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The differences between anesthesia technicians and assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become an anesthesia technician, becoming an assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an anesthesia technician has an average salary of $39,640, which is higher than the $37,363 average annual salary of an assistant.
The top three skills for an anesthesia technician include patients, patient care and BLS. The most important skills for an assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.
| Anesthesia Technician | Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $39,640 | $37,363 |
| Hourly rate | $19.06 | $17.96 |
| Growth rate | 6% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 78,132 | 557,900 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 41 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
Anesthesia technicians are healthcare professionals who oversee activities related to anesthetics. They administer anesthesia to patients and assist doctors in related activities. They also monitor the patient after the anesthesia is administered to ensure that no harmful side effects occurred. Anesthesia technicians are expected to know how to test for anesthetic allergies and to spot signs of such allergies. They should be familiar with the different techniques, solutions, and equipment used for anesthetic procedures. Aside from those, anesthesia technicians are also expected to manage the inventory of anesthetic solutions and to trigger purchase requests for new stocks.
An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.
Anesthesia technicians and assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Anesthesia Technician | Assistant | |
| Average salary | $39,640 | $37,363 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $52,000 | Between $16,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Children's Hospital Los Angeles | Latham & Watkins |
| Best paying industry | Education | Education |
There are a few differences between an anesthesia technician and an assistant in terms of educational background:
| Anesthesia Technician | Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Business |
| Most common college | University of Connecticut | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between anesthesia technicians' and assistants' demographics:
| Anesthesia Technician | Assistant | |
| Average age | 41 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.5% Female, 49.5% | Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 4.8% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 6% |