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In 1945, four San Diego anesthesiologists, Douglass Batten, Gordon Langsdorf, Robert McIver, and Joseph Trotter, Jr., formed a loose association for scheduling, billing and collecting services. In the following year, Doug Batten and Gordon Langsdorf separated from Doctors McIver and Trotter because of a divergence in philosophy concerning the development of a group practice. Doctors Batten and Langsdorf became the founding members of Anesthesia Service Medical Group, then known as Anesthesia Service. Doctor Langsdorf was probably the individual most responsible for the creation of the group, which for decades reigned as the largest single specialty group in the country. To this day, the Unifying Principles of ASMG reflect the founding philosophies of Drs. Batten and Langsdorf. From the earliest days, Anesthesia Service built its foundation on principles of clinical excellence. Some of the most promising physicians in this rapidly evolving specialty were drawn to Anesthesia Service, not for the Southern California climate, but for the egalitarian working conditions offered by the Service. On August 5, 1950, the first "Articles of Association" were signed by what was then a seven-member group. During those formative years, most of the group's practice was conducted at Mercy Hospital, the primary facility in San Diego County. However, because of a bed and operating room shortage, smaller hospitals such as Quintard, Balboa (later known as Central Community), La Mesa Community, Chula Vista, Paradise Valley Hospital, and Coronado were also sites for practice. On any given day, an anesthesiologist might travel to as many as five hospitals. In 1951, when Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla became a desirable place to practice, Doctor Langsdorf limited his practice to that facility, in essence establishing the first "Subgroup" of Anesthesia Service. Even in those early days, it was obvious that this was a much more desirable and efficient method of providing quality care to patients. It is hard to envision how rudimentary the specialty was, just 45 years ago. Anesthesiologists were required to furnish their own equipment, including anesthesia machines. In addition, each anesthesiologist was expected to purchase a portable machine for office use. Mercy Hospital would not allow ASMG's machines to remain in the hospital overnight, so they were stored in the trunk of the anesthesiologist's automobile. Continuous spinal anesthesia was frequently used, and a bulky special mattress with flexible needles and equipment was moved from hospital to hospital, as needed. No recovery rooms existed in San Diego before 1953. Patients were simply returned to their own rooms for recovery from anesthesia. In 1953, Drs. Paul Pentecost and John Hattox persuaded Paradise Valley Hospital to open the first recovery room in San Diego. Other hospitals followed suit during the next two years. The Anesthesia Service expanded slowly and cautiously to meet the needs of the San Diego Community. In the early fifties, when the group consisted of thirteen members, it decided not to enlarge further, because of the "profound administrative burdens". However, three new hospitals opened in 1954 and 1955 - Sharp Memorial, Children's, and Grossmont. The surgical community had begun to appreciate the specialty and encouraged the group to expand to provide service in these new facilities. While the supply of well-trained anesthesiologists in the fifties was extremely small, the fairness doctrine and the growing prestige of the group enabled ASMG to attract excellent physicians. Twelve years after its foundation, the group amended its Articles of Association to provide more structure. The first Executive Committee was elected under new Articles of Association, adopted on December 31, 1957. These Articles were soon amended to require certification by the American Board of Anesthesiology within a specified period of time, making ASMG one of the pioneers in clinical quality management. Over the next decade, ASMG retained this governance structure as it grew to meet the needs of the community, in the process growing out of three administrative offices. In April of 1970, the Anesthesia Service incorporated to become Anesthesia Service Medical Group ("ASMG"). A five-member Board of Directors replaced the Executive Committee, and a full time business administrator was sought. While the group has grown from approximately 70 to 170 physicians, and the Board has expanded from five to seven seats, the organizational design of the medical group has remained fundamentally unchanged since 1970. Decision making power is vested in a central governing board, which receives input and guidance from the organized Subgroups and established Committees. In the late 1970’s ASMG entered into a venture that established it as the local leader in the business of medicine. ASMG brought the first free-standing ambulatory surgery center to San Diego County in 1976. The Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center was spearheaded by Dr. John Hattox, who served as its first medical director. In 1984, ASMG opened a second center, Frost Street Outpatient Surgical Center, with Dr. Donald Dose as Medical Director. In 1987, the group acquired a majority ownership interest in a center developed by surgeons and suffering from poor management, Grossmont Surgery Center. Although ownership in these surgical centers has since been sold, ASMG continues to be involved in the medical direction and staffing of these and other surgical centers throughout San Diego County. Today, ASMG has 190 members, all of whom take great pride in contributing to the enrichment of the San Diego medical community. Throughout the years, members of ASMG have a strong history of participation in organized medicine at the county, state, and national levels.
Although we are not able to list all of the accomplishments of our members, ASMG salutes each and every one who has given their time and dedication to these efforts.
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Prior
to WWII, anesthesia care in San Diego and elsewhere was generally provided
by nurse anesthetists and a few untrained or partially trained general
practitioners. The anesthesia training provided to physicians during
WWII, while limited, provided the impetus for advancement of the specialty
nationally in the years following the war. Thanks to the foresight of
a few returning medical officers, San Diego was the first community
in the nation to enjoy the luxury of fully trained physicians dedicated
solely to the private practice of anesthesiology.