Despite their crucial role in ensuring patient safety during surgery, anesthesia technicians often work behind the scenes, unnoticed by most. These skilled professionals are the unsung heroes of the operating room, playing a key role in administering anesthesia and monitoring equipment. Yet, their contributions remain largely unknown to the public.
To shed light on this vital profession, I spoke with Shelby Ross, Program Chair for the Anesthesia Technology program at MATC, which is a part of the Healthcare Pathway:
Can you tell us more about this program?
“Anesthesia technology is probably one of those professions you’ve never actually heard of…We all know, or maybe we all heard of what an anesthesiologist is: A medical doctor who spent four plus years learning anesthesia after med school. Well, these people are only born with two hands, so they need help…. What we do is assist with anesthesia. We help get things prepared to help get patients off to sleep, that’s the anesthesia machine, and all the different equipment. We’re also experts in how all of this equipment is set up and actually used…and works properly. If things don’t go according to plan, we’re there to assist them (doctors) in those events as well.”
“It’s a more of an unknown profession. Most people are usually given medication to help them relax prior to their surgery, and we don’t often meet people prior to their surgery. We usually meet them after they have been given that medication. So, they don’t remember us, which is the goal. Our anesthesiologists and anesthesia techs don’t really want to be remembered. We want to be there to help deliver the care, but we want the patient to not remember it, because no one wants to remember their surgery.”
Ross knows the value of the program. She is a 2017 graduate who became an instructor for the program in February 2020. “This was a really awesome time to start teaching because as we all know, in 2020 things got a little weird. But I have been teaching since then and things have gotten a little bit more normal,” she says. Today, Ross is the chair of the program and works in a hospital as an anesthesia technician.
I think this could be a “Consider being an anesthesia tech” story for readers who may be interested. Do you agree?
“Yeah, it’s a really awesome career. I was really excited to know that MATC had this program back when I was a student, because I’ve always loved anesthesia. Maybe being a doctor wasn’t for me and I know for sure that being a nurse wasn’t for me, but anesthesia really called to me. There are so many other healthcare careers out there outside of nursing. Nursing is a super important and valuable profession, but it also takes a certain type of person to be a nurse. I’m not that type of person, but anesthesia tech really was for me both from an educational standpoint and from a personality standpoint.”
“I recommend it. I think it’s awesome. There’s a huge need for anesthesia techs in the Milwaukee area and throughout the country as well. It’s a growing profession, so there’s a lot of opportunity to find really good and rewarding employment. You can have a job, but if you don’t love what you do, sometimes it’s hard to do that job. I find that I do love it, so I still work as an anesthesia tech today, even though I also teach.”
To learn more about the Anesthesia Technology Program, contact the Healthcare Pathway at 414-297-6263 or email [email protected]. This is an excellent opportunity for those looking to pursue a specialized healthcare career.
