Anesthesia assistants in BC: Building the foundation first

Anesthesia assistants are highly trained medical professionals who work under the supervision of anesthesiologists. They are recognized as key contributors to the anesthesia care team.[1] The use of a team-based model of anesthesia care is common in other jurisdictions,[2] but in British Columbia, the model has been inconsistently applied and is underused. The Ministry of Health’s Allied Health Strategic Plan, however, aims to optimize the roles and scopes of practice for allied health professionals to enhance patient care and improve health care system efficiency.

But anesthesia assistants are not regulated in BC. A regulatory framework would define their scope of practice; standards of practice; and requirements for education, certification, and ongoing professional development. The lack of a governance structure has resulted in variations in the recognition and use of anesthesia assistants. The profession is thus not working to its full scope across the province.

A recent pan-Canadian review and summary of anesthesia assistants’ practices across the country showed that BC is an outlier with regard to governance.[1] The primary recommendation from the review was a call for recognition that widespread implementation of an anesthesia care team is needed to address growing surgical volumes and backlogs.[1] Additional authors have highlighted the opportunity across Canada to align with other team-based anesthesia practices that will increase access to surgical care for our patients.[2] We agree that the care team approach best serves our patients’ needs. But, as a province, we need to first create the foundation on which we can build the team. We need to be proactive and take urgent steps to establish a regulatory framework for anesthesia assistants. We cannot continue with the status quo, which does not support enacting improvements to peri-operative patient care.
—Michelle Scheepers, MBCHB, FRCPC, MBA
Anesthesiologist, Penticton Regional Hospital, Penticton
Medical Director, Surgical Services, Interior Health
Clinical Instructor, University of British Columbia
—Pietur Fridriksson, BHSc, RRT, CCAA
Anesthesia Assistant, Royal Inland Hospital, Kamloops
Vice-President, BC Society of Anesthesia Assistants
—Yvonne Timewell, BSc, RRT, CCAA
Anesthesia Assistant Educator, Professional Practice Office, Interior Health

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References

1.    Yang H, Littleford J, Orser BA, et al. The evolution and formalization of anesthesia assistant roles across Canada. Can J Anaesth 2024. doi: 10.1007/s12630-024-02812-3.

2.    Filteau L, Preston R, Seligman KM. A call to action—Anesthesia assistants in Canada. Can J Anaesth 2024. doi: 10.1007/s12630-024-02813-2.