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Thursday, March 10, 2011

Research Paper on Anesthesiology

Research Paper on Anesthesiology

The Discover Test indicated that Arts and Science/Technology might be career areas of interest to me. The career I chose to learn about is anesthesiology, which falls into the Science/Technology category. There are many types of jobs available with a study in anesthesiology, including group and private practice, teaching in medical school, working on research, and becoming an administrator. Anesthesia is one of the most important aspects of medical care, as surgery would be extremely painful and often impossible without it.

Anesthesiology did not emerge as a profession until the mid-1930s. The next few decades saw a major increase in the development of new pain-reducing drugs. Before this the methods of reducing pain were often did more harm than good.
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Alcohol was frequently used, but this was dangerous to the patient, especially if blood loss was involved. The only other alternative was opiates, which are extremely addictive, and often administered in lethal doses. Today, there are many tested and approved anesthetics that can be used depending on the patient and the situation.

Educational requirements in this field are very demanding. This career requires four years of undergraduate studies, 4 years of medical school, and 6 to 8 years of internship. The internship involves substantial supervised experience with general patient care to begin with. As the intern gains more experience, specific anesthetic practices and independent experience are stressed.

Anesthesiologists must also pass a certification test given by the American Board of Medical Specialist, to become licensed. A good understanding of biology, chemistry, and mathematics are important studies prior to entering medical school. Anesthesiologists must also be motivated, have a desire to help patients, pleasant manners, decision making skills, and continued studies in the field to keep up to date on new developments. The University of Arkansas’s College of Medicine at Little Rock offers a degree and training in becoming an anesthesiologist. The College of Medicine also actively pursues helping students find an internship position after medical school has been completed.

Anesthesiologists are physicians who administer and determine what type of anesthetic treatment is to be used for the patient prior to surgery, as well as positioning the patient on the operating table in a manner that will be beneficial to the surgery. Following strict medical guidelines, the anesthesiologist takes into account the patient’s current health, any medications they are taking, and the type of surgery that is being performed. While the surgery is taking place, the anesthesiologist monitors the patient’s critical life functions to make sure no complications arise. After the surgery is over, the patient’s well being has to be monitored as the anesthetic wears off. Anesthesiologists must also assist in chronic and cancer related pain treatment, cardiac and respiratory resuscitation, blood transfusions, and preside over nurse anesthesiologists. Records must also be kept of the type and amount of drugs administered, and the condition of the patient before, during, and after sedation.

The amount of training put into this career definitely pays off, both personally and financially. The average starting pay for an anesthesiologist is $215,000 a year.

The overall average pay for those with experience is $280,000. In Arkansas, workers in this field make $137,900 a year on average, well below the national pay level.

The job is also very rewarding in knowing that a life has been saved or improved.

One anesthesiologist remarked that “I know I have personally saved over 700 patients who otherwise would have died. To me, this is very rewarding!” There will always be a need for more workers in this field. Right now, almost 50% of the hospitals across the nation are reporting a need for more anesthesiologists. This often slows down the process of patients desiring elective surgeries, and in extreme cases closing down entire surgical facilities. Arkansas hospitals hire around 200 anesthesiologists a year. This is due mostly to the small numbers of workers available, not to the actual demand. Over 40 million surgeries are performed each year, all of which require anesthesia in one form or another, making the demand for anesthesiologists continually rise. This career is not for everyone, however.

Anesthesiologists are often responsible for life and death situations, subject to high malpractice insurance costs, and heavy emotional stress involved with caring for patients. Very irregular hours are usually required as well. Sometimes an anesthesiologist is required to work a 24 hour shift, and on average work a 10 to 12 hour day. Extreme amounts of concentration are highly required, as anesthetic drugs can be very dangerous if administered improperly or the wrong amount is used.

Becoming an anesthesiologist involves rigorous academic and internship studies, as well as being very stressful at times. There will always be a demand for more anesthesiologists, in all areas of practice and in development of new treatments.

The shortage of worker’s in this field is causing hospitals to face delays in surgery. I think the positives far outweigh the negatives, especially knowing that a life was improved or saved because of one’s help. Anesthesiologist save many lives each year, and in my opinion make a lasting contribution to society.

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Warning!!! All free online research papers, research paper samples and example research papers on Anesthesiology topics are plagiarized and cannot be fully used in your high school, college or university education.

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