Anesthesia Health Human Resources

Human resources are one of the biggest issues facing health care, including within the field of anesthesiology. To better address anesthesia-specific human resource concerns, in 2022 and 2023, we brought together a group of community and academic anesthesiologists and formed the Anesthesia Health Human Resources Working Group. The Canadian Anesthesiologists Society was represented in this group, as were certified clinical anesthesia assistants, and together we worked to define anesthesiology as a medical role and position physicians as the providers of anesthesiology, including on anesthesia care teams in a supervisory role.

Position Statement: Anesthesia Human Resources

The working group’s key deliverable was its position statement on anesthesia human resources. As Ontario’s experts in anesthesia, we felt it was important that Ontario’s Anesthesiologists formalized our position on this topic. Please read Position Statement: Anesthesia Human Resources to learn about our proposed ideas for ensuring Ontario can provide patients with strong, stable anesthesia care.

In the Media

2024

OAW: ‘We have cyclical problems’ - Ontario anesthesiologists preparing for increasing staff shortage | 580 CFRA’s Ottawa at Work

An anesthesiologist shortage is delaying surgeries across Canada, physicians say | CBC’s The Current

2023

Following the release of our position statement on anesthesia human resources in the summer of 2023, our Chair Dr. Rohit Kumar and Past Chair Dr. Monica Olsen engaged with the media on the HR challenges our profession faces and how the proposed solutions found in the position statement can help alleviate some of those pressures..

Canada faces critical anesthesiologist shortage, causing backlog of surgeries | The Globe and Mail (subscription required) 

A shortage of these experts in Ontario is resulting in cancelled surgeries, doctors say | Toronto Star (subscription required)

Wake Up with Rob Snow - August 4, 2023 - Hour 2 @35:21 | CityNews Ottawa

Ontario facing shortage of anesthesiologists and OMA says government needs to act | CBC’s The Morning Edition - K-W with Craig Norris

Resources

Job Postings

Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society - Job Postings 

HealthForceOntario - HFOJobs

Papers and Presentations

Submission to Ontario Health: Advocacy for Anesthesia Assistants in Ontario A joint submission authored by Dr. H. Yang and Dr. Beverley A. Orser.

Healing the Healers: System-Level Solutions to Physician Burnout Recommendations of the Ontario Medical Association Burnout Task Force

Gajjar J, Pullen N, Li Y, et al Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon self-reported physician burnout in Ontario, Canada: evidence from a repeated cross-sectional survey BMJ Open 2022;12:e060138. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-060138

Kristine Olson, Daniel Marchalik, Heather Farley, Shannon M. Dean, Elizabeth C. Lawrence, Maryam S. Hamidi, Susannah Rowe, Joanne M. McCool, Cormac A. O'Donovan, Mark A. Micek, Miriam T. Stewart, Organizational strategies to reduce physician burnout and improve professional fulfillment, Current Problems in Pediatric and Adolescent Health Care, Volume 49, Issue 12, 2019, 100664, ISSN 1538-5442, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cppeds.2019.100664.

Websites

Ontario Physician Reporting Centre The Ontario Physician Reporting Centre is the definitive source of information on physicians in practice and postgraduate medical training in Ontario.

Canadian Health Workforce Network The Canadian Health Workforce Network is a knowledge exchange network of researchers, decision-makers and other knowledge users with expertise in health workforce planning, policy and management.

Canadian Medical Association Physician Data Centre The CMA conducts research to support a vibrant medical profession and a healthy population.

Health Workforce Canada - Data and Information Dashboards Health Workforce Canada is a new, independent organization established by an Interim Steering Committee, supported by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), and funded by Health Canada.

WFSA World Anaesthesiology Workforce Map An ongoing open source project by the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists to map the global anesthesia workforce.

AMA Ed Hub: Professional Well Being 

AMA Ed Hub: Establishing a Chief Wellness Officer Position