In the States, a wrong number (12)
I believe the answer is:
anaesthetist
'number' is the definition.
(someone who numbs people before surgery)
'in the states a wrong' is the wordplay.
'wrong' indicates anagramming the letters.
'in'+'the'+'states'+'a'='inthestatesa'
'inthestatesa' with letters rearranged gives 'ANAESTHETIST'.
(Other definitions for anaesthetist that I've seen before include "Hospital theatre worker" , "One preparing patients for operations" , "Number" .)