About

Kelley Nichols, CRNA is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist and Co-Founder of TheCRNA.com, with over two decades of experience in critical care and anesthesia practice. She is actively practicing and serves as the site's clinical expert, providing oversight and insight across content related to CRNA careers, compensation, and the evolving job market.

Clinical Background

Kelley Nichols began her career in a Level I trauma center intensive care unit, where she worked for five years managing high-acuity patients requiring advanced airway management, ventilatory support, vasoactive medications, and complex hemodynamic monitoring.

During her time in critical care, she served as a preceptor to new nurses, took on leadership responsibilities within the unit, and contributed to multidisciplinary collaboration through unit-based practice initiatives. She also participated in clinical research, quality improvement efforts, and ongoing professional development.

Her experience spans trauma stabilization, perioperative care, and emergency response, with a strong focus on patient outcomes and multidisciplinary coordination. She has held leadership roles in clinical settings, contributing to patient triage, staffing, and training.

Anesthesia Training

She earned her Master of Science in Nurse Anesthesia from the Bradley University / Decatur Memorial Hospital program (now Millikin University), graduating with a 3.93 GPA. She was a member of the National Honor Society of Nursing (Sigma Theta Tau) and received the Ethel M. Lebkuecher Memorial Fund Award for Most Outstanding Student Clinician.

Her training focused on anesthesia delivery, perioperative management, and complex clinical decision-making across surgical environments.

Professional Leadership

In addition to her clinical work, Kelley has contributed to the advancement of the CRNA profession through leadership roles, including serving as IT Chair for her state CRNA association. Her work supported technology initiatives and organizational development within the profession.

Credentials

• Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
• Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN)
• Basic Life Support (BLS)
• Advanced Cardiac Life Support - Experienced Provider (ACLS-EP)
• Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)
• Trauma Nurse Core Curriculum (TNCC)
• Neonatal Advanced Life Support (NALS)

Clinical Review & Contributions

Kelley Nichols provides clinical review and contributes to content on TheCRNA.com to ensure accuracy in topics related to anesthesia practice, CRNA employment, compensation trends, and clinical work environments. Her work helps align content with real-world clinical standards and current industry practices.

Areas of Focus

• CRNA job market and compensation trends
• Anesthesia practice and perioperative care
• CRNA career pathways and transitions
• Clinical work environments

Clinical Review & Expertise

Content on TheCRNA.com is informed by real-world clinical experience and ongoing industry involvement. Kelley reviews and contributes to content to ensure accuracy in topics related to anesthesia practice, CRNA employment, compensation trends, and clinical work environments, helping align information with current standards and professional expectations.

Content reviewed by Kelley Nichols, CRNA reflects clinical experience and is intended for informational purposes only.