WHY ANESTHESIA?! My journey to becoming a physician anesthesiologist

To become an anesthesiologist, you must obtain a college degree (4 years), finish medical school (typically 4 years), complete an anesthesiology residency (4 years) and sometimes add on a fellowship (1 year each). So how did I decide to pursue this field requiring at least 12 years of preparation!?

Learn more about how I discovered the field of anesthesiology and some of the experiences I had along the way that helped me decide which fields were NOT a good fit for me [e.g. I thought I'd be an OB/gyn for a while, there was a time when I wanted to be a surgeon, and when I was an intern, I SERIOUSLY thought about switching to INTERNAL MEDICINE!].

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DISCLAIMER: I never record videos during active patient care. Opinions in my videos are mine and not representative of the organizations I am part of. Videos are meant for education and are not medical advice. Links included in this description may be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you! Thank you for supporting my channel!

[laisaviana]

It’s great to hear that you were an engineer. I used to be a lawyer and now I’m a third year medical student! ❤

[JustinYuanMD]

I can see future med students finding this video and inspiring them to consider anesthesia as well :]

[doctorfaheemkhanbalouch]

Thank for sharing your experience. I am a resident in Anesthesiology. I love it

[okidokidoc]

Your journey really resonated with me! I'm currently in the "lost medical student trying everything" stage in life, HAHAHA. But thank you, Doc Amanda for making these kinds of videos. Now I have something to look forward to, and I really am considering critical care and Anesthesiology in the future! Hope you keep 'em coming! looking forward to your videos :)

[jeanpauljeanpaul]

Radiology is the way to go, sadly I can no longer work because of a traumatic brain injury. stay safe Doc!

[ericottojr]

Thank you so much for posting this! I'm a third, heavily considering Anesthesia. Like you, I also feel like I could see myself in multiple specialties. Really helpful to hear your thought process!

[teriinguyn]

It is here and we are so so grateful!!!

[marcellajewell]

Just started ms3 and really interested in anesthesia- thanks for making this!

[SuntoLim]

New video!!! Thanks doc for sharing your experience 😁

[SludgeMan]

Hi Amanda. I am about to graduate and I am struggling with what path to go on form here as a result of suffering with a lot of chronic health issues. Do you think anesthesia is a more overwhelming and physically demanding residency as compared to other residencies ? I do enjoy the physiology quite a lot and I like the OR, but perhaps it is not a great fit if you tend to get off days when your function can be somewhat reduced.

[ameliawan]

Thank you for sharing your experiences! I am currently in Nursing school and am graduating next year. I love critical care and ICU. I was thinking about advancing my education to gain more knowledge. I know that for MDA, you can work as an intensivist. But a CRNA can't work in ICU. I agree with you that I would love to also interact with patients and care for them for the stay. I would love that if you can share your suggestions with me! I just watched all your videos, and I love them!

[kimberlyplacencia]

Hi! Thank you for this video! Since you are also an intensivist, how does your schedule look in a week? Between being in the ICU and the OR?

[AdilKhan]

Do you know people who have finished one residency and now wanting to do anesthesia? I’m in that boat and looking for guidance. Thanks.

[-mj]

Thank you for providing this auspicious information....Iam from Mahabubabad district headquarter, Telangana State, India 🇮🇳

[daoud]

Hello, I want a speciality with at the same the knowledge, medications and hand procedures like intubations, … Do you think anesthésiology is good for me?

[willbianca]

This is my dream job i'm in my last year of high school going into college would u help me and answer some questions i have

[masymd]

Cardiac anesthesiologist here.

I get some of what you’re saying, but the harsh reality is that anesthesiology is not a worthwhile use of a medical degree. Very little of what we do on a day to day basis actually qualifies as the practice of medicine, and the breadth of things we need to know in order to do our jobs simply doesn’t rise to the level of a medical specialty. We perform very simple tasks that are delegated to us because the surgeon is busy doing surgery. In fact, much of what we do has been determined for us, and there is little opportunity (or need) for us to make decisions both peri operative Lu and intraoperatively. We don’t possess much special knowledge or many skills that surgeons cannot quickly learn themselves. Delivery of volatile agents, mask ventilation, placement of invasive airways, and fluid resuscitation are skills that most surgeons either possess or can easily learn. Regional anesthesia is equally simple. And no, we are not “airway experts” either.

Critical care medicine, as you pursued, does remedy some of the deficiencies in anesthesiology as a specialty, as does pain medicine. Not surprisingly, however, critical care anesthesiologists are often limited to working in surgical ICUs and are consultants rather than admitting physicians. For the rest of us, however: we do not practice medicine. We perform tasks.

I’d also add that, by choosing anesthesiology, we give up much of the autonomy, control, and yes, respect that we once expected when we were budding physicians.

[ihsansyed]

Hello dear, I am ihsan syeed from Pakistan I am anesthesia technician I have 4 years experience with anesthesia.now I want to pursue my higher education, so what should I do now

[Hamzakhan-xgms]

Which degrees ? Step by step ..A person must needs to be Physician as well as Anesthesiologist .

[akhilraaj]

After watching the whole thing, I think int Med is more apt for u