Step by Step

INTRODUCTION

9/4/25 Anesthesiology Journal Club -Familiarity of the Surgeon-Anesthesiologist Dyad and Major Morbidity After High-Risk Elective Surgery

QUIZ

EVALUATION

CERTIFICATE

INTRODUCTION

Credit Hours: CME 1.00

Target Audience:

Anesthesiologists and anesthesiologists-in-training and other anesthesia professionals, nurse anesthetists and anesthesia assistants.

Educational Objectives:

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

  • Analyze and interpret peer-reviewed evidence on the relationship between operating room team familiarity—specifically surgeon-anesthesiologist dyads—and postoperative morbidity, using structured appraisal tools during the journal club session.

  • Describe and discuss mechanisms by which increased familiarity between anesthesiologists and surgeons may contribute to improved patient outcomes in high-risk elective surgeries, supported by data from recent cohort studies.

  • Assess and propose strategies for implementing familiarity-based case assignments in clinical practice, including feasibility analysis and potential impact on workflow, team dynamics, and patient safety.

Suggested Additional Reading & Joint Accreditation Statement - Note: This Accreditation Statement Supersedes All Other Statements:

Suggested Additional Reading:

1. Hallet J, Sutradhar R, Jerath A, et al. Association Between Familiarity of the Surgeon-Anesthesiologist Dyad and Postoperative Patient Outcomes for Complex Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgery. JAMA Surg. 2023;158(5):465–473. doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2022.8228

2. Cooper, Jeffrey B. Ph.D.. Critical Role of the Surgeon–Anesthesiologist Relationship for Patient Safety. Anesthesiology 129(3):p 402-405, September 2018. | DOI: 10.1097/ALN.0000000000002324

3. Elbardissi AW, Duclos A, Rawn JD, Orgill DP, Carty MJ. Cumulative team experience matters more than individual surgeon experience in cardiac surgery. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2013 Feb;145(2):328-33. doi: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2012.09.022. Epub 2012 Oct 18. PMID: 23083794.


Joint Accreditation Statement:

In support of improving patient care, the University of Pittsburgh is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.


The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine designates this enduring material activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Each physician should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 


Other health care professionals will receive a certificate of attendance confirming the number of contact hours commensurate with the extent of participation in this activity.

Authors:
Jennifer Sylvester, MD, MS — PGY-2 Resident, UPMC Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine
No relationships with industry relevant to the content of this educational activity have been disclosed.
Kelsea LaSorda, MD, MPH — PGY-2 Resident, UPMC Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine
No relationships with industry relevant to the content of this educational activity have been disclosed.
Philip Bartel, MD, MPH — PGY-2 Resident, UPMC Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine
No relationships with industry relevant to the content of this educational activity have been disclosed.
Stephen McHugh, MD, FASA — Assistant Professor, Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
No members of the planning committee, speakers, presenters, authors, content reviewers and/or anyone else in a position to control the content of this education activity have relevant financial relationships with any companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
No other members of the planning committee, speakers, presenters, authors, content reviewers and/or anyone else in a position to control the content of this education activity have relevant financial relationships with any companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.

This activity is approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™

The University of Pittsburgh is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution.