Newspapers / InterCom (Durham, N.C.) / Jan. 8, 1971, edition 1 / Page 2
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'Anesthesiology — Duke’s Newest Department FINAL CHECK — Mrs. Frances Perry, CRNA, is pictured setting up and checling out an anesthesia machine prior to induction of anesthesia. She recently completed her 28th year of employment in the Department of Anesthesiology at Duke. A very important but little known] specialty of many hospitals is anesthesiology. The fact that about 15,000 operations a year are conducted at Duke Hospital gives an idea of the importance of the role of the Department of Anesthesiology. A step toward recognition of the field's importance was made by Duke Hospital when it granted anesthesiology departmental status in 1966. Previously it had been considered a sub-specialty housed within the department of surgery. Anesthesiology has recently been recognized as an academic department in the Medical Center. The Duke staff includes several anes thesiologists (MD's who are specialists in anesthesiology) and about 20 certified registered nurse anesthetists. The educational requirements for an anesthesiologist are four years of medical school, a one-year internship and then two to three years as a resident in the specialty of anesthesiology in an approved residency program. The MD must then practice this specialty for three more years. At that time he is eligible to take the examination for the American Board of Anesthesiologists. Personnel from anesthesiology are responsible for patient care wherever anesthesia is administered, whether it be in one of Duke's 14 operating rooms, a patient receiving electro-shock therapy or a woman in labor. POLYGRAPH - A polygraph machine is checked out prior to surgery by Cole Williams. The machine is used in operating rooms and recovery rooms to record such measures as blood pressure, EEG, EKG and venous pressure. In addition, the department includes the Duke School of Anesthesia for Nurses, which has 25 students, Inhalation Therapy and the Blood Gases Lab. The department is rounded out with para-medical personnel who provide back-up services for these divisions. The Duke School of Anesthesia for Nurses was founded as a six-month program with one student on Jan. 2, 1931. It has grown to a two-year program with an average enrollment of 25 students. A person must be a RN to be eligible for the program. The course was extended to two years in 1966 under the direction of the school's present director, Miss Mary B. Campbell, who has been director since Oct. 15, 1952. A total of 200 students completed the course in anesthesia from 1931 to 1970. The curriculum for graduate registered nurses includes both classroom study and clinical practice with special emphasis on anatomy, physiology and the pharmacology of anesthetic drugs. Students also receive instruction in pre- and post-anesthetic care of patients. Graduates are eligible to take the qualifying examination for membership in the American Association for Nurse Anesthetists. Inhalation Therapy is an allied health specialty employed in the treatment, management, control, and care of patients with deficiencies and abnormalities in breathing. The department is directed by Houston R. Anderson Jr., and has about 40 employes. Inhalation Therapy technicians are involved in the administration of medical gases including air and oxygen, drugs and medication and aerosol (mist) forms. These technicians are directly involved in emergency resucitation, care of patients on breathing machines and rehabilitation of patients with lung diseases. The Blood Gases Laboratory, a clinical laboratory, makes quick determinations of blood gases in order to determine a patient's state of respiration. Three factors measured are the partial pressure of oxygen, the partial pressure of carbon dioxide and the Ph of the blood. Arterial blood samples (taken only by physicians) are rushed to the Blood Gases Laboratory where determinations are made by the technicians. Results are phoned back to give speedy service. Speed in making the determination is a crucial factor," explained Dr. Kenneth Hall, director of the laboratory, "since patients are often on ventilators which must be adjusted."
InterCom (Durham, N.C.)
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Jan. 8, 1971, edition 1
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