Benefits of a Career in Anesthesiology

Benefits of the profession includes, but is not limited by the following:

1) Anesthesiologists do not usually have an ongoing relationship      with their patients (except perhaps in the field of pain      management). While some might find this aspect of the field      unsatisfying, others enjoy the flexibility of being able to enjoy      other academic or personal pursuits with a greater ease and      less overall patient burden (and paperwork!). What this means in      practice is more succinct “signouts”, and the satisfaction of      accomplishment at the end of each day. Anesthesiologists in the      intensive care setting, on the other hand, tend to have slightly      more interaction with their patients (and their families/friends),      and are more involved in the day-to-day care of their patients. In      some ways, intensive care / critical care medicine offers a      mixture of benefits that anesthesiology doesn't exclusively offer;      namely, procedure based medicine with longer-term patient      contact.

2) Anesthesia is a relatively mobile medical specialty. Since the      discipline does not have established patients as an internist or      family physician does, it is not as complicated for an      anesthesiologist to move to a new area and join a practice. This      is unlike other medical specialists who often have to build up a      roster of patients over months or years. Currently,      anesthesiologists are in demand in Canada, the US and the UK.

3) Because in some areas nurses, family doctors, and dentists are     trained to give anesthetics, some people consider     anesthesiology a less demanding specialty than other fields of     medicine. However, specialist anesthesiologists often deal with     more difficult or demanding cases, which would be beyond the     capabilities of most mid-level healthcare practitioners.

4) Some anesthesiologists choose to work part time or on a locum     basis. This offers a career that does not have to be a "lifestyle".     Anesthesiologists tend, as a whole, to work in shifts. This allows     for closer family and spousal relationships, and the flexibility to     "not make medicine the overall dominant theme of one's life".

5) Medical malpractice insurance is extremely expensive, a     potential benefit of being an anesthesiologist is to have the     opportunity to be a part of a large group practice or work as a     hospital employee (where these malpractice costs are often     covered).

6) The opportunity exists for anesthesiologists to work in mission     medicine, providing anesthesia and post-op care to patients     worldwide.

7) The salary for anesthesiologists tends to be on the higher end of     physicians' salaries. Most anesthesiologist earn in excess of     200K annually, while their critical care medicine counterparts     earn slightly less on average (but more than many primary care     fields). This is advantageous to medical students who face debt     loads in excess of 100K after graduation. Moreover, some new     Anesthesiology graduates have been able to find employers     willing to pay off their student loans.

Why Consider a Career in Anesthesiology? >
Anesthesiology Career Requirements >