An anesthesiologist is a physician who provides medication to patients so that they don’t feel pain while undergoing surgery. However, these specialist doctors play other roles than just putting patients to sleep for surgery. Some physicians like William I Yancey, MD from Yancey Pain & Spine, are also involved in a range of other medical procedures like providing advice on pain management, handling emergencies, and conducting assessments in critical care units.
What does Anesthesiology mean?
Anesthesiology is the practice of medicine that deals with relieving pain and caring for surgical patients before, during, and after surgery.
What does an anesthesiologist do?
Here are some of the roles of anesthesiologists:
- Pain relief in surgery
Before surgery, the patient will meet an anesthesiologist for an assessment. The anesthesiologist will develop a plan for the surgery that considers the individual needs of the particular patient.
On the operation day, the anesthesiologist will supervise the administration of medication to ensure that the patient does not feel any pain.
The type of pain medication given during the operation include:
- Local anesthesia that is applied near the nerves around the region that will be operated. This can include epidural or spinal injections or nerve blocks
- Sedation that includes intravenous drugs to calm the patient or make them unaware of the surgery
- General anesthesia that makes the patient sleep during the time of operation
During the surgery, the surgeon will operate on the patient, but an anesthesiologist will continue to be responsible for the patient’s medical management. They will monitor your bodily functions and assess the best way to treat the vital organs while providing a balance of medications that suit the needs of the particular patient.
The functions they monitor include:
- Fluid balance
- Body temperature
- Blood pressure
- Breathing
- Heart rate and rhythm
The anesthesiologist regulates these essential measures and the level of pain and unconscious of the patient throughout the surgery.
- After surgery
The anesthesiologist continues to be responsible for the overall care of a patient after surgery. They assist in reversing the impacts of the anesthesia and continue evaluating the patient and keeping them comfortable as they continue recovering.
- Emergency and critical care and other functions
An anesthesiologist assesses patients, provides support for circulation and breathing, and assists in ensuring that infection is prevented. They also contribute to emergency care by providing cardiac and airway resuscitation as well as pain control. They assist in stabilizing patients and preparing them for surgery.
- Pain control and advice
Anesthesiologists specialize in pain medicine and can assist patients who have pain due to various causes, including pelvic pain, abdominal pain, herpes and diabetes, burns, headaches, herniated disc, spinal cord pain, back pain, sciatica, pinched nerves, joint pain, and chronic pain.
Their roles in this medical field include;
- Counseling patients and their families
- Performing pain-relieving operations
- Rehabilitative services and prescribing medication
- Treating the patients
They can also direct a multidisciplinary team and coordinate other medical professionals on the best way of delivering care to patients suffering from pain.
Finding an anesthesiologist
Yancey pain & Spine has a team of professionals who have exceptional skills and experience in pain management and can help you if you are seeking a definitive solution for your problems so that you can get back to your work and normal life. They understand how the body works and take a thorough approach to solve your problems by identifying and treating the root cause of your pain.