Expert: Ronald Levy, M.D. - 7/5/2010

Question
Hello. Well I am a sophomore in high school and I am trying to figure out what i want to do as my career. I was thinking about being an anesthesiologist. All I really know is that you give anesthesia to patients who are going into surgery and you also monitor them during the surgery. Can you tell me more about how to be come one and more about the job? What is a normal working day like?

Answer
To become an anesthesiologist you need 4 yrs of college, 4 yrs of medical school and 4 yrs of anesthesia residency. Our job is to monitor the patient throughout the operation while maintaining the anesthesia. It can be very stressful with sick patients but also very satisfying. Normal working days are usually 8-10 hours but can be as long as 24 hours when you are on call. It sounds like you have a long way to go before you have to make that decision so don't rush.

Ronald Levy, MD
Professor of Anesthesiology
UTMB-Galveston