[ANESTHESIOLOGY AND CRITICAL CARE, PERIOPERATIVE MEDICINE, PAIN MANAGEMENT, EMERGENCY MEDICINE AND RESUSCITATION]

Anesthesia and intensive care, perioperative medicine and pain management, emergency medicine and resuscitation, all together constitute the field of action of the anesthesiologist. The definition of "anesthesiologist" underestimates the profession, and the lack of anesthesiologists seems understandable when we examine the scope of their activities throughout the hospital. There is little awareness among the public of the extent of the anesthesiologist's activity. The anesthesia segment itself, with all its importance, occupies a unique, yet modest part. The main activity of the anesthesiologist during surgery is reanimation, maintaining the patient in good shape while under anesthesia, and coping with hemodynamic changes that occur at every moment. The advantage of the anesthesiologist is that he is a "hospitalist," both the internal medical and surgical doctor. He must be profoundly skilled in all areas of medicine, CPR, pediatrics, women's medicine, general surgery, heart surgery, brain and orthopedic surgery, blood vessels, and many other fields. An important goal is to maintain our patients almost painless. Thus, early at the patient interview, the anesthesiologist will determine the course of the multi-modal analgesic management during hospitalization. Preemptive analgesic medication prior to surgical incision will reduce the pain that the patient will suffer after surgery. Whenever possible, the patient will receive a nerve blockage, or minute doses of opioids added to regional anesthetics. Pain management in the recovery room will be intensified by patient-controlled analgesia via infusion pumps, or by a wide variety of therapies, minimizing the use of oral opioid medications, thus avoiding addictive-prone behavior. This special issue of "Harefuah" is dedicated to anesthesia, pain management, and intensive care. The articles published in the current issue deal with key topics, such as fundamental changes occurring in resident education, emphasizing competent judgement and technical skills, and personal and caring approaches to the patient. The possibility that anesthesia may be associated with cognitive changes in infancy and in older age became a major concern and an active research field. Anesthetic complications can rapidly deteriorate and endanger the life of the patient, may leave him confused, and incapacitated. Larger and complicated modern surgeries are now possible thanks to the special skills and capabilities of the modern anesthesiologist to keep the patient alive and well, even in the presence of major surgery.