Vanderbilt Anesthesiololgy
Perioperative Medicine · Pain Managment
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Students considering the specialty of Anesthesiology often have many questions for our faculty. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions. Click on the question to view the answer.
Click here for statistical information about the specialty of Anesthesiology.
- Q: What is a typical day like for an anesthesiologist at Vanderbilt? In the clinic? In the OR? How many days/week do you spend in each?
- Q: What do physicians like most about the specialty? Give a specific example(s).
- Q: What do physicians like least about the specialty?
- Q: What are the most frequent diagnoses/reasons for an office visit/consultation?
- Q: What are the most frequent procedures performed?
- Q: What amount of patient interaction (pre-op and post-op) can be expected, in general?
- Q: What are the month-to-month duties of a resident, as he/she moves from CA-1 to CA-3? Also, are there opportunities to focus on pain management or cardiac anesthesia after residency without fellowships? As a practicing anesthesiologist, it is common to rotate between ICU coverage and OR coverage?
- Q: As anesthesiology has become more competitive in the last couple years (both in raw numbers and quality of applicants), how have programs reacted in evaluating applicants?
- Q: What are the key elements sought after in a residency applicant? What advice do you have for those interested in anesthesiology in order to best prepare themselves to be a competitive applicant?
- Q: How competitive are anesthesiology residency positions? What are the directors are looking for in terms of grades, board scores, and research? What specifically can I do to make myself a better candidate for top programs?
- Q: What are the advantages and disadvantages of pursuing anesthesiology versus internal medicine pathways for critical care? Also with reference to competition with anesthesiologists in specialty ICUs, what are advantages and disadvantages of training in specific specialties versus anesthesiology?
- Q: How is the role of the anesthesiologist changing, especially with CRNAs as part of the team?
- Q: When is the best time to be exposed to anesthesiology, during 3rd and 4th year?