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How to Become an Anesthesiologist

Rahul Thadani
One of the most important and highly extensive role to be played by an individual while trying to save patients valuable lives. As an individual aspiring to be an anesthesiologist, this is your chance to save people who look upon you with hope.
Anesthesiology is a very important line of medical work, and its importance is vital when any patient is going in for surgery. The job is to administer anesthesia to the patient, and monitor the heart rate and other vital signs during the operation itself.
Becoming one is not a simple task by any means, and this is something that one must start preparing for from an early age. It is for this reason that most of them are children of doctors, because an uninformed person would not choose this as a career path.
The choices that one makes in high school and college play a vital role for this career, so this is something that one needs to start preparing for in high school itself.
The role requires attention to detail, as one needs to administer numbing chemicals in the human body before surgery. This can be in the form of local anesthesia or general anesthesia, and if these chemicals are not administered in the right manner, they could end up severely harming the patient.
For this reason, they are highly qualified physicians. He is basically a medical doctor (M.D.), or a physician, and he will have to complete all the training that is required of physicians.
A minimum of 12 years medical education is required in order to get into this profile. This includes 4 years of an undergraduate degree, 4 years of a graduate degree at a medical school, and then 4 years of residency training or postgraduate training at a hospital.
As you can see, this is a very lengthy process, and hence, it requires a detailed growth plan made by the individual who wishes to pursue hospital jobs and medical jobs.
In case someone wants to become an assistant nurse or even a technician, additional training will be required in the 4 years of residency training.
Some of them also prefer to follow the field of pain management or pediatrics, and that too requires additional training. Learning isn't difficult, but adhering to 12 years of rigorous studying and training is not something that everyone is cut out for.
Along with these minimum requirements, the following points must also be covered by an aspiring individual in this field.
  • One will have to pass the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE).
  • The candidate will need to get a Board Certification in Anesthesiology before pursuing employment.
  • He/She will need to get a State Medical License for the state in which he wishes to practice.
  • If the candidate is an international student, he will have to pass the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).
  • The candidate will have to possess a clean history with no instances of substance abuse, criminal record, and medical malpractice claims.

Career Prospects

The career prospects are very bright indeed, since every major hospital requires a team of dedicated and experienced staff in this field. This is something that no medical institution can do without.
The salary figures for this career are very high, and the range is around $335,000 - $450,000 per annum. This is a very high amount, and this is something that convinces many aspiring medical students to take up anesthesiology as a career.
Though this is one of the high paying jobs in the medical field, one must remember that this is also a very stressful job.
A lot of hard work and many years are required to achieve this, and not to mention the expenses of medical school. Moreover, many patients blame them in case something goes wrong during the surgery, and that is something that any aspiring doctor should be aware of and prepared for.
Once you know all there is to know about anesthesiology, you can make an informed decision about this career. It would be very helpful if you could also manage to consult a senior already in this field for more guidance.