American Society of Anesthesiologists
Founded in 1905, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) is an educational, research, and scientific society with more than 60,000 members organized to advance the medical practice of anesthesiology and secure its future. ASA is committed to ensuring anesthesiologists evaluate and supervise the medical care of all patients before, during, and after surgery. ASA members also lead the care of critically ill patients in intensive care units, as well as treat pain in both acute and chronic settings.
For more information on the field of anesthesiology, visit ASA online at asahq.org. To learn more about how anesthesiologists help ensure patient safety, visit asahq.org/madeforthismoment. ASA publishes Anesthesiology, Anesthesiology Open, and ASA Monitor, and stays connected with members and the public on Facebook, X, Instagram, Bluesky, and LinkedIn.
Physician
Workplace violence in health care has become one of the most urgent occupational safety crises in the United States. Anesthesiologists, as well as other physicians, nurses, emergency personnel, therapists, technicians, and support staff, routinely face verbal threats, intimidation, physical assault,…
Workplace violence in health care has become one of the most urgent occupational safety crises in the United States. Anesthesiologists, as well as other physicians, nurses, emergency personnel, therapists, technicians, and support staff, routinely face verbal threats, intimidation, physical assault, …
Read more…
Workplace violence in health care demands systemic change
Medical Education
One of my favorite quotes is, "If you're not at the table, you're on the menu." I did not fully understand the meaning of that statement until I became involved in advocacy and organized medicine during medical school. Like many…
One of my favorite quotes is, “If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.” I did not fully understand the meaning of that statement until I became involved in advocacy and organized medicine during medical school.
Like many medical students, I entered training focused almost entirely on becoming the …
Read more…
Medical student advocacy begins before you feel ready
Health Policy
Imagine a physician who has been practicing anesthesiology for 20 years. She is skilled, board-certified, well-liked, and respected by her team. She now works more hours than she did 10 years ago, covers more call, cares for sicker patients, and…
Imagine a physician who has been practicing anesthesiology for 20 years. She is skilled, board-certified, well-liked, and respected by her team. She now works more hours than she did 10 years ago, covers more call, cares for sicker patients, and manages an …
Read more…
Insurance consolidation is a patient safety problem
Conditions and Diseases
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD. Do no harm. We learn this throughout our medical education and training, and in practice it is a keystone for clinical decision making. This principle continues to inspire…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.
Do no harm. We learn this throughout our medical education and training, and in practice it is a keystone for clinical decision making. This principle continues to inspire patient safety, quality improvement, and better patient care. Do no harm also applies to …
Read more…
Air quality alert: Reducing our carbon footprint in health care
Health Policy
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. The U.S. spends the largest amount of money on health care in the world – around $4.3 trillion annually. However, an estimated 20% to 30% of this is…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
The U.S. spends the largest amount of money on health care in the world – around $4.3 trillion annually. However, an estimated 20% to 30% of this is wasted, with no benefit reaching the populace. Culprits contributing to this waste include administrative …
Read more…
The high “cost” of waste in U.S. health care, and what we can do about it
Physician
You are called by the bedside nurse that your patient arrived on the floor from the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). The nurse tells you that the patient was delirious and agitated after anesthesia, pulled out their IVs, and was sedated…
You are called by the bedside nurse that your patient arrived on the floor from the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). The nurse tells you that the patient was delirious and agitated after anesthesia, pulled out their IVs, and was sedated by the PACU team. They are …
Read more…
Advice for the hospitalist caring for a patient after delirium in the post-anesthesia care unit
Physician
"We need an urgent pain consult for patient Lucy Bee in room 5621. She's a 17-year-old drug addict and is screaming and wanting morphine," I was told. Lucy Bee is not a real patient, but a composite of patients I…
“We need an urgent pain consult for patient Lucy Bee in room 5621. She’s a 17-year-old drug addict and is screaming and wanting morphine,” I was told. Lucy Bee is not a real patient, but a composite of patients I have cared for either when providing pain management services on our inpatient floors, or in the operating …
Read more…
Words matter: Caring for pain patients with suspected opioid use disorder
Medications
In November 2022, revisions to the United States Pharmacopeia's (USP) General Chapter , a standard for sterile pharmaceutical compounding – defined as the process of "combining, admixing, diluting, pooling, reconstituting, repackaging, or otherwise altering a drug product or bulk drug…
In November 2022, revisions to the United States Pharmacopeia’s (USP) General Chapter <797>, a standard for sterile pharmaceutical compounding – defined as the process of “combining, admixing, diluting, pooling, reconstituting, repackaging, or otherwise altering a drug product or bulk drug substance to create a sterile medication” – were published. USP <797> plays a major role in guiding …
Read more…
Advocacy and collaboration lead to major patient safety benefits on sterile pharmaceutical compounding: a review of USP’s revisions to Chapter
Physician
Every day, in my job as an anesthesiologist, I am called upon to manage conflict. Sometimes, it's between two members of my team, sometimes it's between coworkers, and many times it is a conflict I may have with my own…
Every day, in my job as an anesthesiologist, I am called upon to manage conflict. Sometimes, it’s between two members of my team, sometimes it’s between coworkers, and many times it is a conflict I may have with my own co-worker or peer.
Whether it’s because someone I supervise is chronically late or underprepared, I have to go …
Read more…
Maximizing physician potential: How coaching can aid in conflict resolution, enhance health care leadership and build stronger teams
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Health disparities affecting minority and vulnerable populations are increasingly well-recognized after the disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Across a large number of quality metrics, the Agency for…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
Health disparities affecting minority and vulnerable populations are increasingly well-recognized after the disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Across a large number of quality metrics, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s latest National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report found that Blacks, American Indians, Alaskan Natives, …
Read more…
Addressing health disparities to improve patient safety
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. My physician grandfather believed medicine was the noblest profession, a career that combined making an honest living with a meaningful difference. Inspired by his passion, I followed in…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
My physician grandfather believed medicine was the noblest profession, a career that combined making an honest living with a meaningful difference. Inspired by his passion, I followed in his footsteps, believing I was on the path to a lucrative life of helping people in need.
The reality has …
Read more…
Investing today in early-career physicians’ unique needs fuels tomorrow’s health care leaders
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. A nurse is assisting the attending physician in placing a central line in the intensive care unit. It's 3 a.m., and the attending is clearly tired, having admitted…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
A nurse is assisting the attending physician in placing a central line in the intensive care unit.
It’s 3 a.m., and the attending is clearly tired, having admitted eight patients so far on her shift. The nurse notices the physician pushing her eyeglasses up her nose – after …
Read more…
Speak up for safety in health care
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. The health care landscape has never been more complex. A deadly and enduring pandemic; health care delivery challenges that leave some communities at higher risk for adverse outcomes;…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
The health care landscape has never been more complex. A deadly and enduring pandemic; health care delivery challenges that leave some communities at higher risk for adverse outcomes; an opioid crisis that takes nearly 200 American lives per day; and an ever-evolving regulatory …
Read more…
The perioperative surgical home: a model to tackle today’s pressing health care issues
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Approximately 30 percent of the world’s population reports living with some form of pain, ranging from headaches to joint pain to cancer-related pain. Unfortunately, pain medicine expertise and…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
Approximately 30 percent of the world’s population reports living with some form of pain, ranging from headaches to joint pain to cancer-related pain. Unfortunately, pain medicine expertise and the medications and non-drug therapies available to relieve pain are not as widely distributed as …
Read more…
The heartbreak and joy of missions-based pain medicine: a pain physician’s perspective
Physician
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. There are some moments in life that, when you look back years later, you see a pivot. The fork in the road you didn't recognize at the time,…
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
There are some moments in life that, when you look back years later, you see a pivot. The fork in the road you didn’t recognize at the time, that looking back, changed the trajectory of your life.
One of those moments in my life …
Read more…
Why I did not want to become a leader, and why accidentally becoming one was the best thing that happened to me
Real physician voices, twice a week
Free, and one click to unsubscribe.
