فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

INTRODUCTION: Anesthesia has become one of the most advanced specialties in modern medicinewith tremendous growth in knowledge and substances available for use. However, public awarenesstoward anesthesiologist and anesthesiology is limited. It is important for us to make people aware aboutthe role played by an anesthesiologist in medical setup. The present study was conducted amongpatients and attendants to assess the knowledge regarding the anesthesiologist and anesthesiology.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was carried out at a rural hospital of New Delhi, on 250adult patients and attendants visiting outpatient departments to assess their knowledge regardinganesthesiologists and anesthesiology. An interview in their local language with the help of aprestructured questionnaire was carried out over a 3 month period. The participants on the basis oftheir answers were classified as aware or unaware. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 17.RESULTS: Most of the patients in our study were not aware of the role of anesthesiologists, theirrole in OT and postoperative period, and about anesthesiology as a separate discipline. They wereaware of the general and regional anesthesia techniques. Only half of the participants had goodknowledge (55.6%), and it was significantly associated with age, sex, and education (P < 0.001).CONCLUSION: There is ignorance among the general population regarding the role played byanesthesiologists. We need newer initiatives for educating public and professionals for future progress.