My original post was to point out how far anesthesia has come in the military. Imagine ANY kind of anesthesia provider as the Surgeon General of the Army. We have all come a long way from just working in the operating room all day!Now, as far as AAs, in the military, when I was on active duty in 1992 in the Air Force as a CRNA there was talk of bring AAs into the military as officers in one of the medical related corps. (Bio Science Corp in the Air Force.)
The issue never really got the discussion it deserved due to the massive down sizing done during the Clinton era. (35% of the military hospitals were closed completely and another 45% were downsized or converted into out patient clinics only.) This led to a glut of anesthesia providers and the problem became how to get rid of the excess. Many got early retirements under the TERA program. (1992 to 2000)
As far as I know, the issue of AAs in the military is still on the table as a possibility should we ever have to build up quickly.
As far as that argument that AAs can not work independently, that may be true in the civilian world due to licensure. However, that is just a "paper work" limitation. When it comes to military personnel deployed overseas in a war zone, the military can and will use AAs independently of anesthesiologists if it is necessary for the mission.
