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All handovers should contain representatives for the multidisciplinary teams from both theatre and the receiving area and should be documented and structured to ensure continuity of care.⁶⁵

There should be clear processes and policies for reporting and learning from near misses and critical incidents. National patient safety alerts should be communicated and actions agreed locally to reduce the risk of harm.

Staff assigned to the role of anaesthetic assistant should not have any other duties that would prevent them from providing dedicated assistance to the anaesthetist during anaesthesia.⁵

All local anaesthetic solutions should be stored separately from intravenous infusion solutions, to reduce the risk of accidental intravenous administration of such drugs.⁴¹

Multimodal analgesia should be used, including regional anaesthesia. Opioid analgesia can be used if required, but the patient should be given advice regarding observing the infant for signs of excessive drowsiness. Additional advice for prescribing for breastfeeding patients can be found in the guideline from Association of Anaesthetists Guidelines on breastfeeding and sedation in breastfeeding women.⁴⁵

Following an adverse event, those involved should be supported appropriately. Expert support services should be signposted and made easy to access, and there should be a regular ‘check in’ from a trusted senior colleague known to and accepted by the anaesthetist or staff affected.^94,95,96