Chapter 9: Guidelines for the Provision of Anaesthesia Services for an Obstetric Population 2025
Anaesthetists should be an integral part of locally developed networks looking at obstetric services.25
Anaesthetists should be an integral part of locally developed networks looking at obstetric services.25
Anaesthetists caring for paediatric burns patients should be trained in paediatric multimodal pain management.51
Clinical leadership roles should be designed to be desirable and exciting opportunities for anaesthetists. Appointment processes to clinical leadership roles should be open and transparent.
Multidisciplinary support for preoperative assessment staff from other physicians, medical specialists, anaesthetists, surgeons and pain management teams should be available.
In recent years, there have been growing concerns about low morale and burnout. Anaesthetists in training provide a pivotal role in the provision of services in many areas of secondary care. Furthermore, there is a well recognised shortage of consultant anaesthetists in the UK. It’s essential that the NHS is able to train and retain this uniquely skilled workforce to provide care for patients both now and in the future.
It’s apparent from both the College’s own work, such as the 2017 survey on morale and welfare in anaesthetists in training (‘A need to listen’) and also evidence from the GMC’s National Trainee Survey (NTS), that there is a high proportion of anaesthetists in training at risk of burnout. There have also been significant external factors impacting on the training programme, such as the transition to the 2021 curriculum and the COVID-19 pandemic. Competition ratios to enter anaesthetic training are at record levels, and concerns remain about training-post numbers and progression between Core and Higher training programmes.
Anaesthesia for children should be undertaken or supervised by senior anaesthetists who have undergone appropriate training. In the UK, all anaesthetists with a CCT or equivalent will have obtained higher paediatric anaesthetic training. There will be anaesthetists who have acquired more advanced competencies, thus allowing provision of a more extensive anaesthetic service, and those competencies should be maintained. Unless there...
The standard of monitoring in the obstetric theatre should comply with Association of Anaesthetists standards of monitoring.43