A study, published in Anesthesiology, examined the difference in outcomes between when anesthesiologists are assisted by nurse anesthetists and when they are assisted by anesthesiologist assistants, finding procedures in both instances had similar outcomes.
Researchers used payer data for 443,000 inpatient Medicare cases between 2004 and 2011. They examined 421,230 surgical cases featuring an anesthesiologist and nurse anesthesiologist and 21,688 cases featuring an anesthesiologist and an anesthesiologist assistant.
Adjusted mortality rate for the anesthesiologist, anesthesiologist assistant care team was 1.6 percent, compared to the anesthesiologist, nurse anesthetist care team's 1.7 percent.
Care teams with anesthesiologist assistants had non-statistically significant decreases in length of stay and medical spending.
Researchers concluded, "The article shows that anesthesia care provided by an anesthesiologist assistant or nurse anesthetist is equivalent when led by a physician anesthesiologist. Our results suggest that physician supervision is able to ensure the same outcomes regardless of the team member’s differences in training and background."
Note: The study was funded in part by the American Society of Anesthesiologists.