Occupation

Anesthesiologist Assistants

Human Advantage 77%

Significant human skills needed

AI Automation Risk Moderate Risk
3.1 / 10

Some tasks in this role may be augmented by AI, but human oversight and interpersonal skills remain important.

Assist anesthesiologists in the administration of anesthesia for surgical and non-surgical procedures. Monitor patient status and provide patient care during surgical treatment.

Also Known As: Anesthesia Assistant, Anesthesia Technician, Anesthesia Technologist, Anesthesiologist Assistant, Anesthesiologists' Assistant, Cardiothoracic Anesthesia Technician, Certified Anesthesia Technician, Certified Anesthesiologist Assistant +1 more

Video

Core Tasks

  1. Provide airway management interventions including tracheal intubation, fiber optics, or ventilary support.
  2. Respond to emergency situations by providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), basic cardiac life support (BLS), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), or pediatric advanced life support (PALS).
  3. Verify availability of operating room supplies, medications, and gases.
  4. Pretest and calibrate anesthesia delivery systems and monitors.
  5. Participate in seminars, workshops, or other professional activities to keep abreast of developments in anesthesiology.

Supplemental Tasks (11)

  1. Control anesthesia levels during procedures.
  2. Assist anesthesiologists in monitoring of patients, including electrocardiogram (EKG), direct arterial pressure, central venous pressure, arterial blood gas, hematocrit, or routine measurement of temperature, respiration, blood pressure or heart rate.
  3. Administer blood, blood products, or supportive fluids.
  4. Collect and document patients' pre-anesthetic health histories.
  5. Assist in the provision of advanced life support techniques including those procedures using high frequency ventilation or intra-arterial cardiovascular assistance devices.
  6. Monitor and document patients' progress during post-anesthesia period.
  7. Administer anesthetic, adjuvant, or accessory drugs under the direction of an anesthesiologist.
  8. Assist anesthesiologists in performing anesthetic procedures, such as epidural or spinal injections.
  9. Provide clinical instruction, supervision or training to staff in areas such as anesthesia practices.
  10. Assist in the application of monitoring techniques, such as pulmonary artery catheterization, electroencephalographic spectral analysis, echocardiography, or evoked potentials.
  11. Collect samples or specimens for diagnostic testing.

Education & Training

Job Zone 5 Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
Education: Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Experience: Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.
On-the-Job Training: Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Education Level Distribution

Percentage of workers in this occupation with each education level.

Master's Degree
42%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)
22%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)
17%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.
15%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree)
4%
Post-Master's Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master's degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.
1%

Technology & Tools

Hot Technologies

  • Microsoft Access
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Word
  • eClinicalWorks EHR software

Software (30)

  • Allscripts PM
  • Automatic Data Processing AdvancedMD EHR
  • Benchmark Systems Benchmark Clinical EHR
  • Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
  • CareCloud Central
  • Cerner PowerWorks Practice Management
  • Email software
  • Epic Practice Management
  • GE Healthcare Centricity Practice Solution
  • GalacTek ECLIPSE
  • Greenway Medical Technologies PrimeSUITE
  • HealthFusion MediTouch
  • IOS Health Systems Medios EHR
  • Kareo Practice Management
  • McKesson Practice Plus
  • Modernizing Medicine Practice Management
  • NextGen Healthcare NextGen Practice Management
  • Pyxis MedStation software
  • Vitera Healthcare Solutions Vitera Intergy
  • WRSHealth EMR
  • Word processing software
  • athenahealth athenaCollector
  • simplifyMD

Tools & Equipment (42)

  • Anesthesia breathing bags
  • Anesthesia vaporizers
  • Arterial line catheters
  • Assist-control ventilation equipment
  • Automated external defibrillators AED
  • Automatic blood pressure cuffs
  • Bilevel positive airway pressure BPAP equipment
  • Capnographs
  • Cardiac output monitors
  • Central venous pressure monitoring catheters
  • Coagulation monitors
  • Continuous positive airway pressure CPAP equipment
  • Digital spirometers
  • Double lumen tubes
  • Echocardiography equipment
  • Electrocardiography EKG machines
  • Electromyographs EMG
  • Endotracheal tubing
  • Gas anesthesia machines
  • High frequency ventilation devices
  • Intracranial pressure ICP monitors
  • Intravenous IV catheters
  • Intravenous IV infusion pumps
  • Invasive blood pressure analysis equipment
  • Laryngoscopes
  • Mechanical stethoscopes
  • Nasal airways
  • Non-rebreather masks
  • Oxygen delivery concentrators
  • Oxygen delivery masks
  • Oxygen saturation monitors
  • Oxygen tanks
  • Peak flow meters
  • Peripheral nerve stimulators
  • Portable ventilation devices
  • Pressure support ventilation PSV equipment
  • Pulse oximeters
  • Sphygmomanometers
  • Synchronized intermittent mandatory ventilators SIMV
  • Ultrasound imaging scanners
  • Vital signs monitors
  • Volume limited infant ventilation devices

Where This Career Leads

Career progression organized by specialty track and experience level.

Physical Health Advanced Manufacturing

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