How Many Years of School to Become an Anesthesiologist Assistant?
Anesthesiologist assistants are specialized physicians assistants working under the supervision of a licensed anesthesiologist to help with the care of surgical patients as related to anesthesia. Most of these assistants work in large medical facilities and hospitals where doctors perform major surgeries, notes the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). They must complete several years of education beyond high school to be able to perform their job.
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Job Features
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Before each operation, the anesthesiologist assistant reviews the patient's medical history and completes preoperative patient care, including inserting catheters and intravenous lines. During surgery, the anesthesiologist assistant may operate special monitors and support equipment for cardiac and lung function. He keeps the patient under observation and helps respond to any complications that develop. Afterward, this assistant monitors patients during recovery.
Undergraduate Degree
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Aspiring anesthesiologist assistants first must complete a bachelor's degree, which generally takes four years. They usually follow a premedical track and major in a scientific field such as biology, chemistry or physics because admission to a graduate program in this field requires the same science course work a premedical student needs, reports the CAAHEP. Other common undergraduate majors for these students include mathematics, computer science, respiratory therapy, medical technology and nursing.
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Graduate Degree
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After obtaining a bachelor's degree, the student attends a master's degree program accredited by the CAAHEP. These programs typically last 24 to 27 months. Only five schools offer the degree as of 2010, according to the American Academy of Anesthesiologist Assistants. They include the University of Missouri at Kansas City School of Medicine, South University School of Health Professions, Nova Southeastern University College of Allied Health and Nursing, Emory University School of Medicine and Case Western Reserve University Department of Anesthesiology.
Graduate Course Work
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Course work at the master's level includes patient monitoring and instrumentation, pharmacology and applied physiology for anesthesiologist assistants, relevant laws and ethics and extensive clinical experience. An example of an accredited program, the master of health science in anesthesia provided by Nova Southeastern University, takes 27 months to complete. Their clinical training occurs in a mock operating room with an anesthesia simulator. Students do clinical rotations during the final year of their program. Training covers all aspects of anesthesia care for the surgical patient, and students receive a minimum of 2,500 clinical hours. Clinical rotations include all specialty areas of anesthesia, such as general surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedics, neurosurgery, ophthalmology, vascular and cardiac operations, transplants and trauma.
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References
- Photo Credit laparoscopic surgery image by Grzegorz Kwolek from Fotolia.com
