Description
Administer anesthetics and analgesics for pain management prior to, during, or after surgery.
- • Administer anesthetic or sedation during medical procedures, using local, intravenous, spinal, or caudal methods.
- • Monitor patient before, during, and after anesthesia and counteract adverse reactions or complications.
- • Provide and maintain life support and airway management and help prepare patients for emergency surgery.
- • Record type and amount of anesthesia and patient condition throughout procedure.
- • Examine patient, obtain medical history, and use diagnostic tests to determine risk during surgical, obstetrical, and other medical procedures.
- • Position patient on operating table to maximize patient comfort and surgical accessibility.
- • Decide when patients have recovered or stabilized enough to be sent to another room or ward or to be sent home following outpatient surgery.
- • Coordinate administration of anesthetics with surgeons during operation.
- • Confer with other medical professionals to determine type and method of anesthetic or sedation to render patient insensible to pain.
- • Coordinate and direct work of nurses, medical technicians, and other health care providers.
- • Order laboratory tests, x-rays, and other diagnostic procedures.
- • Diagnose illnesses, using examinations, tests, and reports.
- • Manage anesthesiological services, coordinating them with other medical activities and formulating plans and procedures.
- • Provide medical care and consultation in many settings, prescribing medication and treatment and referring patients for surgery.
- • Inform students and staff of types and methods of anesthesia administration, signs of complications, and emergency methods to counteract reactions.
- • Schedule and maintain use of surgical suite, including operating, wash-up, waiting rooms, or anesthetic and sterilizing equipment.
- • Instruct individuals and groups on ways to preserve health and prevent disease.
- • Conduct medical research to aid in controlling and curing disease, to investigate new medications, and to develop and test new medical techniques.
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Healthcare & Human Services
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Source
Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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Sources & Standards:
This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
