Role of a Physician Anesthesiologist

Physician Anesthesiologists Play a Critical Role, Before, During, and After Surgery

Provide Safe and Effective Multi-Modal Pain Management

pain multi model Physician anesthesiologists and pain medicine specialists are on the front lines of fighting the opioid epidemic.

They are leading experts in utilizing non-opioid pain medicine options including interventional procedures and non-pharmacological approaches.

They work with patients to implement tailored pain management plans to ensure optimal recovery.

Increase Efficiency & Reduce Healthcare Costs

Physician involvement can reduce costs by avoiding over-utilization of tests, over-prescribing medications, and excess referrals to specialists.

Save Lives and Improve Health Outcomes

mortality rate 10-5-2021

Ensure Oversight and Lead The Care Team

Some healthcare facilities use an Anesthesia Care Team made up of multiple providers under the leadership of a physician anesthesiologists:

Physician Anesthesiologists On the Front Lines of COVID-19

Anesthesiologists have been leaders in the heroic response by our nation's healthcare providers to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and save lives. To address immediate needs in hospitals and other healthcare settings, anesthesiologists’ role as specialized physicians expanded from perioperative and pain medicine to emergency response, critical care, and crisis management.

The Critical Role of Physician Anesthesiologists During COVID-19

Leading specialized COVID airway intubation teams.
Flexing into critical care settings.
Working with hospital administrators on creative approaches to expand capacity and prepare for surges.
Creating consensus-based guidance.
Facilitating the sharing of best practices for the treatment of this novel disease.
Contributing to information management and data tracking.
Facing personal risk in the pursuit of patient care

WHY MEDICAL SCHOOL AND PHYSICIAN TRAINING IS ESSENTIAL FOR PATIENT SAFETY

The Critical Differences Between Physicians and Nurses

Patient safety, and the safe practice of medicine, depends on physician leadership and supervision. There have been recent political efforts aimed at expanding the scope of practice for nurses, but it is important to recognize the clear differences between physicians and nurses.

Physician anesthesiologists are licensed medical doctors (MDs) who have advanced training that enables them to make difficult diagnoses, treat patients with complex medical conditions, and intervene to manage life-threatening complications that may arise during treatment.

A nurse is not the same as, and cannot replace, a physician anesthesiologist.

Transparency With Credentials

Transparency and clear communication with patients about provider training and capabilities is essential for upholding medical ethics and ensuring patient safety. Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists must be properly identified as nurses; similarly, when a nurse has earned a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree (DNP) it is misleading to use the title “Doctor” within a healthcare setting as that term is widely understood by patients, families, and colleagues to mean a medical doctor (MD).

Differences in Education & Training

Based on their expertise, physician anesthesiologists are able to safely determine if patients are ready to undergo surgery, facilitate alternative pain management techniques, and develop personalized pain management plans, thus reducing hospital re-admittance and improving patient recovery times. Nurses are well-trained in nursing, and highly qualified to fulfill nursing duties. But they do not have the same education, training, research capability, responsibilities, expectations, or liability that doctors do.