Anesthesiology: Jonathan Clarke, MD

Jonathan Clarke, MD Pediatric Anesthesiologist, Medical Director, Children's Hospital Oakland Outpatient Surgery in Walnut Creek Medical School: McGill University Faculty of Medicine; Montreal, Quebec, Canada Residencies: University of California San Francisco (pediatrics), University of Cincinnati (Anesthesia) Fellowship: : Pediatric Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Board Certification: Pediatrics, Anesthesiology Language(s): French

Jonathan Clarke, MD, is an expert in pediatric anesthesiology. Pediatric anesthesiologists are best equipped to understand how a child’s body works, how children react to medications and anesthesia, which is very different from adults. When it comes to anesthesia-related procedures, our hospital offers the safest and highest standards available to children.

Our team aggressively pursues improvements in the quality of its care and maintains a policy of always providing one pediatric anesthesiologist per child. This differs from many other institutions where one anesthesiologist may supervise more than one procedure at a time.

Dr. Clarke can discuss many related topics, including difficult airways, airway obstruction, airway emergencies, outpatient anesthesia and malignant hyperthermia. He can also talk about sedation, understanding medications and how they interact in a child, and the psychological aspects of preparing the child and family for anesthesia and surgery.

Compelling Fact

Due to advances in medicine and technology, anesthesia-related deaths occur in only about 1 in 30,000 pediatric surgical procedures and the number is even lower among children who do not suffer from a chronic condition.

Source: Anesthesiology, volume 93, page 6-14, 2000

Expertise

Pediatric Perioperative Environment
A pediatric perioperative environment provides the highest, safest levels of care to children undergoing anesthesia at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland. All anesthesiologists, nurses, technicians and other staff at Children’s specialize in the physiological and psychological care of children. We use only special supplies, and medical and lab equipment designed to accommodate children of all sizes; and we perform all our procedures in specially equipped operating and recovery rooms. This ensures a child- and family-friendly environment offering the best quality of care available.

Malignant Hyperthermia
Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is an inherited disease that causes a rapid rise in body temperature and severe muscle contractions when the affected person is exposed to certain anesthetic medications. The best remedy is prevention. Using appropriate anesthetic medication can prevent the development of malignant hyperthermia during surgery. Parents are encouraged to inform their surgeon and anesthesiologist if their child has this condition, or has a family history of anesthesia-related problems, before planning surgery.
Professional Achievements

• Founding member, Children’s Anesthesia Medical Group, 1986-present
• Founding board member, Children First Medical Group, 1994-present
• Medical director, Children’s Surgery Center, 1994-2002

Professional Organizations

• President, Children First Medical Group
• Member, American Medical Association
• Member, American Society of Anesthesiologists
• Member, Society for Pediatric Anesthesia
• Member, California Society of Anesthesiologists

Appointment & Referral Information


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