An anesthesia technician is responsible for helping an anesthesiologist administer pain-relieving solutions to patients. Some anesthesia technician jobs include providing equipment, maintaining equipment, assisting with catheters and stocking inventory. These various jobs help to keep patients on schedule and provide a pain-free environment for surgical procedures.
The primary responsibility in assisting an anesthesiologist is properly handling all the equipment. Anesthesia technician jobs require bringing all necessary equipment directly to the operating room where the patient is being anesthetized. There are many different forms of anesthesia, ranging from shots to gases and catheters, each requiring special equipment for the job. Many different types of equipment are needed, so an anesthesia technician career also requires carefully monitoring the surgical schedule in order to know what type of equipment needs to be delivered to which patient.
Maintaining the equipment is another important aspect of anesthesia technician jobs. Much of the equipment necessary to give a patient anesthesia is delicate and complex, and an anesthesiologist doesn't have the time to care for it. This job requires routinely cleaning items after they have been used in order to meet sanitation guidelines. Also, the monitors and anesthesia delivery devices must be tested according to manufacturer recommendations in order to be confident everything is working properly. Finally, if an item is found to be faulty, an important anesthesia technician job is to either repair the malfunction or dispose of the faulty item.
Disposal of items is a common occurrence in anesthesia, which is why many anesthesia technician jobs also require inventory management. It is the technician's job to know what items are in stock and to be sure enough are available for upcoming needs. In order to keep inventory at an acceptable level, most technicians must contact vendors to order more supplies. Some technicians must follow a budget for anesthesia items, so consulting many vendors and negotiating prices could be a necessity.
An anesthesiologist is responsible for administering the correct dose of pain-relief to each patient, but many anesthesia technician jobs require these individuals to assist the doctor. In many cases, this simply means turning on and handing over the requested equipment when the doctor needs it. In some cases, however, the technician can also be requested to help insert catheters into patients.
