Certified registered nurse anesthetists serve an invaluable role within the medical landscape, and CRNAS must fulfill their professional duties at an expert level. Deans and professors who oversee CRNA students' training (typically beginning in year two of medical school) may hold you to a high standard to benefit you and your future patients.
The rigors required to obtain a CRNA degree mean academic difficulty is common among CRNA students. When academic stumbles are severe or sustained, the student may face the possibility of remediation—retaking coursework as a condition of continuing their education.
Remediation can be a safety net, but it is an option that you should refrain from exhausting or accepting thoughtlessly. An attorney-advisor from the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team will review your case and determine if you can avoid remediation. If alternative solutions exist, our team will fight to ensure you do not burn your (perhaps only) chance to remediate coursework.
Challenges in the CRNA Curriculum That May Lead to Remediation
Wake Forest University School of Medicine outlines a CRNA program curriculum that accurately represents the rigors you will face before obtaining your degree. Program requirements include:
- Four semesters and two summers of academic coursework
- Three years of total study
- Year-round clinical education, including 800 cases and 2,500 hours of clinical practicum experience
- Study of pediatrics, obstetrics, geriatrics, open heart, neurological, plastic, otolaryngology, ophthalmology, urology, orthopedics, radiological, and transplant procedures, including both elective and emergency anesthesia
Furthermore, students who want to earn top marks may be expected to engage in extracurricular activities specific to their areas of study.
These demands reflect the non-stop demands of real-world medicine but can be a shock to nursing students. Understandably, CRNA students often experience burnout, difficulty retaining academic and clinical concepts, mental health struggles, the temptation to cut corners, and other challenges that can trigger remediation proceedings.
Specific Triggers That May Cause Program Leader to Recommend Remediation
There are a handful of specific circumstances that often require students to remediate coursework, including:
- Failing grades: The most common trigger for remediation is academic underperformance. Each CRNA program sets its own standards for passing coursework and clinicals, with Gonzaga University requiring CRNA students to complete every course with a 3.0 grade or higher.
- Failure to display clinical proficiency: Clinical rotations are an integral feature of CRNA training, and you may fulfill clinicals throughout most of your education. If you do not meet the benchmarks for passing clinicals, you may be required to remediate portions of your rotations or entire rotations.
- Absences: If you take a sanctioned or unsanctioned absence from your nursing program, you may fall behind in coursework and have to retake any work you've missed.
- Alleged misconduct: The University of New England (UNE) (p.25) explains that remediation is a possible consequence of “improper unethical, or unprofessional conduct” by CRNA students. Presumably, remediation may be necessary if a student is accused of cheating on coursework. Other potential sanctions against UNE students accused of misconduct are probation and dismissal.
Your program may address other academic or behavioral issues with remediation.
How CRNA Programs Handle Remediation Proceedings
Each nursing program may have unique procedures for administering remediation. The reason why you're remediating coursework could also determine how the remediation process unfolds.
The University of South Carolina (p.14) handles cases of remediation for unsatisfactory academic performance by:
- Issuing the student a remediation plan detailing the “weaknesses” that require remediation
- Providing a precise timeline within which the student must complete remediation requirements
- Issuing a preliminary ‘Satisfactory' grade so that the student can continue their studies while working towards remediation goals
If the student successfully completes the remediation plan, the ‘Satisfactory' grade will remain on the record. If the student fails to complete the remediation plan in the established timeline, the ‘Satisfactory' grade will be changed to ‘Unsatisfactory,' and “the student will not be allowed to progress through the program.”
In this case, the student would need to exhaust their remaining remediation opportunities to continue progressing toward their degree.
The University of Arizona College of Nursing's Nurse Anesthesiology Handbook (p.28) provides another example of how a CRNA program handles remediation. At U of A Nursing, students who fail to pass clinicals face:
- Undergo a 30-day probationary period
- Work with faculty to develop a remediation plan with clear expectations
- A re-evaluation after the 30-day period, during which time the student will be expected to have met the objectives of the remediation plan
- Either resume their studies or face dismissal, depending on the faculty's evaluation.
This blueprint, in which the CRNA student or resident must complete objectives detailed in a remediation plan, is standard for nursing students. Each school may determine the consequences of failure to meet objectives and what to do if the student has subsequent struggles after successfully completing their first remediation plan.
Why Remediation Can Be a Detriment to Your Academic and Professional Careers
There are several reasons to avoid remediation when possible, which include:
- The finite number of remediation opportunities available to you: CRNA students at the University of South Carolina have two remediation opportunities throughout their time in the program. At some schools, you may only have one chance to remediate coursework or clinical performance. Therefore, it's wise to utilize remediation only when you absolutely must.
- Remediation's inclusion on your academic record: While you would not be the first CRNA student to undergo remediation (and certainly not be the last), do not expect prospective employers to look positively upon remediation. Even in the most forgivable circumstances, like mental health struggles, your academic record will look better without remediation.
- The likelihood that dismissal follows remediation: With each remediation opportunity you exhaust, you move one step closer to dismissal. If you have already used one remediation opportunity and are facing the possibility of last-chance remediation, the stakes are even greater.
- The possibility of preferable alternative resolutions: There may be multiple resolutions available to you that are preferable to remediation. Whenever there is a better deal, you owe it to yourself to pursue it.
By the very fact that you have reached the level of acceptance into a CRNA program, you've proven yourself to be a hard worker. Lack of effort rarely explains why a CRNA student reaches the point where remediation is possible.
Often, extenuating circumstances cause a CRNA student to underperform or act uncharacteristically, and extenuating circumstances often call for uncommon solutions. Our team will work hard to secure a course of action that protects your reputation, keeps your academic record clean, and preserves your remediation safety net as it currently stands.
How an Attorney-Advisor from the Lento Law Firm Team Will Assist with Your Remediation Issue
The Lento Law Firm team develops a personalized legal strategy for each nursing student we represent, as each circumstance is unique. We provide a comprehensive array of CRNA defense services for those facing remediation, which includes:
- Gathering all relevant facts, evidence, and testimony related to your case: Before creating a plan of attack, we must evaluate the facts at hand. We will obtain any evidence relevant to your defense, including evidence in your possession and in third parties' possession. We will speak with informed witnesses and experts, gather all relevant information, and gain a complete understanding of your case.
- Creating a detailed, comprehensive strategy for achieving the best possible outcome: Once we understand your case, we will identify the ideal outcome and the strategies we will exhaust to reach that outcome. We may seek a grade change, defend you from misconduct allegations, or employ other approaches as necessary.
- Guiding you through the formal remediation process: Attorney-Advisor Joseph D. Lento will guide you through any formal proceedings necessary to seek our objective resolution. For instance, we may help you complete a grade-change petition or file a bias complaint if such tactics are appropriate.
- Negotiating with your nursing program's Office of General Counsel (OGC): We are always willing to negotiate directly with a nursing program's legal counsel, generally known as the Office of General Counsel. In fact, we often advise our clients that negotiating directly with a program's lawyers is the most efficient way to pursue a resolution and to signify to the program's leadership that we mean to obtain a just outcome.
We generally warn CRNA students against picking any local advisor or going without representation. Local attorney advisors may lack the experience that could provide an edge in your favor. Representatives affiliated with your nursing program may have conflicts of interest that work against you.
When your reputation, record, and nursing degree are at stake, hire an attorney-advisor with a proven passion for student defense.
Call the Lento Law Firm Team Today to Let Us Help with Your Remediation Issue
The Lento Law Firm has made medical student defense a key focus for years. Let our team use its experience, knowledge of CRNA-specific disciplinary procedures, and financial resources on your behalf.
Call the Lento Law Firm today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online. Don't wait, as remediation procedures can move quickly and may already be underway.
