Which nurse anesthetist was the anesthetist for the Mayo brothers and published the first known scientific article on anesthesia?

• A. Agnes McGee
• B. Alice Magaw
• C. Helen Lamb
• D. Mary Cartwright

Answer: (B)

Focusing on how evidence and meticulous practice shaped early anesthesia, this question highlights a pivotal figure in the nurse-anesthesia movement. Alice Magaw served as the Mayo brothers’ nurse anesthetist at the Mayo Clinic, and her work established a standard of careful technique, monitoring, and documentation that others could follow. She published the first known scientific article on anesthesia, presenting a record of 1,000 consecutive ether anesthetics and detailing how induction, maintenance, monitoring, and recovery were managed, along with outcomes and complications. This landmark publication provided formal evidence that anesthesia could be practiced safely and consistently, helping to legitimize the role of nurse anesthetists and influence anesthesia practice broadly. The other names were notable in their own right, but they are not the figure credited with that groundbreaking Mayo Clinic-era publication.