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Dr Richard Knight looks back at the turbulent 1970s – a decade well known as a time of crisis both economically and politically.

What comes to mind when you think of the 1970s? Flared Jeans, David Bowie, Dallas? Well, it wasn’t all Happy Days (forgive the pun) – this decade was also very much about skyrocketing inflation and unemployment, the Winter of Discontent, strikes, power cuts, and states of emergency.

Aileen Kirkpatrick Adams was born in 1923 in Sheffield, where she qualified in medicine in 1945. She trained in anaesthesia at the Royal Free and Edgeware hospitals in London and at Bristol’s Frenchay Hospital under Dr Tom Wilton, and worked in Oxford under Sir Robert Macintosh. She also enjoyed a sojourn at the Massachusetts General Hospital under Henry Beecher. Finally, she was appointed as a consultant anaesthetist in Cambridge, England.

Preparing your home for your new arrival while managing professional responsibilities can feel overwhelming. As a NELA fellow involved in the set-up of the NoLap audit, there were unique challenges and expectations as I prepared for my absence.

Essential preparations before maternity leave

During your pregnancy, there are several essential tasks to complete. I found the checklist provided by the BMA particularly helpful in ensuring that nothing important was overlooked. Check out the BMA’s maternity leave checklist here.

We continue to welcome applications for CPD accreditation of courses and events, and those that are approved are featured in the Lifelong Learning Platform (LLP) and on our website.

During 2023 we have received more than 950 applications for CPD accreditation. The numbers received by month were typically between 70–80 applications, but the months of March and September were particularly busy with 112 and 92 respectively received. This is an increase by more than 50 when compared against the same reporting period from last year.

Dr Andrew Sharman shows us that rotational training, while offering a broad range of training opportunities, doesn’t come without its challenges and tells us what the Faculty is doing to overcome them.

Another year goes by, and again I am humbled by the resilience and resolve of our resident doctors.

Last year, responses to our intensivists in training (IiT) survey were overall very positive for ICM training, with resident doctors appreciating their trainers. Also, our regional advisors survey demonstrated how much excellent work is ongoing across the country. Exam and regional teaching courses, mentoring programmes, and the offering of a variety of Special Skill Years (SSYs) are just some examples of an ever-growing list of successes.

The NIHR-HTA funded Continuous rectus sheath Analgesia in eMErgency LaparOTomy (CAMELOT) is another trial led by the Perioperative Medicine Clinical Trials Network (POMCTN) that is currently open for recruitment. 

The study aims to find out whether adding rectus sheath catheters (RSCs) to standard analgesia provides better pain relief, fewer side effects and complications, and greater satisfaction for patients undergoing emergency laparotomy. It will also determine whether RSCs are safe and cost-effective. All POMCTN trials are registered with the NIHR Associate Principal Investigator (API) scheme. In this article, one of our trainees shares her experience working on the CAMELOT study.

The Centre for Perioperative Care (CPOC) has collaborated with the Perioperative Care for Older Patients (POPS) at Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, the British Geriatric Society and ‘The Body Coach’ himself Mr Joe Wicks, to help get your patients fitter in 2025.

New Year, new beginnings: the two workout videos cater specifically for patients who require low-impact exercise prior to surgery. CPOC is delighted to collaborate with Joe Wicks to promote the benefits of healthy living and specifically design resources for patients awaiting surgery who may be unable to undertake high-intensity regimes. Our aim with Joe has been to create some great resources, and we hope your patients will find these accessible, helpful, and relevant to their needs.

Since retirement, Dr Chadwick has been busy completing a Masters in Medical Humanities and History. In this article, he shows us how classic essays and a trip to an art gallery can enhance our skills in patient observation.

As medical students we were all taught the importance of ‘the golden minute of silence’ and of silently observing the patient and their surroundings. When conducting a weekly preoperative clinic, I always chose the room furthest from the waiting area so that I could watch the patient and accompanying partner walk the 25 metres into the clinical room.

In previous updates I have written about the changes to our governance which have reshaped our Council and Board of Trustees

Last year the Privy Council approved amendments to the College’s Charter and Ordinances, which enabled us to comply more completely with Charity Commission regulations, manage the College more transparently, and improve our efficiency. As part of our ongoing programme of improvements last summer the College’s governance team circulated a board skills audit to our elected Council members, Trustees and Executive Team. The audit's aim was to identify the skills, experience and knowledge that would most benefit the College over the coming years.

Trustees have responsibilities for the College’s finance and assets, delivery of our charitable objects, developing and implementing College strategy and ensuring legal and regulatory compliance. These are huge responsibilities and having expertise from outside our members’ clinical experience is extremely valuable. Lay trustees are a vital part of the Board of Trustees and directorate boards.

Dr Ann Shearer has been a member of PatientsVoices@RCoA since 2018, and will be stepping down this year as patient voices serve for a maximum of six years. Chair of the group, Jenny Westaway, interviewed Ann about her experiences in the role.

Jenny was particularly interested in how Ann’s own considerable professional experience had influenced her work as a patient representative. Before retiring, Ann was an associate dean with NHS Education for Scotland, having previously been a consultant/senior lecturer in restorative dentistry and vice-dean of the Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.