Editor’s Note: National Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist Week is January 22-28. To celebrate, the UNMC Department of Anesthesiology is featuring the unique personal and professional stories of various CRNAs in the department.
CRNAs Nicholas and Katie Denich met while working as intensive care unit nurses and became fast friends. They attended graduate school together at the University of Kansas Medical Center and accepted positions at Nebraska Medicine in 2017. After a couple of years of getting settled, they began dating in 2019 and married in 2020.
“We completed our education and training journey together, and it’s wonderful to have him by my side in both my personal and professional life,” Katie Denich said.
Their paths are also similar because they knew early on that they wanted to become CRNAs. Nick Denich’s entire family are nurses. Both parents are RNs. His sister is a NICU nurse practitioner. His brother is a hospitalist nurse practitioner, and his sister-in-law is an ICU nurse.
Nick Denich attributes his career motivation to his father in particular. While pursuing a biology degree, his father told him about nurse anesthesia. After graduating from nursing school at Clarkson College, Nick Denich worked at the Nebraska Medicine cardiac progressive care unit for a year, then the cardiac intensive care unit for two, before he attended the nurse anesthesia program at the University of Kansas.
“My father was able to help push me in the anesthesia direction when I was searching for career possibilities as an undergrad biology student,” he said. “The career seemed like an exciting and challenging option. After shadowing a nurse anesthetist, it felt like a promising balance of knowledge and skill.”
Katie Denich applied to an undergraduate nursing program knowing that becoming a CRNA was her end goal. She worked in veterinary clinics as an undergrad working toward a Bachelor of Science in biology.
“It was there that my interest in anesthesia first developed,” she said. “A family friend, who was a nurse, asked me if I would ever be interested in pursuing anesthesia as a career. At the time, I was fairly unfamiliar with what a CRNA was, but she worked with them frequently and had nothing but excellent things to say about them.”
After researching the field and shadowing a few CRNAs, she knew that’s what she wanted to do. She applied to an undergraduate nursing program, worked in the cardiovascular ICU at Nebraska Medicine for two years, then applied to the doctoral nurse anesthesia program at the University of Kansas Medical Center.
Both Katie and Nick Denich cite the complexity of cases and high-quality patient care as reasons each chose to work at UNMC. Providing anesthesia and pain management in various surgical, therapeutic, and diagnostic areas is a source of professional pride for both. Katie Denich said she appreciates the value on educating future providers and she enjoys being a part of that process.
“We have the privilege and responsibility of caring for people at what is potentially one of the most stressful times in their lives,” she said. “I just hope that I am able to not only care for their medical needs but offer support and compassion to my patients and their families.”
Nick Denich said experience is invaluable for anyone thinking about a career as a CRNA and tells students to challenge themselves to obtain the best experiences possible by working in higher acuity critical care and shadowing multiple nurse anesthetists.
“There are so many different areas and places you can work as a CRNA,” Katie Denich said. “While the education and training are difficult, the rewards are worth it. Shadow as many nurse anesthetists as possible, ask questions, take the opportunities as they come, create opportunities when they are not presented and just keep plugging away.”
When not at work, they can be found destressing by relaxing with family and their dogs. They also appreciate traveling, exploring new cities and restaurants and enjoying the company of their friends. Nick Denich said he could often be found on the golf course or tinkering in his woodshop.