Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine

Education - Medical Students

 MS3 Phase 2 Rotation in Anesthesiology:

This is a mandatory one-week rotation in anesthesia for third year students.  The course is designed to introduce the student to basic concepts in applied pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, IV placement and airway management.  These skills are crucial not only for the anesthesiologist but also for physicians in other specialties and family practice.  The course is run by Dr. Janet Brierley and is divided into several sections:
Didactic:  Basic principles of pharmacology are reviewed.  The student learns about two representative drugs from the following drug classes:  induction agents, opioids and muscle relaxants.  They also learn about rapid sequence induction (RSI) in patients requiring endotracheal intubation who may have a full stomach and they receive basic instruction on sedation and analgesia.  By the end of the course the students know the basic drug dosing guidelines, how to titrate drugs based on the patient’s pathophysiology and common organ system effects as well as side effects.
Practicum:  The students spend several sessions with the passive mannequins learning proper placement of intravenous lines and the essentials of advanced airway management.  They perform those same skills on patients for 2 days in the operating room. The students are expected to insert a laryngeal mask airway, demonstrate effective bag-mask ventilation on an anesthetized patient and start two IVs. They are encouraged to perform endotracheal intubation if possible.
Simulator:  The students spend one afternoon in the high fidelity human simulator lab working on the skills developed in other parts of the course.  This is an opportunity to gain experience in applied pharmacology as well as further experience in airway management in the context of patient scenarios.
Pain: The students participate in an interactive teaching session focusing on acute and chronic pain management. The students are provided with a manual containing expected reading assignments.  They take a test at the beginning of the course and again at the end.  The course is pass/fail. To pass the course the student must show up for the course (all parts), spend an afternoon in the simulator and complete the skills in the OR. This course is designed to teach advanced skills in a fun and safe environment

 MS4 Subinternship in Anesthesiology:

Fourth year medical students who are interested in anesthesiology have the opportunity to do a sub-internship with the Department of Anesthesiology.  The rotation is one month long and consists of a) didactic discussions about preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative management, b) an opportunity to function as a member of the anesthesia team on a daily basis, c) sessions in the high fidelity human simulator, and d) participation in all departmental educational conferences.  The rotation is directed by Drs. Fortner, Furlong, and Weisel.  Interested students should contact Lisa Roberts to arrange a rotation at 505-272-2610.

MS4 Subinternship in Pain Management:

Fourth year medical students interested in a career in anesthesiology or pain management may elect to study acute and chronic pain management for a one month rotation under the tutelage of Dr. Robert Zuniga, the rotation director, and his pain fellows.  The student is exposed to the whole spectrum of pain management from acute interventional inpatient care to chronic outpatient pain management.  Interested students should contact Lisa Roberts at 505-272-2610 to arrange a rotation.