Anesthesia Assistants or Anesthesiologist Assistants (AA) are specially trained Registered Respiratory Therapists or Critical Care Registered Nurses that participate in the care of the stable surgical patient during general, regional, or conscious sedation anesthesia.
The Anesthesia Assistant (AA) is a mid-level anesthesia provider and is a valuable member of the Anesthesia Care Team (ACT) who works under the direct supervision of the anesthesiologist and under the authority of medical directives.
Most Anesthesia Assistants work in the operating rooms of a hospital, but they can also be found in post-operative care areas, pain clinics and special procedure rooms.
Duties of an Anesthesia Assistant include performing activities such as the provision of conscious sedation, administration of anesthetic gases and medications, insertion of hemodynamic monitors and assessment of depth of anesthesia, monitoring a patient's hemodynamic status, blood, fluid and pharmacological therapy, providing technical support to the anesthesiologist for complex anesthesia equipment, and providing airway management.