Additional Information
Becoming an anesthesiologist is no small feat. At least 11 years of training
goes into becoming a fully qualified doctor of anesthesia. Here's how it works.
Students spend two to four years in an undergraduate program, four years
getting their medical degree, four years receiving postgraduate training in
an approved residency program for anesthesiologists, and one post-doctoral
year of fellowship in which they specialize in one of the subsections of anesthesiology.
After all this, the doctor can take a written and oral examination to become
a diplomat of the American Board of Anesthesiology -- meaning they become
a certified anesthesiologist.
Since this career requires such a long training period, experienced anesthesiologists
recommend getting all the exposure you can to this profession before jumping
in.
"Spend time in the operating room doing anesthesia while a medical student,"
recommends anesthesiologist Dr. Theresa Walker. "It's not for everyone, and
you need to find that out! There is not much exposure to anesthesia in many
medical schools and it is a very different area of medicine, so exposure is
the answer."
"If you go through medical school and are thinking about anesthesia, it
is often advisable to spend some of your elective clinical training in anesthesia,"
says Dr. Ian Zunder. "This is the only way that you will be able to determine
whether this field is for you."
While trying the career on for size may be the only way to be sure if anesthesiology
is right for you, there are other ways to test the waters. Volunteering at
a hospital or extended care unit is a good way to test your aptitude for this
career. It has the added benefit of looking great on a medical school application.