Anesthesiology

Geisinger School of Medicine offers a 2- or 4-week anesthesia elective for fourth-year medical students in Danville, Pa. This elective will expose you to the various aspects of patient care in the perioperative setting. As a Level 1 trauma center with more than 30 operating rooms, several non-operating room anesthesia sites and procedural suites for interventional radiology, interventional cardiology and endoscopy, our department provides anesthesia services in many specialties, including: 

• Advanced pediatric and adult cardiac surgery 
• Organ transplantation
• Neurosurgery
• Major abdominal surgery
• Trauma
• Pediatric and neonatal surgery
• High-risk obstetrics
• Ambulatory surgery
• Acute and chronic pain management

You’ll gain an understanding of how principles of basic sciences, such as physiology, pharmacology and anatomy, in conjunction with technical skill, apply to clinical judgment and patient care. As a member of the anesthesia team, you’ll learn from diverse faculty and residents and benefit from the robust curriculum of our fully accredited residency. You’ll participate in team-based care and educational activities to learn principles of preoperative evaluations and assessments, anesthetic plans, basic airway management, pharmacology and physiology and patient management and monitoring. Active participation during the rotation will afford you an unparalleled opportunity to gain this basic knowledge and will immerse you in the dynamics of the field of anesthesiology.

Anesthesia elective goals and objectives 

Overall goal:

For you to gain hands-on exposure to the skills used in the perioperative management and care of patients and to develop an understanding of the fundamental principles and practice of anesthesiology. Students will achieve this through direct observation and interaction with residents and attending anesthesiologists in the clinical setting, independent learning and structured educational sessions.

Objectives by ACGME core competency:

1. Patient care

• Perform focused preoperative history and physical examinations
• Demonstrate knowledge of the ASA physical status classification
• Participate in the formulation and discussion of anesthetic plans based on patient comorbidities, airway assessment, NPO status and anticipated physiologic changes
• Perform basic airway management techniques and vascular access
• Recognize signs of difficult airway and understand the ASA difficult airway algorithm
• Demonstrate understanding of ASA monitoring standards, interpret common monitors and discuss indications for invasive monitoring
• Apply principles of patient safety, perioperative pain management and crisis management, including resuscitation and ACLS basics

2. Medical knowledge

• Demonstrate knowledge of anesthetic modalities, commonly used perioperative drugs and their indications
• Recognize basic organ system physiology and pathophysiology relevant to anesthetic management'
• Describe perioperative pharmacologic principles, including regional anesthesia and multimodal pain management strategies

3. Interpersonal and communication skills

• Communicate concise, well organized assessments and plans with clarity and professionalism
• Present evidence-based, pertinent information effectively to the care team

4. Professionalism

• Exhibit respect, cultural sensitivity and responsiveness toward patients, families and colleagues
• Recognize personal limitations, seek guidance when appropriate and demonstrate integrity in all clinical interactions

5. Practice-based learning & improvement

• Seek feedback from clinical preceptors and apply it to improve knowledge and skills
• Engage in independent learning and integrate medical literature and technology into evidence-based perioperative care
• Reflect on clinical experiences to enhance future practice

6. Systems-based practice

• Recognize the collaborative nature of perioperative care and the roles of all team members
• Appreciate the coordination required between surgical and anesthesia teams to guarantee safe and effective patient care
• Engage in patient advocacy and optimization in a complex perioperative system

Your progress will be measured by assessment and evaluation from clinical preceptors and your written and oral work.