composite package, serving as an indicator of predictive success in the program. The Admissions Committee will rank all applicants as Accepted, Provisionally Accepted, or Not Accepted. Upon the start of the Program, accepted candidates are required to possess a notebook computer with specified software which conforms to criteria established by the Program. Applicants are advised that portions of the didactic coursework are web-based and also provided in conjunction with telecommunications or video teleconferencing instructions. Candidates should possess basic computer literacy skills, including the use of word-processing, Windows operating systems, electronic mail, and navigation of Internet applications.
Curriculum Description
The curriculum is reflective of a program of graduate education that provides for intense and analytic exploration of the basic medical sciences, clinical anesthesiology, professional practice, technological applications, advanced practice nursing and research methodology. The Program is designed as a continuous (no semester breaks) and sequential program spanning thirty-six (36) months and totaling eighty-six (86) semester credit hours. Phase I of the Program (semesters one and two) are offered in a blended distance learning format with web-conferencing synchronous and asynchronous sessions. On site classroom orientation begins in Phase II (semester three) of the Program. Affiliated clinical sites are located throughout the state of Florida. The names of current affiliated clinical sites can be obtained from the Program’s office by calling 305‑899‑3230 or 800‑756‑6000 extension 3230. Nurse Anesthesia Residents are assigned to an affiliated clinical training cohort at the start of the program. Reassignment may be required to meet the needs of the student, program, and/or clinical sites. Clinical instruction is incorporated through progressive practica throughout all nine semesters. Clinical practica consist of simulation learning activities, in-service education presentations, morbidity and mortality case conferences, clinical instruction, and supervised clinical practice. Course sequencing is critical to the educational program. All applicants must attend a mandatory program orientation.
This program requires a special program fee.
Progression Requirements
A student shall not be permitted to progress in the Program
- While on Medical Leave of Absence; or
- With a grade of “Incomplete” in a didactic course from the previous semester.
In addition, a student shall not be permitted to progress to the following semester and shall be dismissed from the Program for any of the following:
- Earning a cumulative GPA below 3.0 at the completion of any academic semester and failing to achieve a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the conclusion of the following semester;
- Earning more than two (2) semester credit hours with a grade of C in Clinical Practicum I through IV;
- Failing to earn a grade of B or higher in Clinical Practicum V, VI, and VII;
- Receiving an “Incomplete” grade in a Clinical Practicum course and failing to begin and successfully complete the Clinical Practicum course during the immediately following semester; or
- Receiving a failing grade of F in any course.
- Earning more than ten (10) semester credit hours of C in the core anesthesiology courses (ANE-610; ANE-614; NUR-510; NUR-618; ANE-617; ANE-619; ANE-625; ANE-634; ANE-621; ANE-636; ANE-615; ANE-642; ANE-650; ANE-670 and all clinical practicum courses). DNP foundation courses may be repeated once with written approval and permission of the Faculty Instructor and Program Director. Core Anesthesiology courses may not be repeated.
The Academic Dishonesty Policy described in the Policies and Procedures section of the graduate catalog is strictly adhered to.
Graduation Requirements
In order to be eligible for graduation from the Program, the Student must:
- Satisfactorily complete all Program degree requirements as confirmed by the Dean, including but not limited to all didactic and clinical courses and rotations, the final comprehensive examination and Self Evaluation Examination (SEE), and all clinical requirements;
- Complete all course work with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 , no more than two (2) semester credit hours with a grade of C in Clinical Practicum I through IV, and a grade of B or higher in Clinical Practicum V, VI, and VII;
- Comply with all of the policies and procedures of the Program, the University, and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at all times and within the applicable time frames.
Grading Policy
The grading policy for students in the Program will be as follows:
| A |
90‑100% |
| B |
80‑89% |
| C |
70‑79% |
| F |
0‑69% |
Receipt of a failing grade is cause for dismissal from the Program. All grade appeals will follow the student handbook policies for grade appeals and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences grade appeal policies.
Transfer Credits
The policy for transfer credits follows the Graduate Catalog for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. The Program’s sequential design and specialty content prevents transfer credit from coursework outside of the curriculum. Applicants who seek admission and transfer from another accredited program of nurse anesthesia education must submit a written letter of recommendation from the Program Director of the applicant’s former school.
Doctor of Nursing Practice w/ a Specialization in Anesthesiology (86 credits)
Phase I (blended distance learning)
Semester 1 (8 credits)
NUR-711, NUR-741 and NURA-678: Distance learning
Semester 2 (12 credits)
| ANE-610 | PHYSICAL SCIENCES OF ANE | 3 |
| NUR-721 | SCIENTIFIC FOUNDATION FOR DNP | 3 |
| NUR-727 | HLTHCRE INFORMATICS FOR DNP | 3 |
| NUR-734 | LEGAL/ETHIC ISS ADV NUR PRACT | 3 |
ANE-610, NUR-721, NUR-727 and NUR-734: Distance learning
Phase II (on campus sessions)
Semester 3 (13 credits)
Semester 4 (11 credits)
| ANE-619 | ADV PATHOPHARM FOR ANE PRAC I | 4 |
| ANE-625 | ADV PRIN OF ANE: OBSTETRICS | 2 |
| ANE-634 | ADV PRI ANE: ACU/CHR PAIN MGT | 3 |
| ANE-604 | CLINICAL PRACTICUM II | 2 |
Semester 5 (15 credits)
NUR-733: Distance learning
Phase III (Scholarly Project)
Semester 6 (9 credits)
NUR-737 and ANE-706: Distance learning
Semester 7 (6 credits)
NUR-753 and ANE-712: Distance learning
Semester 8 (6 credits)
ANE-750 and ANE 707 Distance learning
Semester 9 (6 credits)
| ANE-670 | ANESTHESIA SEMINAR II | 2 |
| ANE-680 | PRACTICUM VII | 1 |
| ANE-724 | PERIOP SAFE, RSK RED/OUT ASMT | 3 |
| CMP-699 | COMPREHENSIVE EXAM | 0 |
ANE-724 : Distance learning