GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – If you’re cruising down U.S. 131 near Grand Rapids and see a giant billboard warning you to ask for a “physician” anesthesiologist before surgery, that’s not a quirky ad campaign. It’s a public service announcement put up by the Michigan State Medical Society and Michigan Society of Anesthesiologists dressed up as a red flag.
According to WZZM-13, Michigan anesthesiologists are sounding the alarm, telling the public that at Corewell Health West in Grand Rapids, highly trained anesthesia specialists are being swapped out for doctors from other fields – ER and ICU physicians. And although these doctors may know their way around a crisis, they may lack the specialized training required for the delicate art of keeping you safely unconscious.
Twelve years of training vs. crash course in keeping patients alive.
MORE NEWS: Detroit Floats Ticket Tax to Pay for City Services
Here’s the rub: anesthesiologists don’t just push the “off” button before surgery and the “on” button afterward. They’re experts at managing complex drug levels, anticipating complications, and – most importantly – keeping patients alive when something goes sideways. Think flatline, seizure, or sudden cardiac arrest. That’s why they spend 12 to 14 years in training to do what they do.
But because of contract disputes and cost-cutting, hospitals like Corewell are sliding other doctors in to perform anesthesia duties. The Michigan Society of Anesthesiologists (MSA) calls this reckless.
Corewell’s calm, patients’ panic.
Corewell’s official line? Patient safety is “our top priority,” and all providers are held to the same “high- quality standards.”
But anesthesiologists aren’t buying it. Neither are the families who’d rather not play Russian roulette in the operating room.
Dr. Kathryn Wladischkin, an anesthesiologist and president of West Michigan Anesthesia (WMA) said at a press conference, “While my physician colleagues are highly trained doctors, they lack the expertise that uniquely qualifies anesthesiologists to manage challenges to a patient’s airway and other complications that could occur during or after anesthesia.”
Shortage worsens after contract expiration.
The recent messaging campaign follows the expiration of WMA’s contract with Corewell earlier this month, after the two sides failed to reach an extension. According to WMA, multiple contract proposals were given to Corewell Health during the negotiation period before contracts were terminated. Because of this, it was reported as far back as June of this year that the hospital has had to reschedule surgeries due to an anesthesiologist shortage.
What patients can do – other than panic.
MORE NEWS: JD Vance Knocks Whitmer Over Detroit’s Crime Reputation
The MSA’s advice to the public is simple: before going under, ask, “Are you a board-certified anesthesiologist?” If the answer is “no,” maybe it’s time to rethink your procedure because at the end of the day, hospitals may argue about contracts, budgets, and “standards” but when you’re unconscious on the table, the only thing that matters is whether the person watching over you has been trained for the worst-case scenario.
