Our History
Anaesthesia Associates of Massachusetts, P.C.
(AAM) is one of the largest private practice anesthesia
groups in New England, employing over 190 anesthesiologists
and nurse anesthetists, and providing services
to multiple hospitals, surgery centers and office-based
practices across Massachusetts.
AAM was founded in 1976 by anesthesiologists practicing
at the Deaconess Hospital who shared a vision for an
anesthesia practice that centered on the safe, efficient
and cost-effective delivery of care.
The AAM founders began by critically examining current
clinical practices and developing protocols for safer
delivery of care. Their efforts to increase patient
safety included developing a set of rules for the delivery
of care in the operating room separate from other facets
of anesthesia, examining CRNA to physician ratios and
developing standards to maintain safety, looking closely
at risk management functions and staying abreast of
technology to constantly offer patients the safest care
options.
As part of AAM’s patient safety legacy, one of
its founders, Ellison “Jeep” Pierce, was
also the founder of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation
(APSF). Pierce inaugurated the APSF in 1984 during his
tenure as the President of the American Society of Anesthesiologists
(ASA) to “assure that no patient shall be harmed
by the effects of anesthesia.”
AAM’s unique structure allows it to branch
away from being just an anesthesia practice. Its
diversification into safety and business management
enables the practice to play an integral role
in each of the institutions it serves, engaging
its hospitals to become involved in the day to
day issues that face them from JCAHO preparation
to operating room management 
Today
The founders’ vision is apparent in the
activities of AAM today. Under the leadership
of Dr. James F. English, who became AAM’s
President in 1998, the practice has upheld its
commitment to clinical excellence and patient
care.
AAM currently provides a full range of anesthesia
and perioperative services to:
- Boston IVF
- Boston Medical Center
- Boston Outpatient Surgical Suites
- Charlton Memorial Hospital
- East Bay Surgery Center
- Hawthorn Surgery Center
- Mount Auburn Hospital
- Morton Hospital
- New England Baptist Hospital
- New England Baptist Hospital Surgery Center
- Orthopedic Surgical Center of the North Shore
- Quincy Medical Center
- St. Luke’s Hospital
- South Coast Surgicenter
- Surgery Center of Southern New England
- Surgery Center of Waltham
- The Miriam Hospital
The practice offers these institutions administration
and supervision of surgical anesthesia (including
general and epidural services), administration
of obstetrical anesthesia services, acute and
chronic pain management, and administration of
office-based anesthesia services.
In addition to these services, AAM also provides
additional invasive chronic pain management services
through its subdivision, New England Pain Management
Consultants (NEPMC).
As part of the evolution of the success of its
business structure, AAM created Plexus
Management Group. Plexus is a consulting service and practice management
organization that identifies and solves many problems
- technical, operational and strategic -
common to physician groups and hospitals. The
company offers services to assist with billing
and collection issues, financial management, physician
practice standards, JCAHO preparation, OR management
consulting, physician recruitment, J1 visa assistance,
benefits administration, contract negotiations,
scheduling and credentialing, and information
systems. Plexus consistently attains exceptional
survey scores with the hospitals with which it
consults on JCAHO preparation and its consulting
efforts have spanned outside of New England to
institutions including New York University |
