The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 12 letter word CHLOROFORMER
C
H
L
O
R
O
F
O
R
M
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R
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "erstwhile anaesthetist" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case erstwhile anaesthetist = chloroformer.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.