Anesthesiologist Anesthesiologist Chimney Swift Category="Physicians by specialty"An anesthesiologist (American English), or anaesthetist (British English), is a medical doctor trained to administer Anesthesia.

Training varies depending on the country. In Australia, for example, training is overseen by the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists.

In the United States, anesthesiologists are medical doctors (MD) or osteopathic physicians (DO). Anesthesiologists complete four years of medical school training, a one year internship, then three years of postgraduate training in the form of an anesthesiology residency. In recent years, this training has become more competitive and typically only the best medical students are able to secure a position in anesthesia residency. There are multiple sub-specialties within Anesthesia: Cardiac, Obstetric, Pediatric, Transplant, Trauma, Critical Care, Interventional Pain Management, Neuro, etc. Starting salary for an anesthesiologist in the United States is between $225,000 and $300,000. Once an anesthesiologist makes partner he/she can expect to make between $350,000 and $500,000 per year. Anesthesiologists with sub-specialty training can expect to make more - especially Interventional Pain specialists who can earn between $350,000 and $700,000 per year. Registered Nurses (RN) trained to administer anesthesia are called 'anesthetists.' After completing training and earning certification, they are also known as Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA). CRNAs are currently not able to obtain further subspecialization within their field. CRNA salary averages between $80,000 and $140,000 per year depending on geographic location.

Anaesthetists in the United Kingdom are doctors with five years undergraduate training. They usually enter anaesthetics from other specialties, such as Medicine or Accident and Emergency. Specialist training then takes at least seven years. It is overseen by the Royal College of Anaesthetists. There is currently a debate within the United Kingdom about the introduction of Nurse Specialists in Anaesthesia.

Occupational hazards

Anesthesiologists are the most likely physicians to become addicted to prescription medications. Traditionally, this has been blamed on easy access to opioids. However, other physicians, such as neurologists and oncologists with ready access to painkillers are not as likely as anesthesiologists to become addicts. A University of Florida study sampled the air above patient's faces during surgeries. The samplings revealed high concentrations of the same opioids that the anesthesiologist has intravenously administered to the patients. The patients were exhaling a small amount of the drugs that they had been given. The study suggests that anesthesiologists, who usually work near the patient's head, repeatedly inhale small doses of the drugs they administer, creating a susceptibility to drug abuse. (Gold, et al., 2004)

References

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}}??2}}}} |. }} Occupational exposure and addictions for physicians: case studies and theoretical implications PMID 15550291