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Anesthesiologists

Under the title Anesthesiologists, workers administer anesthetics and analgesics for pain management prior to, during, or after surgery. A regular part of the work is to examine patient, obtain medical history, and use diagnostic tests to determine risk during surgical, obstetrical, and other medical procedures. With a code of ISR, this is mostly a job for people drawn to research, analysis and working through hard problems. Social interests also help, rated 5.3 out of 7. Plan on graduate school and often five years or more of related experience; O*NET labels this extensive preparation. Strength in critical thinking, judgment and decision making, and reading comprehension helps most here. If you want research, analysis and working through hard problems, keep it on your list. If you need creative work with room for original expression, it may feel thin.

What they do

Administer anesthetics and analgesics for pain management prior to, during, or after surgery.

Main tasks

  • Examine patient, obtain medical history, and use diagnostic tests to determine risk during surgical, obstetrical, and other medical procedures.
  • Administer anesthetic or sedation during medical procedures, using local, intravenous, spinal, or caudal methods.
  • Record type and amount of anesthesia and patient condition throughout procedure.
  • Monitor patient before, during, and after anesthesia and counteract adverse reactions or complications.
  • Decide when patients have recovered or stabilized enough to be sent to another room or ward or to be sent home following outpatient surgery.
  • Coordinate administration of anesthetics with surgeons during operation.

Skills

  • Critical Thinking
  • Judgment and Decision Making
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Monitoring
  • Writing
  • Speaking

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You enjoy working out why something happens, not just what happened.
  • You get energy from helping other people move forward.
  • You are prepared for graduate-level study and a long training path.
  • You are comfortable relying on critical thinking and judgment and decision making.

May not suit you if

  • You lose interest when a job asks for long stretches of analysis.
  • You need creative expression to be a big part of your day. Artistic rates 1.2 out of 7 here.
  • You want to be working in the field within the next few years.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code ISR takes the three highest, and Investigative comes first here.

Preparation

Extensive preparation. Many jobs here need graduate study, and people often spend five years or more building specialist experience.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Post-Doctoral Training. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Anesthesiologist MD (Anesthesiologist Medical Doctor)
  • Anesthesiology Resident
  • Attending Anesthesiologist
  • Cardiothoracic Anesthesiologist
  • Critical Care Anesthesiologist

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.