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ANZCA
BulletiN
Evolution of
a great Perth
meeting
Plus:
how the
New PrimAry
exAmiNAtioN
will work
still iNveNtiNg:
Dr DuNCAN
CAmPBell, ortoN
meDAl reCiPieNt
our overseAs
AiD Committee’s
work iN PAPuA
New guiNeA
June 2012
3574
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TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ANZCA 2013 ASM, REGISTER YOUR INTEREST AT:
WWW.ANZCA2013.COM E: [email protected]
1
20 Curriculum update
The primary examination will
take on a new format under
the revised curriculum.
24 Still inventing
Robert Orton medal
recipient, Dr Duncan
Campbell is still
innovating.
12 Perth ASM a great success
More than 1500 Fellows and trainees
attended the Perth meeting.
ANZCA Bulletin
Medical editor: Dr Michelle Mulligan
Editor: Clea Hincks
Production editor: Liane Reynolds
Sub editors: Kylie Miller and Meaghan Shaw
Design: Christian Langstone
Advertising manager: Mardi Mason
The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists
(ANZCA) is the professional medical body in Australia
and New Zealand that conducts education, training and
continuing professional development of anaesthetists
and pain medicine specialists. ANZCA comprises about
5000 Fellows and 2000 trainees across Australia and
New Zealand and serves the community by upholding
the highest standards of patient safety.
2
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Submitting letters and other material
We encourage the submission of letters, news and
feature stories. Please contact ANZCA Bulletin Editor,
Clea Hincks at [email protected] if you would like
to contribute. Letters should be no more that 300 words
and must contain your full name, address and a daytime
telephone number.
Advertising inquiries
To advertise in the ANZCA Bulletin please contact
Mardi Mason, ANZCA Marketing and Sponsorship
Manager, on +61 3 9510 6299 or email
[email protected].
Contacts
Head office
630 St Kilda Road, Melbourne
Victoria 3004, Australia
Telephone +61 3 9510 6299
Facsimile +61 3 9510 6786
[email protected]
www.anzca.edu.au
Faculty of Pain Medicine
Telephone +61 3 8517 5337
[email protected]
Copyright: Copyright © 2012 by the Australian
and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists, all rights
reserved. None of the contents of this publication may
be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted
in any form, by any means without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
Please note that any views or opinions expressed in
this publication are solely those of the author and do
not necessarily represent those of ANZCA.
32 Titanic challenge
54 Museum treasures
Victorian anaesthetist Dr Ashley Webb
explains the effectiveness of a quit
smoking program at Peninsula Health.
The Geoffrey Kaye Museum of
Anaesthetic History has three new
items of historical significance.
28 Teaching in PNG
The Overseas Aid Committee is doing
a lot of work in Papua New Guinea.
Contents
4
President’s message
37
NZ Anaesthesia ASM
62
5
Chief Executive Officer’s message
38
6
Acknowledging Professor Kate Leslie
ANZCA and government:
building relationships
The Anaesthesia and
Pain Medicine Foundation
64
New Zealand news
People and events
8
Letters to the editor
40
Quality and safety
67
9
Awards
45
68
Australian news
11
News
The dangers of self-inflating
resuscitation bags
78
ANZCA Council meeting report
12
Perth ASM wrap up
46
80
Faculty of Pain Medicine
19
New Fellows’ Conference
ANZCA Trials Group meets at the
annual scientific meeting in Perth
Successful candidates
Library update
ANZCA’s revised training program
50
86
20
89
Future meetings Australia
and New Zealand
28
ANZCA contribution helps improve
patient care in Papua New Guinea
Anaesthetic history: Museum
receives valuable historical gifts
from South America
Obituary
A mad idea – or several – is just
what the doctor ordered
54
88
24
55
ANZCA history and heritage update
91
32
Tobacco and surgery: Issues of
Titanic importance
56
The early development of anaesthesia
practice in Queensland
34
Lessons abound on a Dili adventure
60
ANZCA in the news
life&leisure: “Savvy professionals
can reap tax rewards”, “Crossing
the South Island the hard way” and
“Rug up and explore with a wintry
European adventure”
3
President’s
message
Dr Lindy Roberts
President, ANZCA
4
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
There are two particularly special aspects for
me in taking over as president of the College
at this time. The first is that the handover
occurred at the recent successful ASM in my
hometown, Perth. The second is that this
year marks the 20th anniversary of ANZCA
and it is also 20 years since I first joined the
College as a trainee.
As the incoming president, I am like
all our Fellows, driven by the notions of
excellence, care and collaboration. An
example of this is through leadership of the
curriculum review process where we used
a coalface-up approach, seeking the views
of Fellows and trainees about the existing
training program, to build a world-class
curriculum that is nearly ready to be rolled
out. We have another opportunity at this
time as the College and its Faculty of Pain
Medicine define the plans and direction for
the five years from 2013 to 2017.
It is important that College leaders seek
the views of Fellows and trainees and use
that feedback wisely – the best leaders I
have known have forged the directions of
their organisations from listening to their
constituents. As part of the planning for the
next five years, there has been a series of
ways in which Fellows and trainees have
had a voice. These include the consultation
process and hospital visits being undertaken
by ANZCA Chief Executive Officer Linda
Sorrell, the outcomes of the 2010 Fellowship
survey, the 2011 New Zealand roadshow
undertaken by Dr Vanessa Beavis, and the
2012 curriculum survey targeting heads of
department, regional/national education
officers, supervisors of training and trainees.
Thank you to all who have shared their views.
So what are you saying? These are some
of the key messages:
• Our core purposes remain training,
education, accreditation, standards of
clinical service delivery for all sections
of our communities; services for Fellows
such as continuing education, continuing
professional development, the library
and other resources; advocacy to the
wider community and government in the
interests of high quality patient care and
safety; and promotion and support for
evidence-based practice through research
and education.
• As a College we have many strengths.
These include the training program and
the quality of our graduates, our growing
educational resources, and publications.
We are a credible, professional
organisation that has the tremendous
benefit of Fellows’ capabilities and
contributions; along with staff knowledge
and resources.
• We can improve in a number of areas,
particularly in our relationships with
and services to our Fellows and trainees,
including acknowledgement of and
support for their contributions. Our main
challenges over the next few years will
be those of health sector and workforce
reform; implementing the revised
curriculum; ensuring that we remain an
organisation that continues to deliver
optimal value to its members; and fostering
relationships with important partners. In
some quarters, we need to strengthen our
profile and role.
I am inspired by the call from Fellows for
the College to remain a world leader, an
organisation committed to excellence with
a profile and membership services to match,
using new technologies and communications
to best effect. All these aspirations ultimately
underpin the high standards of care we
provide our patients.
Past presidents, deans and councils as
well as the many Fellows and trainees who
have contributed so much up to this point
have given us all a solid foundation on which
to continue building. I know we can respond
to challenges and we will aspire towards
an even stronger organisation over the next
five years. We need to promote and maintain
strong standards through successful
rollout of the revised curriculum, and grow
support for innovative research and ongoing
development of resources for Fellows.
We need to work on building a sense of
unity and ownership in our College through
strengthening relationships between the
ANZCA Council and the regions, ensuring a
service-oriented approach throughout the
College, and seizing ongoing opportunities
for collaboration between the College and the
Faculty of Pain Medicine. We must continue
to foster strong relationships and strategic
collaborations with governments, other
colleges and the societies, and with training
organisations in Hong Kong, Singapore
and Malaysia. And we must ensure our
organisation is sustainable into the future
by continually developing efficiencies,
relevance and effectiveness, the best staff
and the best systems. I am confident that we
will move from strength to strength.
Of course, there would be no College
without the efforts of the many Fellows,
trainees and staff who contribute at so
many levels. The past 20 years has been
marked by many significant achievements
for the professions of anaesthesia and
pain medicine, and I feel privileged to be
taking over as the leader of a college that
is in excellent shape. I have a great sense
of optimism about our next 20 years
and beyond.
Chief Executive
Officer’s message
The development of our ANZCA Strategic
Plan for 2013-2017 is continuing apace.
Much feedback has been obtained
through high-level consultation with
internal stakeholders, including councillors,
committees (including regional) and staff;
and with external stakeholders such as
other colleges, departments of health,
universities and relevant government
agencies.
Other sources of information have
included recent fellowship and trainee
surveys, the New Zealand hospital road
show by former New Zealand National
Committee chair and new ANZCA councillor,
Dr Vanessa Beavis, and key points
raised during my recent visits to hospital
anaesthesia departments in Australia.
A total of 58 separate sets of feedback
were received to six questions used to
guide discussions and help inform ANZCA’s
strategic priorities for the five years from
next year. Of these, 43 came from groups
and individuals within ANZCA and 15 from
external agencies, including from within
departments of health, universities, and
other colleges.
Following are the questions and the
themes resulting from the responses.
What is ANZCA’s core business? Training,
education, standards; advocacy; research;
communication.
What are ANZCA’s strengths? Quality of
services and graduates; communications
and profile; Fellows’ capacity and
capability; organisational capacity and
ways of working.
What are ANZCA’s weaknesses?
Relationships with and services to Fellows
and trainees; reliance on pro bono work of
Fellows; profile and perceptions of ANZCA;
organisational structure and ways of
working.
Where should ANZCA be in five years’
time? The leader in anaesthesia training,
recognised expert agency; a capable and
innovative user of IT and communications
technologies; provider of excellent services
to members; good communicator with
a strong profile.
What are ANZCA’s main challenges in the
next five years? Engagement with Fellows
and trainees; good business practice in a
tough environment; managing external
influences (other providers, political
change); curriculum implementation and
continuing medical education/continuing
professional development services;
improving structure and ways of working.
There were also a number of themes that
appeared across most or all of the
questions including:
• The revised curriculum: An essential
component in ongoing core business;
a strength; a challenge, and critical to
where ANZCA will be in 2017.
• Workforce: Mal-distribution of
anaesthetists; training places, number
of trainees, projected increase in demand,
and funding changes for training.
• A need for support for rural anaesthetists
and GP anaesthetists.
The ANZCA Council held a workshop in
April and will be discussing the strategic
plan again this month.
History and heritage
At the recent Perth annual scientific
meeting, we filmed the first of several
interviews with key College figures. These
will form a collection of oral histories that
will be available to the wider fellowship
via the website.
This is part of our commitment to history
under our History and Heritage Strategy,
which was signed off by the ANZCA
Council earlier this year. The strategy aims
to meet 10 objectives over the next few
years including actively capturing and
documenting the history of the College and
using information technology to improve
accessibility.
We also have plans for a strong historic
presence at next year’s ANZCA annual
scientific meeting in Melbourne and are
committed to a new “anaesthetic history”
section in each edition of the ANZCA Bulletin.
Other activities being undertaken include
updating a booklet about the historic
ANZCA-owned building, Ulimaroa, and
other publications that highlight the history
of the College.
For further information about the History
and Heritage Strategy please see page 55.
Ms Linda Sorrell
Chief Executive Officer, ANZCA
5
Acknowledging
Professor Kate Leslie
It is my pleasure to acknowledge our
immediate past president Kate Leslie
and her work as the leader of the College
from May 2010 to May 2012. Kate’s
presidency has been marked by a clear
vision, exceptional attention to process
and outcomes, coupled with strong and
decisive leadership.
Kate’s efforts have been tireless and
her style courageous. Through the vision
of ENGAGE she urged us to embrace,
negotiate and influence, get involved,
advocate, give our support and educate.
There have been many achievements
under Kate’s leadership:
• Delivering a plan with our former
CEO Mike Richards to strengthen our
capability in areas such as education
development, fellowship affairs, policy
and communications.
• Recruiting our new CEO, Linda Sorrell,
and putting in place a forward-looking
relational and collaborative agenda.
6
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
• Leading the organisation to be ready for
the rollout of the revised curriculum,
ANZCA Curriculum Revision 2013.
• In collaboration with others, achieving
a critical Medicare schedule change to
fund trainees in private.
• Building activities and collaborations
in overseas aid.
• Setting new standards of clarity for
Fellows and trainee participating in
College activities through terms of
reference for ANZCA committees and
leaders.
• Leading the charge for improving our
approach to indigenous health.
• Confirming and codifying the crucial
relationship between ANZCA and
the Faculty of Pain Medicine by
constitutional review.
• Strengthening relationships with
our important partners notably the
College of Intensive Care Medicine, the
College of Surgeons and the Society for
Paediatric Anaesthesia in New Zealand
and Australia.
• Overseeing two highly successful
annual scientific meetings – in 2011
held jointly with the Hong Kong College
of Anaesthesiologists and this year in
Perth.
• Reinforcing the College’s commitment to
preserving our history and heritage.
Through her ENGAGE strategy, Kate has
achieved much. I, along with the ANZCA
Council, am committed to continuing
to work in all of these areas, as they are
strengths for our College that are worth
building upon.
Kate, on behalf of all Fellows, trainees
and staff, thank you. We wish you well in
your future endeavours.
Dr Lindy Roberts
ANZCA President
Director of Professional
Affairs (IMGS)
ANZCA is seeking to engage a senior anaesthetist of high
standing to the position of Director of Professional Affairs
(International Medical Graduate Specialists). This position
reports to the Chief Executive Officer and works closely with
the Dean of Education/Executive Director of Professional
Affairs and other Directors of Professional Affairs and with
ANZCA Council members.
This position advises on clinical and professional issues
of importance to the College, particularly in relation to
international medical graduate specialists and may be asked
to represent the College at external meetings. The position
involves working closely with College staff.
ANZCA is seeking expressions of interest from Fellows
including former councillors of the College who have had
clinical experience in the past two years. An attractive
remuneration package will be negotiated with the successful
candidate.
For information on key selection criteria or a position
description please contact Linda Sorrell, Chief Executive
Officer, ANZCA by telephoning +61 3 9510 6299 or email
[email protected]. The closing date for applications
is July 9, 2012.
ANZCA Training
Scholarships for 2013
ANZCA makes available 20 scholarships each year to
assist anaesthesia trainees who are suffering severe
financial hardship. Each scholarship will be awarded in
the form of a 50 per cent reduction in the annual training
fee for the following year. Applicants must be registered
trainees of ANZCA.
Applications must be submitted on the prescribed
2013 ANZCA training scholarship application form,
copies of which are available from the College.
The closing date for applications for 2013 is Friday
August 10, 2012. Successful applicants will be notified
in November 2012.
Please note: If your financial circumstances improve during
the training year for which the ANZCA Training Scholarship
is awarded, you must notify the College. Your application
will be reviewed and you may be asked to relinquish all
or part of your scholarship.
Please contact:
Janelle Talty
Phone: +61 3 9093 4913
Email: [email protected]
7
Letters to the editor
Rich history of
anaesthesia
depicted
Originally the mace was developed during
medieval times as a weapon wielded by
one arm from horseback. Therefore the
shaft was long with a heavily studded
head, and such maces developed a
fearsome reputation, which made them
an excellent symbol for power.
Following the introduction of
gunpowder the usefulness of the mace
as a weapon declined but its symbolism
for power and authority survived.
Ceremonial maces became larger with
more decoration and were made of
precious metals such as silver and gold.
The ANZCA mace was gifted to the
College by the Royal Australasian College
of Surgeons (RACS) at our College’s first
annual scientific meeting in 1994, when
their then president, Dr David Theile said,
“as a demonstration of our part in your
history and a permanent expression of
our good wishes for your future”. The
design of the mace was greatly assisted
by Joan Sheales, the then College
Registrar (now titled chief executive
officer), and is based around a lily to
symbolise the creation of the new college
of anaesthetists, as the lily in Greek lore
symbolises birth.
The mace design also incorporates
much of the symbolism from the
College’s armorial bearings which were
designed to represent the Australian and
New Zealand origins of the College; its
“The Duke of Norfolk
as Earl Marshall of Her
Majesty’s College of Arms
authorised the armorial
bearings on December 1,
1992.”
geographical region and the domicile
of its headquarters; its derivation from
the Faculty of Anaesthetists, Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons, and
the links particularly in intensive care
with the Royal Australasian College of
Physicians; its closeness to the basic
sciences of anatomy, physiology and
pharmacology; and the relationships
which exist between the new and old
worlds.
The armorial bearings were
designed by a College’s Coat of Arms
Subcommittee, which met between
September 1991 and September 1992
and consisted of Barry Baker (chair),
Peter Livingstone (dean/president), David
McConnel (councillor), Peter Jones
(RACS) and Joan Sheales (registrar/CEO),
and later Michael Hodgson (president).
The Duke of Norfolk as Earl Marshall of
Her Majesty’s College of Arms authorised
the armorial bearings on December 1,
1992, and they were officially granted
on May 10, 1994. The subcommittee
members were very pleased to be
notified that, because of the design
and its detailed justification, these
arms were granted in the minimum time
– an exceedingly rare occurrence.
The armorial bearings consist of the
“supporters”, which were chosen as
famous historical figures whose work
was vitally important in changing not only
medical knowledge, but the way in which
people thought about that knowledge.
2004
Curriculum 2004
commences
Michael Cousins appointed
ANZCA President
Anaesthetists in
Management Special
Interest Group established
Online journals available
to Fellows
18
ANZCA Bulletin March 2012
Clinical Teacher Course
piloted
ANZCA website created
ANZCA Trainee Committee
established
In 2008, ANZCA commissioned the design of a contemporary corporate logo to
complement the College coat of arms on ANZCA livery. The logo is now used,
along with the crest, on all ANZCA hard-copy and electronic documents, and
on our website. The two symbols presented together signify the historical and
contemporary values of ANZCA and the confidence of our organisation as we
move forward.
The logo was inspired by the triangular board room table at ANZCA House in
Melbourne, but the overall design is abstract and open to wide interpretation.
The designers, Streamer, commented that the overall effect of the overlapping
geometrical shapes is one of precision and exactitude, reflecting the sciences
that underpin the profession. The two sets of overlapping forms may reflect our
two countries and the three sets the foundations of our College - anaesthesia,
intensive care medicine and pain medicine. The multiple and connecting triangular
elements pointing in different directions allude to the multidisciplinary nature of
the College.
The “triangles” remind me of a high mountain range reflected in a deep ocean,
requiring us to be courageous, intrepid and visionary in all the things we do. They
evoke a journey where the summit will be reached through careful steps and by
dogged persistence. The rich burgundy colour denotes quality, authority and a link
to the traditions of our past, but in essence the logo is modern and forward-looking
and that’s what I like about it!
Professor Kate Leslie
President, ANZCA
The place of pharmacology, which is
the third scientific base for the specialty,
is addressed by use of the botanical
specimens in the “charges of the shield”.
The supporters stand on land separated
by water, which forms the “compartment
of the arms”.
These separate lands signify not
only the countries of Australia and New
Zealand, but also the separation of the
new world of Australasia from the old
world of Europe (and the not-so-old world
of North America where anaesthesia was
first demonstrated and broadcast to the
world in the mid-19th century).
The sea also indicates the significance
of sea travel in the transmission of the
introductory news about anaesthesia
from North America to Europe and
eventually to Australia and finally
New Zealand.
The Cootamundra wattle (Acacia
baileyana) illustrated on the land on
which Vesalius stands represents
Australia and the silver fern or ponga
(Cyathea dealbata) on the land on which
Harvey stands represents New Zealand.
The shield contains two parts. The
“chief of the shield” contains the
Southern Cross indicating the College’s
geographical place in the Southern
Hemisphere because the constellation
is at 600 S and therefore not visible
from most of the Northern Hemisphere.
The five stars are represented with the
number of points representing their real
brightness in the night sky starting at
the base of the cross with the brightest
star and moving clockwise: alpha – eight
points; beta – seven points; gamma –
seven points; delta – six points; epsilon
– five points.
This representation is also that taken
by the state of Victoria and is not taken
by any other state or country using the
Southern Cross. Thus this representation
symbolises the College’s founding and
headquarters in Victoria.
The lower part of the shield contains
the Cross of St George indicating the
links between the College and its
British counterpart, the Royal College of
Anaesthetists, as well as the Christian
heritage of the College.
The “torch of glory” imprinted on the
upright of the cross symbolises the direct
derivation of the College from the Faculty
of Anaesthetists of the Royal Australasian
College of Surgeons. The College of
Surgeons has the torch of glory in its
arms and has also the motto Fax mentis
incendium gloriae – “The torch that
illuminates the mind is the fire that
consumes vainglory”.
The charges in the four quadrants
symbolise the plants that together
form the basis for the pharmacology
fundamental to anaesthesia. In the
upper left quadrant is the opium
poppy (Papaver somniferum) signifying
analgesia, and in the upper right
quadrant is the mandrake plant
(Mandragora officinarum) signifying
sedation and anaesthesia.
These charges also symbolise the old
world plants. The new world plants are
depicted in the lower charges. In the
lower left quadrant is the curare vine
(Chondrodendron tomentosum) signifying
neuromuscular paralysis, and in the
lower right quadrant the cocaine leaf and
fruit (Erythroxylum coca) signifying local
anaesthesia.
The crest consists of the helmet,
which is unusually affronté (or facing
forward) with a closed visor to indicate
alertness and readiness for any urgent
action. This type and position of helmet
is similar to the Royal College of
Anaesthetists again linking the College to
this fraternal organisation.
The colours of the College gown
(black and gold) are incorporated
into the wreath on the helmet and
its lambrequin (or cape). The rising
sun behind the helmet indicates the
geographical place of the College in the
east next to the international date line;
and also symbolises links with the Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons and the
Royal Australasian College of Physicians
both of which have similar rising suns for
the same symbolic reason.
“Vesalius also was the first
to show that an animal...
could be resuscitated by
using artificial respiration
through a reed inserted
into the windpipe.”
The “hand of the carer” (physician)
rising from the Lord’s cloud representing
Almighty guidance links the College back
to the Parisian medical influence and to
the foundations of the modern European
medical tradition in 12th century Paris,
and symbolises the Fellow’s hand guided
by the Lord caring for the patient’s life.
The hand holds an ankh, the Egyptian
hieroglyph for life, which links the major
responsibility of College Fellows – the
preservation of life – to the roots of
western medicine in Egypt in the 5th
to 3rd millennia BCE.
The snake of Asclepius (Aesculapius)
entwines the Ankh to symbolise the links
with the heritage of Greek medicine and
the ethics of doctor-patient relationships,
which derive from that time.
The motto reads Corpus curare
spiritumque which translates as “To care
for the body and its breath of life” and
which aptly summarises the main aim
for Fellows of the College. There is an
intended pun in the motto, which uses
the Latin word curare (to care). This is
also a word, derived differently from
Macusi Indians in Guyana (wurari), used
daily in the specialty for the drug curare
or its analogues, which cause the state of
neuromuscular paralysis or curarisation.
Originally the College mace had been
designed to have a timber shaft made
from Australian jarrah and an unspecified
New Zealand timber, but this timber
shaft was replaced with gold plated
sterling silver when the RACS offered to
gift the mace to ANZCA. The aspects of
the armorial bearings that have been
translated into the design for the
mace are:
The butt: This is now the larger end
of the mace and is in the shape of a
half opened lily containing the motto
“Corpus curare spiritumque” engraved on
the inner lip. Within the open lily cusp,
like a stamen, the crest is reproduced in
full with the torch of glory placed below
the crest in a sense holding the crest
aloft.
This repositioning of the torch was
deliberately designed to represent the gift
of the mace by the RACS to the College,
and to symbolise the growth of the
College of Anaesthetists from the Faculty
of Anaesthetists.
The shaft: Embossed on the shaft
(stem of the lily) is a representation
of the shield containing the four
quadrants and with the chief containing
the Victorian Southern Cross stars
represented by Argyle champagne-colour
diamonds sized in proportion to the stars’
brightness (1x20pt, 2x16pt, 1x11pt,
and 1x6pt). The charges are represented
more boldly and larger than in the arms
to emphasise their differences, and for
artistic relief on the shaft.
The head – Australia and New Zealand
are represented in the head (another
half open but smaller lily) by a wattle in
silver-gilt and a fern in silver. Around the
“The motto reads Corpus
curare spiritumque which
translates as “To care for
the body and its breath
of life”.”
lip is engraved “Presented by the Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons 1994”.
The mace is 960 millimetres long,
weighs approximately 2.75 kilograms,
and was cast in 19 separate pieces
at Flynn Silver’s workshop in Kyneton,
Victoria, using the lost wax technique.
Dan and John Flynn commented at the
time (May 17, 1994) that “we consider
it to be the most significant commission
undertaken by ourselves to date”. The
cost of the mace was $A34,500.
Every council meeting is conducted
with the mace on its jarrah rest in open
display to symbolise the authority of
council, and again at the College annual
general meeting.
The mace is also ceremonially carried
in the procession of the president and
council to the opening of each annual
scientific meeting.
If you have not looked closely at either
the coat of arms or the mace, you should
do so, as they are each rich in a heritage
that you share with your colleagues,
not only in anaesthesia but more widely
across the breadth of medicine and
science.
Professor Barry Baker
Dean of Education and Executive Director
of Professional Affairs
ANZCA
20
Roger Goucke appointed
Dean, Faculty of Pain
Medicine
2005
Mike Richards appointed
ANZCA CEO
Acute Pain Management:
Scientific Evidence (second
edition) published
ANZCA Trials Group formed
Richard Lee appointed
Dean, Joint Faculty of
Intensive Care Medicine
Regional Anaesthesia
Special Interest Group
established
New Fellow first elected
to Council
2007
ANZCA Foundation officially
launched
YEARS
1992-2012
Airway Management
Special Interest Group
established
Leona Wilson appointed
ANZCA President
2008 (continued)
Penelope Briscoe
appointed Dean,
Faculty of Pain Medicine
Trauma Special Interest
Group established
Vernon Van Heerden
appointed Dean, Joint Faculty
of Intensive Care Medicine
ANZCA Code of Conduct
introduced
Review of the curriculum
commenced
ANZCA CELEBRATING 20 YEARS 1992-2012
2010
2008
Continuing Professional
Development Program
introduced
19
Celebrating our Coat of Arms
It is no exaggeration to say I was thrilled
to see Professor Baker’s exposition of the
College Coat of Arms (ANZCA Bulletin,
March 2012). Every feature rich with history
and significance; their appearance, colour,
position, shape, size, all telling the story of
the College and our traditions of anaesthesia
and intensive care in a spectacular
symphony of colour and images. As the
logo for a learned college I believe our Coat
of Arms stands head and shoulders above
every other Australian and Australasian
professional college and is something of
which every Fellow can be proud.
I turn to the article about the triangles.
What contrived symbolism that is. The
triangles have no soul and the many Fellows
I have spoken to appear to have a similar
view and are baffled by the supposed
symbolism of the triangles.
Can I appeal to the new Council to review
the decision to adopt the triangle logo? Let
us make the most of what we have, our truly
magnificent and inspiring Coat of Arms.
Let us use the coloured version at every
opportunity. Trainees should be made aware
of its nature and design so they can draw
inspiration from it.
Let us proudly display our inspirational
Arms whenever and wherever possible.
Dr John Paull MB BS, Dip Ed, FANZCA
Consultant Anaesthetist (Retired)
Honorary Research Associate
School of History and Classics,
University of Tasmania,
Launceston, Tasmania.
20
2009
Dr Ray Hader Trainee Award
for Compassion established
Continuing Professional
Development Program
became mandatory
First ANZCA E-Newsletter
distributed
ANZCA begins producing
podcasts
ANZCA Bulletin March 2012
ANZCA CELEBRATING 20 YEARS 1992-2012
Independent College of
Intensive Care Medicine
(CICM) formed replacing
JFICM. Vernon Van
Heerden inaugural CICM
President
Kate Leslie appointed
ANZCA President
David Jones appointed
Dean, Faculty of Pain
Medicine
2012 (to March)
Lindy Roberts announced
President-elect, ANZCA
2010
Acute Pain Management:
Scientific Evidence (third
edition) published
2011
Perioperative Medicine
Special Interest Group
established
Linda Sorrell appointed
ANZCA CEO
Online in-training
assessments start
Online Clinical Teacher
Course piloted
Brendan Moore announced
Dean-elect, Faculty of Pain
Medicine
Number of Fellows – 5300
and 2000 trainees
ANZCA Curriculum Revision
2013 learning outcomes
approved
21
Why does the College need two logos?
I was intrigued to read the descriptions
of the armorial bearings or “crest”, and
the corporate logo, “the triangles”, in the
March 2012 ANZCA Bulletin. Barry Baker’s
exemplary article should be compulsory
reading for all current and aspiring Fellows
of the College.
The description of the logo, however,
leaves a number of questions unanswered.
That the logo design is “abstract and open
to wide interpretation” reminded me of
an occasion when I met with a senior staff
member at Melbourne University. Without
prompting, she commented on a College
business card that depicted the corporate
logo, saying that it appeared to represent
an organisation that was unsure of
its direction!
Why did the ANZCA Council feel the
need to commission a new logo in 2008 in
addition to one that was widely recognised
and had been developed through a rigorous
and well established process? Contemporary
values are not obtained through the
acquisition of a pretty design; they are
obtained by action and achievements,
thereby bestowing integrity on the name
and reputation of the organisation.
We now have the confusion of two
logos. The original armorial bearings, with
so much embodied meaning, has been
deliberately downgraded by the imposition
of an abstract design of uncertain
foundation.
The “rich burgundy colour” of the
corporate logo supposedly denotes “quality,
authority and a link to the traditions of the
past”. I find it difficult to ascribe such a
range of attributes to a colour, more so as
the logo appears in a range of colours in the
same issue of the Bulletin.
Other Australian and New Zealand
medical colleges use a single crest or shield,
and display it proudly. It is time
for the council to reconsider the merits
of having two logos.
Dr Rod Westhorpe OAM, FRCA, FANZCA
Honorary Curator, Geoffrey Kaye Museum of
Anaesthetic History
8
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Western Australia’s foundation Fellows
and the establishment of the Western
Australian State Committee
The first annual business
meeting of the Western
Australian State Committee
took place at the British
Medical Association
council room on June 9,
1956. Members of the
committee could review
the achievements of the
past year with satisfaction.
At this time the committee
comprised two foundation
Fellows of the Faculty
of Anaesthetists, Drs
Gilbert Troup and D R C
(Bunny) Wilson, and Dr L
G B (Graham) Cumpston,
a foundation member of
the Faculty who had been
elevated to fellowship in
January 1956.1
The first honorary secretary’s report
of the WA State Committee included
the following:
“In a country the size of ours it is
impossible for the Board of Faculty
to maintain satisfactory contact with
Fellows and Members in the various
states of the Commonwealth and the
Dominion of New Zealand. The Board
therefore exercised the powers given to
it under additional Regulations (1955)
and appointed State and Dominion
Committees whose functions are to
carry out duties delegated by the
Board, to convene at least one scientific
meeting each year and to advise the
Board of any matters which may concern
the interests of the Faculty.
“In July last year the Board appointed
Drs G.R. Troup, Douglas Wilson and
L.G.B. Cumpston to constitute the
Western Australian State Committee. On
8th September 1955 this committee held
its first meeting at which Dr Troup was
appointed Chairman and Dr Cumpston
Honorary Secretary. The committee has
2
met on five subsequent occasions.”
The inaugural meeting lasted 30
minutes and took place at Dr Troup’s
rooms in Yorkshire House, 194 St
CELEBRATING
(continued next page)
Walter Thompson
appointed ANZCA President
Jack Havill appointed Dean,
Joint Faculty of Intensive
Care Medicine
2003
Corporate logo – “the Triangles”
2006
One Grand Chain
(volume two) published
Milton Cohen appointed
Dean, Faculty of Pain
Medicine
Andreas Vesalius is on the left. He
published his seminal work De Humani
Corporis Fabrica in 1543 from Padua,
Italy. This publication changed anatomy
because it overthrew, after 1400
years, Galen’s dogma (largely based
on the anatomy of apes and monkeys)
with human cadaver dissection, and
by instituting the scientific approach
of challenging dogma with direct
experience. Vesalius also was the first
to show that an animal that had ceased
to breathe could be resuscitated by
using artificial respiration through a
reed inserted into the windpipe – in the
coat of arms he is holding a bellows to
signify this act. The bellows also signifies
the experimental scientific basis of
the specialty following Vesalius’ lead.
His view is outward looking to signify
his broad academic outlook, and to
indicate the widespread place of artificial
ventilation in anaesthesia and intensive
care.
William Harvey, who lived in England
but who had studied in Padua, is the
other supporter and is depicted holding
a book with a heart etched on the
cover. The heart and book represent the
contribution made by Harvey in 1628
when he published De Motu Cordis,
which for the first time described the
circulation of blood through the lungs
and around the body. The book also
symbolises the College’s respect for
academic learning.
Harvey looks towards Vesalius
to explain that the discovery of the
circulation depended on prior anatomical
description by Vesalius and others (that
is physiology followed anatomy), and also
because Harvey studied in the Italian
medical schools.
These two supporters represent the
heritage of the specialty based as it is on
respiratory and cardiovascular physiology
together with anatomy.
70
Georges Terrace, Perth. The first matter
discussed was the Faculty scientific
meeting. Were these meetings to be
exclusively for Fellows and members,
or did the committee have the right
to invite the profession at large? The
committee was keen to involve Fellows
of the Faculty of Anaesthetists of the
Royal College of Surgeons in England
and sought advice from the board as to
whether these professionals would first
seek membership of the Australasian
Faculty or would be entitled to
fellowship outright.
With only nine members and
Fellows in WA there was insufficient
time and resources to organise a
scientific meeting during 1955 and it
was suggested at the second committee
meeting in October that March or April
1956 would be regarded as the earliest
possible date. In fact the committee
did not meet again until March 1,
1956, and at this time planning for the
scientific meeting began in earnest.
It was decided to hold the meeting on
an evening in June at approximately
the same time as the College (Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons –
RACS) scientific meeting. The meeting
was to take the form of a symposium
entitled “Controlled respiration in
anaesthesia and in medical conditions
with respiratory embarrassment
or paralysis” and anticipated
the presentation of papers by an
anaesthetist, a physiologist, a physician
and a surgeon. Three more meetings
of the WA committee were held before
the annual scientific meeting on June 7,
1956.
The Faculty symposium commenced
at 8pm and was now titled “The
management of respiratory paralysis in
anaesthesia and disease”. The meeting
opened with a short address by Dr L
Souef, chair of the State Committee of
RACS. Dr Douglas Wilson presented
the subject from the anaesthetic aspect
and Dr Beech, also a foundation Fellow
of the Faculty of Anaesthetists, RACS,
from the medical angle. Discussion was
opened by Dr Thorburn (by invitation),
from the physician’s point of view, and
Dr Peter Gibson discussed the thoracic
surgical approach. The meeting closed
at 10.30pm.
The honorary secretary’s report
of June 9, 1956, concluded with the
following: “College Meeting – Perth –
1958. It is anticipated that the Annual
Meeting of the College will take place
here in 1958. This will undoubtedly
include the Faculty and will be a
function of great importance to us all.”
Heading Sample
The men who made it happen
Dr Gilbert Troup
Gilbert Troup was one of the outstanding
figures in anaesthesia practice in
Australia. He led a rich career in
medicine prior to his work during the
early 1950s in helping to establish the
3
Faculty of Anaesthetists, RACS.
Born in Christchurch, New Zealand
in 1896, he was educated in Melbourne
and graduated in medicine from the
University of Melbourne in 1922. He
settled in Perth in the same year,
working first at the Children’s Hospital
and then at the Perth Hospital, becoming
a junior honorary physician in 1924
while maintaining a private practice
in Subiaco.
A long and distinguished career in
anaesthesia began when Dr Troup was
appointed honorary anaesthetist to the
Perth Hospital in 1927. He followed in
the footsteps of William Nelson (who
served from 1918 to 1926) and Bruce
Burnside (served 1918 to 1923), who
were the first honorary anaesthetists
appointed to the hospital.
Dr Troup was a member of the
Faculty’s WA Committee from 1955 until
1959, serving twice as chair, from 1955 to
October 1956, and from November 1957
until June 1959. He died in August 1962.
ANZCA Bulletin December 2011
Dr D R C Wilson
D R C “Bunny” Wilson was perhaps best
known for his contribution to paediatric
and neonatal anaesthesia, particularly
4
his pioneering work in WA.
Born in 1906 in Perth, he graduated
MBBS at Melbourne University in 1931.
After a year as a resident medical officer
at Perth Hospital he entered general
practice in Dowerin, which continued
until 1939. He served with distinction in
World War II and was awarded an MBE,
Military Division, for his service in Syria
in 1941.
Dr Donald Stewart wrote in 2010
that it was Gilbert Troup who nurtured
Bunny Wilson’s interest in anaesthesia
after the period of hostilities ended,
and he soon became the first full-time
anaesthetist in Western Australia,
with posts at Royal Perth Hospital,
Hollywood Repatriation Hospital and
Princess Margaret Hospital, where he
was director of anaesthesia from 1945
5
until 1956.
Dr Wilson served on the WA
Committee of the Faculty of
Anaesthestists, RACS, from 1955 to 1966.
He was chair twice, from November
1956 to September 1957 and from June
1960 to August 1961. He also served
as Australian Society of Anaesthetists
(ASA) Executive Committee state
representative for WA from 1947 to 1951.
Dr Wilson died in January 1970.
Dr Ernest Beech
Ernest Beech was born in Adelaide
in 1908 and studied medicine at the
University of Adelaide, gaining his
MBBS there in 1932. He relocated to
Western Australia in 1933 to become
a resident medical officer at Perth
Hospital. Dr Beech was appointed
medical registrar in 1934. He then spent
two years in postgraduate studies in
England at the Royal Chest Hospital
and the Queen’s Square Hospital.
Dr Beech obtained his MRCP in
1936 and, on his return to Perth,
was appointed honorary outpatient
physician and honorary anaesthetist
to the Perth Hospital in 1938. He
maintained this dual role until 1950, and
was also in general practice until 1946.
Dr Beech also served as anaesthetist
to the neurosurgery unit at Perth
Hospital. He contributed to postgraduate
education in Western Australia as the
secretary of the ASA Postgraduate
6
Committee for two years.
Above from left: Dr Gilbert Troup,
Dr D R C Wilson, Dr Ernest Beech.
ANZCA Bulletin December 2011
71
Perth Hospital records
Thanks to Fraser Faithfull and Professor
Garry Phillips for the article on the early
days of the Faculty of Anaesthetists
in Western Australia (ANZCA Bulletin,
December 2011).
For the sake of the historical record I offer
some minor corrections. The records of the
Perth Hospital contradict the statement in the
Bulletin that Dr B Burnside and Dr WH Nelson
were the first honorary anaesthetists appointed
to the hospital, commencing in 1918.
Although the record is incomplete,
the minutes of the Perth Hospital Board1
as early as 1906 record the nomination
of a Dr Thurston to the post of honorary
anaesthetist. In 1924 Gilbert Troup was
appointed as an honorary assistant
physician (not junior physician) to the Perth
Hospital, and he was first appointed as an
honorary anaesthetist in 1930 (not 1927)2.
It is not clear when Dr Troup first
worked at the Perth Children’s Hospital;
his own “personal information” held by the
Australian Society of Anaesthetists gives
the date as 1922 (the year of his graduation
from Melbourne University), but according
to the records of the hospital, his initial
appointment there was in 19243.
Dr Toby Nichols
Department of Anaesthesia
Royal Perth Hospital
References:
1. Minutes of board meetings of the Perth Hospital
(held by Royal Perth Hospital Museum).
2. Annual reports of the Perth Hospital (held by Royal
Perth Hospital Medical Library).
3. Jeanette Robertson, archives facilitator, Princess
Margaret Hospital (personal communication).
Awards
Letters to the editor
s to
itor
“In-flight medical emergencies
are relatively common occurring
at approximately one per 10,000
– 40,000 passengers.”
One of the main issues raised in
the debriefing is who had authority
in the emergency. According to the
Cathay Pacific protocols, the cabin
crew retains control and will run the
emergency within their abilities. Cabin
crew personnel are trained in first aid,
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the
use of the AED. They will be guided
by the medical advice of their ground
medical support.
Cathay Pacific use Medlink, which is
a 24-hour service based at the Trauma
Centre of Banner Hospital, Phoenix in
Arizona, US. The doctors on board are
to follow the instruction of the ground
medical support and to communicate
patient information to them. The
decision for diversion ultimately rests
with the captain of the aircraft in liaison
with the flight control. This surprised a
number of the anaesthetists on board
who assumed they had autonomy in
decision-making for patients under
their care. However, the cabin crew
withheld the medical responders from
administering medications until it was
approved by Medlink.
Communication with Medlink
is by satellite phone, which may be
interrupted. We noted during both
scenarios that the participant who
communicated with Medlink was not
the leader of the medical response team.
A decision for flight diversion was made
in both scenarios.
During debriefing, the leader of the
medical response team disagreed with
the decision for diversion but was not
involved in the decision. One of the
observers was involved in another
ground support medical service and
noted that there may be communication
issues during an emergency.
The cockpit simulations showed how
the aviation industry uses checklists
before and after takeoff and landing,
and the use of standard operating
procedures together with memory
items in an emergency. We discussed
how we can adapt these principles
to anaesthesia.
We received many encouraging
comments on the way back in the
coach. I heard a number of times that
this was the highlight of the CSM for
some participants. This workshop was
the result of collaboration with Cathay
Pacific and they generously provided
their simulation facilities, aviation
medical specialists, flight instructors
and flight attendant trainers. They also
learned a great deal from the encounter.
Dr Tim Brake, FANZCA
United Christian Hospital, Hong Kong
Dr Tim Brake was the “Is there a doctor
on board?” workshop co-ordinator at
the 2011 Hong Kong Combined Scientific
Meeting.
References
1. Cocks R., Liew M. Commercial aviation
in-flight emergencies and the physician.
Emergency Medicine Australasia (2007)
19, 1–8
2. Gardelof B. Inflight medical emergencies.
American and European viewpoints
on the duties of health care personnel.
Lakartidningen 2002; 99 (37): 3596–9.
3. DeJohn C, Veronneau S, Wolbrink A,
Larcher J, Smith D, Garrett JS. Evaluation
of in-flight medical care aboard selected
US air carriers. Cabin Crew Safety 2000;
35 (2): 1–19.
Above from left: Dr Phillipa Hore and Dr
Michelle Mulligan in the cockpit; the flight
simulator controls; the Flight Training Center
at Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong; anaesthetists
taking part in the in-flight medical emergency
simulation workshop.
ANZCA Bulletin September 2011
41
r on board?
e on in-flight
n training at the
M prompts me to relay
pened only a month
hat happens in the
a flight from Fiji,
hthalmic surgical
here was a call
ss system of the
doctor. The four
ad been working with
ted at me and firmly
made myself known
was ushered to the
re a man was lying
ery narrow corridor
wo rear toilets.
en from his wife
a man in his mid-50s
bidities including
e, liver cancer and a
ad been on holiday
nwell for the past few
minal pain, nausea
d been unable to keep
n.
difficult but he was
. He looked pale,
pulse and his systolic
lpation, (there was no
mm.Hg. I concluded
d as a result of
ary to dehydration.
edical kit was
ugh somewhat old
a litre of Hartmann’s
set.
ember 2011
I managed to cannulate a vein, although
there was no tape available and we had
to secure it with Band-Aids. His condition
improved somewhat with the fluid and
when the captain called to ask if he needed
to divert the plane I informed him that
this would not be necessary. However, I
requested that an ambulance be ready at
the arrival of the plane and that a stretcher
be waiting as soon as we disembarked as I
considered that he needed urgent hospital
care. I was assured that this would
be done.
Re: NZ anaesthetic technicians can
On arrival in Sydney all the passengers
now register as health professionals
were let off before us but when I got to
(September 2011)
the door I found that there was neither
I was delighted to read the article by
stretcher nor any thought of one. Finally
Susan Ewart, describing the “11-year
an airport employee arrived with a
process” that has resulted in anaesthetic
wheelchair and all we could do was
technicians in New Zealand now
bundle the patient into this. No one in
being
able to register under the Health
Editor’s
note
sight was aware of a medical emergency,
Practitioners Competence
nor seemed to care much. We wheeled
In the December
edition ofAssurance
the ANZCA
Act. I congratulate all those involved in
the patient to passport control where Bulletin,
we
a quote
a letterprofessional
submitted by
achieving
thisin
important
did get some priority in the queue but
goal Professor
for our operating
room colleagues.
Associate
Michael
Davis on
then had to wait for bags to be collected
Throughout
my anaesthetic
career, I
before he was finally wheeled out to New Zealand
anaesthetic
technicians
was
valued highly the support of the many
the concourse where I expected the inadvertently
leftwomen
out. This
is the
letter,
fine men and
who have
worked
ambulance to be waiting. No one knew
alongside
in this
capacity.
inme
full
with
the missing,
anything about it and the patient, hisrepublished
However, thequote
processincluded.
of developing
wife and myself were dumped rather slightly abridged,
the professional role of anaesthetic
unceremoniously in the cold and draughty
technicians to where it is today is, in fact,
arrivals hall. I inquired about the medical
NZ anaesthetic
technicians
much longer than the 11 years since the
centre at the airport but it was midday on a
I was delighted
to read
the article
NZ Anaesthetics
Technicians
Society by Susan
Saturday and it was closed.
“theirthe
wish“11-year
to be covered
by
Ewart, expressed
describing
process”
that
Finally, in desperation, I phoned 000
this legislation”. The first anaesthetic
and spoke to the NSW ambulance who
saidresulted
has
in anaesthetic technicians in
technicians training course in New
no call or arrangement had been made.
New Zealand
now
being by
able
to in
register
Zealand was
developed
myself
Nonetheless they sent an ambulance and
1978, 33 years ago, soon after I arrived
three quarters of an hour later the patient
in Christchurch as a full-time specialist
was finally on his way to hospital.
for the then North Canterbury Hospital
Aviation is often held up to we
Board. In order to complete the early
anaesthetists as model of practice but
history
of technician training in NZ, it is
a doctor
in this instance a serious breakdown Is there
worth quoting from a 1990 Department
of communication between the air and on board?
of Anaesthesia internal publication that
the ground led to sub-optimal care of
covered the history of anaesthesia in
this patient.
1
A funny thing
happened on
Christchurch
from 1974 to 1990.
the way back from the Hong
As far as I know, at least two of those
Kong Combined Scientific
Dr Terry Clarke
Meeting (CSM).
original five graduates were still working
Director, Department of Anaesthetics On one flight, an asthmatic
astookanaesthetic
technicians in Christchurch
inadvertently
some
and Pain Management
peanut snacks and developed
until
very recently.
anaphylactic
shock. His
Nepean Hospital, Penrith, NSW
sister was frantic and called
under the Health Practitioners Competence
Assurance Act. I congratulate all those
involved in achieving this important
professional goal for our operating room
colleagues. Throughout my anaesthetic
career, I valued highly the support of the
many fine men and women who have
worked alongside me in this capacity.
However, the process of developing
the professional role of anaesthetic
technicians to where it is today is, in fact,
much longer than the 11 years since the
NZ Anaesthetics Technicians Society
expressed “their wish to be covered by
this legislation”. I developed the first
anaesthetic technicians training course in
New Zealand in 1978, 33 years ago, soon
after I arrived in Christchurch as a full-time
specialist for the then North Canterbury
Hospital Board. In order to complete the
early history of technician training in NZ,
it is worth quoting from a 1990 Department
of Anaesthesia internal publication that
covered the history of anaesthesia in
1
Christchurch from 1974 to 1990.
“In the late 1970s...a national
training committee was formed under the
auspices of the Department of Health, on
which Doug Chisholm [Medical Director,
Anaesthesia Services, CAHB] was invited
to sit. Anticipating the establishment
of proper training programmes, a pilot
course was commenced...in Christchurch
modelled on the anaesthetic and basic
sciences components of the UK Operating
Department Assistants training programme.
This Christchurch course became the basis
for the development of the NZ programme.
[Dr] Jim Clayton from Dunedin was the first
examiner.”
As far as I know, at least two of those
original five graduates were still working
as anaesthetic technicians in Christchurch
until recently.
“Oh, you can’t; they’re the men who
bring the stairs to the plane,” was the reply.
In-cabin phone communication
to the front of the plane achieved two
important objectives: the pilot requested
stairs urgently and the senior cabin crew
announced my imminent urgent egress.
I now know how a sheep dog feels as it
runs along the backs of a flock of sheep all
“In-flight
medical emergencies
trying to flee the
barking
dog!
are relatively common occurring
approximately
per 10,000
I was off theat– plane
asonesoon
as the stairs
40,000 passengers.”
hit the fuselage, to find the gent had been
rolled into an unconscious-patient position.
To my serious consternation, he
exhibited no response, deepest cyanosis
and no palpable pulses. My silent private
response could be summed up in one word.
With an earnest request for formal help
to the man in the yellow jacket with the
secret service device in his ear, I proceeded
with expired air mouth-to-mouth and a
thump that should have woken something.
“Get the fire-ies” was my catch cry,
assuming that they would arrive with
flashing lights and oxygen, at least.
As I learned at an informal debriefing,
the man with the secret service device in
his ear could communicate with only the
pilot of the aircraft to which his device was
attached. [I thought that he could talk to
the world].
Nevertheless that instigated a chain
of communication from him to aircraft
cockpit to Melbourne, to Hobart and finally
to Launceston and thence to on-airfield
Launceston Airport Fire Response.
After what seemed like 24 hours, the fire
truck arrived and Deo Gratias, along with
the senior medical emergencies instructor
for Tasmania, and oxygen.
[When he offered to take over holding
the face mask I said something like, “Sure,
I’ve been practising for about 35 years if you
could just help with the other bits.” He was
so calm, “Okay”, and proceeded with the
other bits.]
Meanwhile, the patient was responding
and I could hear Ambulance Tasmania
wailing up the highway. Never was I so glad
to greet an ETT, and skilled paramedics.
A young plastics surgeon kept shaking
my hand with congratulatory exuberance
and a local ED RMO was delegated to brief
them.
The next day in the intensive care
unit [as a retrievalist/hanger on in ICU]
I expressed to the gentleman patient,
“K…. I’ve kissed you once and I’m not doing
it again … Give up the fags!”
Lesson: Smash the closest fire alarm
for oxygen-to-go at an airport!
Associate Professor (retired)
Michael Davis, MB, BChir, MA (Cantab.),
FRCA(Eng.), FANZCA, MD(Otago),
DipDHM, CertDHM(ANZCA)
Reference:
1. Davis FM, editor. Department of Anaesthesia
1974–1990. The changing face of anaesthesia
in the public health system. Christchurch:
Canterbury Area Health Board; 1990.
Anaesthetic technicians in New Zealand
For the sake of accuracy, I wish to expand
on what Dr Michael Davis has written
about early anaesthetic technician
training in New Zealand (ANZCA Bulletin,
March 2012). Efforts to institute formal
training began in the 1960s and began
at Christchurch Hospital and Green
Lane Hospital, Auckland, in April 1977.
The first examination for the Certificate
of Proficiency was held in March 1979.
Six candidates presented, four from
Christchurch and two from Auckland.
All passed. Training extended to other
centres after that.
for the flight attendant. The
flight attendant responded,
informed the cockpit and
their ground medical support
while putting out a call on
the intercom: “Is there a
doctor on board?”
Associate Professor (retired) Michael
Davis, MB, BChir, MA (Cantab.),
FRCA(Eng.), FANZCA, MD(Otago),
Re:
“IsDipDHM,
there aCertDHM(ANZCA)
doctor on board?”
Fortunately there were six anaesthetists
Table 1. Example of aviation
It is likely that doctors who travel
returning from the CSM, and the
emergency medicaland
kit
regularly
will receive a call for help
Christchurch
(ANZCA
Bulletin,
September
2011),
the
patient responded to treatment
that was
during their careers. In-flight medical
subsequent letter from Dr Clarke (ANZCA
Reference
Bulletin,
December
prompts
me to
1. Davis
FM, editor.2011)
Department
of Anaesthesia
face of anaesthesia
relate an1974–1990.
accountTheofchanging
my own.
the public health system. Christchurch:
I wasin
seated
at the window in the end
Canterbury Area Health Board; 1990.
row on board an A330-220, which had
just nosed into park on the tarmac in
Launceston.
Looking out the window, I notice three
men in yellow and, as I watch, one of them
gracefully slides from walking to prone-onconcrete position.
Oddly, my first thought was, “Must be
difficult for that person working around
aircraft with epilepsy …”
As I watched, he did not move from the
assumed prone-on-concrete position as his
two comrades rallied. The more I watched
the less he moved.
I indicated to the cabin crew that I
wished to offer assistance.
available in the emergency medical kit.
Soon after, on another flight a young
man had a grand mal convulsion,
another group of anaesthetists
responded to the call “Is there a doctor
on board?” Meanwhile, in the cockpit
things were not much better with takeoff aborted due to windshear and the
“fire engine one” alarm occurring
four times.
These scenarios took place at
the Flight Training Center at Cathay
Pacific in Hong Kong as an offsite
workshop of the CSM. We ran in-flight
medical emergency simulations for 24
participants to familiarise them with
the emergency medical equipment
available on board, to appreciate the
unfamiliar and confined environment
and to understand the airline protocols
in medical emergencies.
We used a mockup of the Boeing
777 cabin, a Sim-man 3G high fidelity
mannequin, actors and a team of flight
attendant trainers to set up the scenario
for in-flight medical emergencies.
Cockpit simulation was done with a flat
screen simulator with flight instructors
from Cathay Pacific.
40
emergencies are relatively common
occurring at approximately one per
10,000 -40,000 passengers, with one
death per 3-5 million passengers and
medically related diversion of aircraft
in 7-13 per cent of cases1. There will be a
medical person on board in 83 per cent
of flights2. The most common diagnose
are vasovagal syncope (22.4 per cent),
cardiac (19.5 per cent) and neurological
3
(11.8%) .
Resuscitating a patient in the
confined space of an economy seat
may be difficult. The seats will not lie
flat and there will be other passengers
crowded around who may need the
flight attendant. In this scenario the
mannequin was moved from the
economy seat to the galley area. We
had been briefed on the contents of
the emergency medical kit by Cathay
Pacific’s aviation chief medical officer
but it was still difficult in the emergency
to find the correct drugs and equipment.
An oxygen cylinder was used and
the automated external defibrillator
(AED) was available but not used. The
contents of emergency medical kits
may vary between airlines but is being
standardised in the aviation industry.
Table 1 gives an example.
ANZCA Bulletin September 2011
Kit Specification – European Joint
Aviation Authorities
(JAA) Regulation: JAR-OPS 1.755
– Emergency Medical Kit
Contents:
- Sphygmomanometer
- Syringes and needles
- Oropharyngeal airways (two sizes)
- Tourniquet
- Disposable gloves
- Needle disposal box
- Urinary catheter
- A list of contents in at least two
languages (English and one other)
Drugs: Adrenocortical steroid,
antiemetic, antihistamine,
antispasmodic, atropine, bronchial
dilator (inhalation and injectable
forms), coronary vasodilator, digoxin,
diuretic, adrenaline (epinephrine)
1:1000, major analgesic, medication
for hypoglycaemia, sedative/
anticonvulsant, uterine contractant.
Note that there is no requirement for an
IV kit, although some carriers including
Qantas will have IV fluid. There is
no intubation equipment although
a laryngeal mask may be included.
One of the main issues raised in
the debriefing is who had authority
in the emergency. According to the
Cathay Pacific protocols, the cabin
crew retains control and will run the
emergency within their abilities. Cabin
crew personnel are trained in first aid,
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the
use of the AED. They will be guided
by the medical advice of their ground
medical support.
Cathay Pacific use Medlink, which is
a 24-hour service based at the Trauma
Centre of Banner Hospital, Phoenix in
Arizona, US. The doctors on board are
to follow the instruction of the ground
medical support and to communicate
patient information to them. The
decision for diversion ultimately rests
with the captain of the aircraft in liaison
with the flight control. This surprised a
number of the anaesthetists on board
who assumed they had autonomy in
decision-making for patients under
their care. However, the cabin crew
withheld the medical responders from
administering medications until it was
approved by Medlink.
Communication with Medlink
is by satellite phone, which may be
interrupted. We noted during both
scenarios that the participant who
communicated with Medlink was not
the leader of the medical response team.
A decision for flight diversion was made
in both scenarios.
During debriefing, the leader of the
medical response team disagreed with
the decision for diversion but was not
involved in the decision. One of the
observers was involved in another
ground support medical service and
noted that there may be communication
issues during an emergency.
The cockpit simulations showed how
the aviation industry uses checklists
before and after takeoff and landing,
and the use of standard operating
procedures together with memory
items in an emergency. We discussed
how we can adapt these principles
to anaesthesia.
We received many encouraging
comments on the way back in the
coach. I heard a number of times that
this was the highlight of the CSM for
some participants. This workshop was
the result of collaboration with Cathay
Pacific and they generously provided
their simulation facilities, aviation
medical specialists, flight instructors
and flight attendant trainers. They also
learned a great deal from the encounter.
Dr Tim Brake, FANZCA
United Christian Hospital, Hong Kong
Dr Tim Brake was the “Is there a doctor
on board?” workshop co-ordinator at
the 2011 Hong Kong Combined Scientific
Meeting.
References
1. Cocks R., Liew M. Commercial aviation
in-flight emergencies and the physician.
Emergency Medicine Australasia (2007)
19, 1–8
2. Gardelof B. Inflight medical emergencies.
American and European viewpoints
on the duties of health care personnel.
Lakartidningen 2002; 99 (37): 3596–9.
3. DeJohn C, Veronneau S, Wolbrink A,
Larcher J, Smith D, Garrett JS. Evaluation
of in-flight medical care aboard selected
US air carriers. Cabin Crew Safety 2000;
35 (2): 1–19.
Above from left: Dr Phillipa Hore and Dr
Michelle Mulligan in the cockpit; the flight
simulator controls; the Flight Training Center
at Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong; anaesthetists
taking part in the in-flight medical emergency
simulation workshop.
ANZCA Bulletin September 2011
41
Dr George Waters FFARCS
Acting Director, Anaesthetics
and Intensive Care
Mount Isa, Queensland
Submitting letters
We encourage the submission of letters to the editor of ANZCA Bulletin. They should be sent to [email protected].
Letters should be no more than 300 words and may be edited for clarity and length.
10
ANZCA Bulletin March 2012
Dudley Buxton Medal
of the Royal College
of Anaesthetists
Professor Teik Oh has been awarded
the Dudley Buxton Medal of the Royal
College of Anaesthetists in recognition
of his estimable services to the specialty.
The medal was established in 1967 to
provide an annual award of a prize for
meritorious work in anaesthesia or in a
science contributing to the progress of
anaesthesia.
Australia Day Honours
Dr Andrew Kenneth Bacon has been
awarded the Ambulance Service Medal
(ASM), Victorian Ambulance Service, in
the 2012 Australia Day Honours List.
New Zealand Queen’s
Birthday Honours
Sir Roderick Deane has been made a
Knight Companion of the New Zealand
Order of Merit (KNZM) for his contribution
to business and policymaking, and for
supporting the arts and disability sector
for more than 30 years. Sir Roderick is on
the board of ANZCA’s Anaesthesia and
Pain Medicine Foundation.
Dr James Judson, FANZCA, FCICM,
received an MNZM (Member of the New
Zealand Order of Merit) for services to
intensive care medicine. Dr Judson
works as an intensive care specialist
at Auckland City Hospital’s Intensive
Care Unit.
ANZCA CELEBRATING 20 YEARS 1992-2012
Dr Basil Hutchinson, FANZCA, Auckland
(Former chair, Anaesthetic Technicians’
Board, NZ)
Australian Queen’s
Birthday Honours
Associate Professor Malcolm Wright
has been appointed a Member of the
Order of Australia in the General Division,
for service to intensive care medicine, as
a clinician, teacher and administrator,
and through advanced medical training
programs in developing countries.
Dr David Henry McConnel has been
awarded the Medal of the Order of
Australia in the General Division, for
service to medicine, particularly as an
anaesthetist, through a range of executive
and professional roles.
Dr Drew James Wenck has been awarded
the Medal of the Order of Australia in the
General Division, for service to intensive
care medicine through advisory roles,
and to the community.
Submitting letters
We encourage the submission of letters
to the editor of ANZCA Bulletin. They
should be sent to communications@
anzca.edu.au. Letters should be no
more than 300 words and may be
edited for clarity and length.
Would you like a
2013 ANZCA Diary?
If you did not receive an ANZCA
diary last year and would like a
2013 ANZCA Diary, please email
[email protected]
with your name and ANZCA
ID number.
PLEASE NOTE: If you received a
2012 ANZCA Diary last year, you will
automatically receive a 2013 diary.
9
Heading Sample
The Dr Ray Hader
Trainee Award for
Compassion
Nominations are sought from ANZCA
trainees and Fellows within three
years of fellowship by examination
for the Dr Ray Hader Trainee Award
for Compassion. The deadline for
nominations is October 11, 2012.
Dr Ray Hader was an ANZCA trainee who grew
up and lived in Victoria. He died in 1998 of an
accidental drug overdose after a long struggle
with drug addiction. To mark the 10-year
anniversary of his death, a friend, Dr Brandon
Carp, established an award that promotes
a compassionate approach to the welfare
of anaesthetists, their colleagues, patients
and the community.
Details of the Award
Eligibility
At the deadline for submissions, the nominee
will be an accredited ANZCA trainee resident in
any ANZCA training region or an ANZCA Fellow
within three years of admission to fellowship
by examination.
The nominee will have made a significant
contribution to the welfare of an individual,
a group or a system that promotes welfare and
compassion. The individual, group or system
will be preferentially related to anaesthesia,
but may alternatively be related to other
colleagues, patients or the community
(locally or internationally).
Nomination
Nominees will be nominated and seconded
by accredited ANZCA trainees resident in any
ANZCA training region or ANZCA Fellows
within three years of admission to fellowship
by examination.
The nominator will describe in 1000 words or
less how the candidate has made a significant
contribution. The description will be
accompanied by a covering letter signed by
the nominator and seconder.
Deadline
Nominations must be received by ANZCA Chief
Executive Officer Linda Sorrell by 5pm on
October 11, 2012.
Prize
The winner will receive $A2000 to be used
for training or educational purposes, and
a certificate.
If you are concerned about yourself
or a colleague contact
Australia:
The Doctors’ Health
Advisory Service
Australian Capital Territory +61 407 265 414
Hotline
nearest to you
New South Wales/Northern Territory
+61 2 9437 6552
Queensland +61 7 3833 4352
Victoria +61 3 9495 6011
Western Australia +61 8 9321 3098
Tasmania 1300 853 338
South Australia +61 8 8273 4111
New Zealand: 0800 471 2654
Professional documents – update
The professional documents of ANZCA
and the Faculty of Pain Medicine are
an important resource for promoting
the quality and safety of patient care
for those undergoing anaesthesia for
surgical and other procedures, and
for patients with pain. They define the
requirements for training and for hospitals
providing such training, provide guidance
to trainees and Fellows on standards of
anaesthetic and pain medicine practice,
define policies, and serve other purposes
that the College deems appropriate.
Professional documents are also referred
10
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
to by government and other bodies,
particularly with regard to accreditation
of healthcare facilities.
Professional documents are subject
to regular review and are amended in
accordance with changes in knowledge,
practice and technology.
PS31 Guidelines on Checking
Anaesthesia Delivery Systems and PS37
Guidelines for Health Practitioners
Administering Local Anaesthesia have
been revised.
These documents and newly developed
background papers are now being piloted.
Queries or feedback regarding
professional documents can be directed
to [email protected].
The complete range of ANZCA
professional documents
is available via the ANZCA website,
www.anzca.edu.au.
Faculty of Pain Medicine professional
documents can be accessed via the
FPM website, www.fpm.anzca.edu.au.
News
New College office-bearers
Dr Genevieve Goulding has been
appointed ANZCA Vice-President and
Professor Ted Shipton has been appointed
FPM Vice-Dean. Dr Goulding has been
Chair of the Education and Training
Committee since 2010. She is a deputy
director in quality and safety for the
department of anaesthesia at the Royal
Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. Her
anaesthesia interests include obstetric
anaesthesia, medical education, welfare
issues and patient safety. Professor
Shipton is Chair of the FPM Trainee Affairs
Portfolio and Education Committee. He is
Clinical Director of the Pain Management
Centre at the Canterbury District Health
Board in Christchurch and Academic
Chair of the Department of Anaesthesia,
Christchurch School of Medicine at the
University of Otago.
ANZCA accreditation
ANZCA representatives met the
Australian Medical Council (AMC)
Assessment Committee in Melbourne
on June 1 for a preliminary meeting
to clarify key issues arising from both
the ANZCA and FPM submissions for
accreditation with the AMC and Medical
Council of New Zealand. The assessment
committee were satisfied with the
overall quality of the documentation
and discussion centred on the
implementation of the revised curriculum,
among other issues. The assessment is
scheduled to begin on October 8 with
site visits to representative hospitals
across the two countries followed by
meetings at ANZCA House during the
week beginning October 15.
Overseas aid trainee
scholarship
Australasian Anaesthesia
(the Blue Book)
Dr Steven Smith, from the Mater
Mothers Hospital in Brisbane, has been
awarded the 2012 ANZCA Overseas Aid
Trainee Scholarship. Dr Smith will travel
to the Vila Central Hospital in Vanuatu in
August and September to help provide
clinical anaesthesia services while local
anaesthetists attend the Pacific Society
of Anaesthetists Conference. He also will
help teach junior healthcare providers
about obstetric anaesthesia and the
investigation of obstetric anaesthesia
referral of high-risk patients and audit
processes. For more information about
the work of the Overseas Aid Committee,
see page 28.
The 2011 edition of the Australasian
Anaesthesia publication, more commonly
known as the Blue Book, is now available
to download via the ANZCA website in an
electronic flipbook format. The flipbook
format enables downloading of the Blue
Book direct to PC, laptop, smartphone
and tablet. The flipbook features
navigation and search functions to help
find topics of interest faster, and includes
zoom and full-screen modes for ease
of reading.
For Fellows and trainees who prefer
a hard copy of the publication, please
email the ANZCA Continuing Professional
Development (CPD) team at cpd@anzca.
edu.au, citing your ANZCA College ID
number and full name, and a copy will
be sent to you. Any queries, please
contact the ANZCA CPD team on
[email protected] or + 61 3 9510 6299.
An introduction
to anaesthesia
New Zealand ANZCA Fellow Dr Aidan
O’Donnell has written a book called
Anaesthesia: A Very Short Introduction.
The book is a short introduction to
anaesthesia for the lay reader and is
expected to be valuable for new-start
trainees, medical students, nurses,
technicians, midwives and the general
public. It covers the whole spectrum
of modern anaesthetic practice,
including general and local anesthesia,
anaesthesia for childbirth and intensive
care, as well as equipment and agents.
It also provides a detailed breakdown
of anaesthetic risks, side effects and
complications. It is published by Oxford
University Press. More information can
be found at: http://ukcatalogue.oup.com.
Lifebox donations
Fellows and trainees raised $46,142 at
the Perth annual scientific meeting for
Lifebox to provide developing countries
with about 200 pulse oximeters. For
$US250, Lifebox provides a robust pulse
oximeter and educational material to
hospitals in developing countries that
will ensure safe anaesthesia and save
the lives of patients undergoing surgery.
The first of the ANZCA-donated pulse
oximeters will go to Papua New Guinea.
For more information, see page 16.
Vic Callanan award
The inaugural Townsville Hospital Vic
Callanan Award, named after one of the
pioneers of anaesthetics in Australia,
has been awarded to resident medical
officer Dr Ben Shepherd for his skills
in resuscitation. Dr Callinan stepped
down last year as the hospital’s director
of anaesthetics after 36 years in the
role. The award is presented to the
hospital’s best performer in simulated
resuscitation. The award was reported in
the local newspaper, the Townsville Sun.
11
Perth ASM
wrap up
More than 1500 Fellows and trainees attended the Perth
Annual
Scientific
Meeting
in May.inThe
scientific
program
Perth
Annual
Scientific
Meeting
May.
The scientific
included included
13 plenary
195 concurrent
session
program
13sessions,
plenary sessions,
178 concurrent
presentations,
56 workshops,
42 small42
group
session
presentations,
47 workshops,
smalldiscussions
group
and 59 ePoster
andsessions,
was complemented
discussions
andpresentations
quality assurance
and 59 ePoster
by an excellentand
social
and other
presentations
wasprogram
complemented
by important
an excellent
ANZCAprogram
events, such
as theimportant
College Ceremony.
social
and other
ANZCA events,
such as the College Ceremony.
12
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Counting the many successes
of the ANZCA ASM
The College has much to celebrate as
the curtain goes down on an innovative
and interesting annual scientific meeting
in Perth.
We have put our glad rags in to be dry
cleaned, filed away another conference
handbook and reacquainted ourselves
with our children. Now there is a chance to
reflect upon the product of so many hours
of planning; the days from May 12-16 during
which the ANZCA Annual Scientific Meeting
2012 was held.
We selected the theme “Evolution: Grow,
Develop, Thrive” a little over two years
ago driven by the desire of the Regional
Organising Committee to put together a
meeting that had elements of old and new,
in addition to practical aspects that would
appeal to clinicians looking to develop and
refine their practice.
Delegates were treated to the relaxing jazzy
tones of songstress Nicki Pelecanos as the
meeting kicked off with welcome drinks in
the Riverview foyer of the Perth Convention
and Exhibition Centre overlooking the
Swan River. The welcome drinks are always
a great way to reconnect with friends and
colleagues and this year was no exception.
Beautiful blue skies greeted us on the
opening day of the meeting, and we
were welcomed by a representative
of the Whadjuk Noongar people, Ms
Ingrid Cumming, in a moving ceremony
acknowledging the traditional owners
of the land.
The academic program blasted off with
interesting and thought-provoking plenary
lectures delivered by the first female ASM
Visitor, Professor Ruth Landau, and FPM
Visitor Dr Daniel Bennett. They set the tone
for the excellent plenary sessions over
ensuing days. As the first session came to
a close, a gasp of delight arose from the
1500 delegates as the curtain at the back of
the stage drew back to reveal a healthcare
industry exhibition, allowing access for
delegates over the stage into the pavilion
where morning tea was served.
Trainee delegates were joined by councillors
and members of the academic fraternity
from ANZCA and the Faculty of Pain
Medicine at the Trainees’ Luncheon at the
Metro bar and bistro. The casual, relaxed
mood gave a perfect opportunity to mingle.
Saturday night saw 177 new Fellows
welcomed into the specialties while
watched by family and friends at the College
Ceremony. Always a special occasion, the
2012 ceremony will stand out in the minds
of those present as they recall the personal
and touching oration delivered by Australia’s
first indigenous surgeon, Associate
Professor Kelvin Kong, who emphasised the
importance of kinship within our profession
by recounting the stories of three influential
women in his life. The College Ceremony
Reception, which followed, was a fitting
way to congratulate the graduands, and
showcased the exceptional food and wine
that Western Australia has to offer.
Sunday started bright and early with a run
into King’s Park for about 40 fit and eager
delegates and heralded another sunny day
chock full of concurrent sessions, workshops
and small group discussions, including the
final day of the FPM program.
Plenary sessions by Professor Patrick
Wouters exploring the wonders of the right
ventricle and renowned pain expert and
perioperative physician Professor Henrik
Kehlet on the troublesome transition
from acute to chronic pain set the scene.
Internationally renowned communication
experts, TRIAD, commenced a series of
sold-out workshops focusing on difficult
conversations and negotiation, which
were well received by the attendees.
(continued next page)
13
Several heavily pregnant friends and
family members gave up part of their
Mother’s Day to volunteer for the specialist
echocardiography workshop by Professor
Alicia Dennis, and Dr Alex Swann and his
group ran a successful difficult airway
workshop with true to life road-traffic
trauma scenarios.
The healthcare industry was welcomed
and thanked with a cocktail reception that
evening as we mingled among our 61
exhibitors. We were entertained by local
acoustic musicians 2fiveSoul as delegates
socialised and browsed the exhibition.
The artworks displayed in the rear of the
area provided a pleasant diversion from
an entertaining and informative exhibition
hall. Special thanks go to Philips and all
delegates for their patience as we awaited
the untimely arrival of the USB keys
containing the abstracts!
The short academic program on Monday
included presentations by the Gilbert Brown
Prize contenders and was followed by a
plethora of choices for the delegates to
experience some of the local Perth culture.
A round of golf, a swim with the dolphins,
a ride around the river or a day at Rottnest
Island were enjoyed by families and
partners.
Our delegates were able to recoup, plan for
the next couple of days and enjoy some the
local attractions during an afternoon and
evening of unplanned time. This also gave
some of the Regional Organising Committee
a chance to debrief and troubleshoot any
issues for the final days of the conference
and others to enjoy the fabulous wine
dinner at Chez Pierre with 50 delegates
and partners.
The last full day of the meeting presented a
final opportunity to soak up the innovations
of the meeting. The moderated ePoster
sessions concluded in the morning and
the Masterclass series reached a finale with
excellent sessions on airways, coagulation
and regional anaesthesia.
Anticipation mounted with the promise
of glamour, mystery and Bond filling the
twilight skies with the commencement
of the gala dinner. Attended by 1000
delegates and their partners, social
convenors Dr Charlotte Jorgensen and Dr
Priya Thalayasingam outdid themselves in
providing a night to remember; highlights
include Professor Landau’s movie-inspired
toast and Dr Alan (Evil) Millard’s entertaining
mastering of the ceremonies.
We were feeling a little nostalgic by the
time the final morning rolled around. The
meeting concluded in great style (and with
a great turnout) with TRIAD’s Stevenson
Carlebach delivering a session on the
“neuroscience of negotiation” followed
by a thought-provoking hypothetical
session, chaired by medico-legal expert
Dr Andrew Miller.
The closing ceremony saw the College
presidency handed over by Professor Kate
Leslie to Dr Lindy Roberts, both of whom
epitomise Dr Robert’s message of our
College moving “from strength to strength”.
Now, a few weeks later, the dust has settled
and we haven’t had to allocate rooms for
any business meetings, troubleshoot menu
disasters, or massage any budget figures.
We have had a chance to reflect on what
a privilege it has been to help co-ordinate
such an extraordinary event; how lucky
we’ve been to have enjoyed the tremendous
support and goodwill of attendees,
facilitators, volunteers and exhibitors; and
what a fantastic team of people we have
had the pleasure to work with over the last
few years. A huge and sincere thank you
to you all.
Dr Tanya Farrell and Dr David Vyse,
Co-convenors, Perth ASM
This page Clockwise from top: Perth ASM signage; Perth ASM Co-convenors Dr David Vyse and Dr Tanya Farrell; lunch in the healthcare industry area; the Opening Ceremony audience;
view of the Opening Ceremony from the audio visual control area. Opposite page Clockwise from top: Question time in a plenary session; participants in the laryngoscope workshop;
viewing an ePoster; Retired Fellows Lunch attendees.
14
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
“Our aviator had a
simple answer for
the problem of
fatigue – ‘Get
more sleep!’
Scientific program hits the mark
with interest and innovation
The largest anaesthesia conference yet to
be held in Perth, the 2012 ANZCA Annual
Scientific Meeting offered 13 plenary
presentations, 178 concurrent session
presentations, 47 workshops, 42 small
group discussions and QA sessions and
59 ePoster presentations.
It was gratifying to receive a great deal of
positive feedback about the scope and
quality of the scientific program from
both the overseas invited speakers and
delegates, the few complaints from the
latter relating to the fact that they could not
attend all the sessions that attracted them!
challenged and enriched our thinking in
dealing with difficult conversations and
the complexities of human behavioural
responses.
The other key factor lay in the exceptional
quality of the presentations. All credit is
due to the more than 250 presenters and
facilitators, starting with our featured
invited speakers – Professor Ruth Landau,
Professor Patrick Wouters, Professor Henrik
Kehlet, Professor Joseph Neal, Associate
Professor Andrew Davidson and Dr Dan
Bennett – and finishing with a outstanding
hypothetical session hosted by Dr Andrew
Miller, the medical equivalent of Geoffrey
Robertson and Billy Connolly.
Much of the success resulted from the
diversity of the program, which deliberately
included many speakers from other medical
specialties and non-medical disciplines,
including intensivists, cardiologists,
haematologists, microbiologists, surgeons,
maternal and fetal medicine specialists,
paediatricians, scientists and pilots.
In line with the theme of our meeting
– Evolution: Grow, Develop, Thrive – we
sought contributions from our invited
speakers that covered new and developing
areas of practice: pharmocogenetics,
point-of-care monitoring, the application
of ultrasound and echocardiography and
advances in the management of acute and
chronic pain.
The Masterclass series met the needs of
those wishing to update or learn about
current best practice; the Patient Blood
Management sessions covered both
new science and the successful Western
Australian initiative into improved
perioperative care of anaemia and
evidence-based blood transfusion practices;
and the Harvard-based TRIAD group
The program emphasised the importance
of our training and non-technical skills,
with lectures and workshops devoted
to the new ANZCA curriculum, research,
communication skills, simulation and
welfare. Our aviator had a simple answer for
the problem of fatigue – “Get more sleep”!
and our negotiation counsellor had a similar
message – “Listen”!
The ANZCA ASM plays an important
role in showcasing the growth of our
understanding and knowledge through
scientific endeavour. To this end, the
Lennard Travers Professor, Associate
Professor Andrew Davidson, clarified
what is meant by “translation research”
and the Gilbert Brown Prize session
showcased our young achievers. These
were complemented by the ANZCA
Formal Project session, the Open Poster
and Trainee Poster prizes; and the FPM
Dean’s Prize and Free Paper session.
Congratulations to respective ANZCA
prize winners Dr Mary Hegarty, Dr Rohan
Mahendran, Dr Paul Stewart and Dr Stanley
Tay; and to the FPM Best Free Paper winner,
Dr Sarika Kumar.
The introduction of ePosters appeared
well received and offers greater scope
to presenters than the traditional poster
format.
Finally, we thank our colleagues who
worked tirelessly to run a smooth
meeting bursting with information and
entertainment. Special mention goes to our
amazing convenors, Dr Tanya Farrell and
Dr David Vyse, and organising committee
members Dr Soo Im Lim, Dr Liezel
Bredenkamp, Dr Markus Schmidt and Dr Ed
O’Loughlin, who were heavily involved in
organising the scientific program.
Clinical Professor Tomas Corcoran
and Professor Michael Paech,
Scientific Program Co-convenors
15
Pain medicine meeting shapes
evolution of healthcare
In a world where we are bombarded by
negativity in the form of phrases such
as “terrorism”, “global financial crisis”,
“massacre”, “religious extremism”, “arms
race”, “global warming”, “conflicts” and
“power struggle”, one can take solace in
occasions such as the recent 2012 ANZCA
Annual Scientific Meeting, where the focus
was “evolution”.
Evolution encapsulates the very purposes
of existence and unites all living things,
including human beings, irrespective of
genetic background, upbringing socioeconomic status, beliefs and occupation.
Conceived by Charles Darwin and
popularised by Richard Dawkins, the
concept of evolution challenges us to think
rather than to believe and to never cease to
question.
Pain medicine lends itself to the foundation
of evolution, as all creatures will adapt to
their environment to avoid and overcome
pain. Pain, in an essence, drives us to
better ourselves.
In the 2012 ASM, the pain component was
designed to introduce new concept and to
ask the hard questions – What are we doing
now? Is it working? How do we decide what
direction we need to take? – by focusing on
outcomes.
The concepts were spearheaded by
individuals who are the champions of
asking these hard questions, including
our invited speakers Dr Dan Bennett and
Professor Henrick Kehlet. Such gatherings
of dedicated scientists and visionaries
alike represent a common ground of the
desire to better ourselves and to engage
in exchange of ideas without prodigious
and bias, engaging in purposeful debate,
to shape the future of pain medicine
and the propagation and evolution
of healthcare.
Dr Max Majedi
FPM Scientific Convenor
Delegates raise $50,000 for Lifebox
Delegates at the ASM raised $A46,142,
including $A35,654 at the Gala Dinner, for
the Lifebox charity through the ANZCA
ASM Global Lifebox Initiative that ran
throughout the meeting,
Delegates were given a pledge form in
their satchels that could be used to make
donations and at the Gala Dinner, each
table was given a pledge envelope and
guests were encouraged throughout the
evening to donate to the cause.
The money will be used to buy pulse
oximeters and education kits worth $US250.
Each year, tens of thousands of lives are lost
during surgery because operating rooms
in many hospitals around the world don’t
have this simple piece of equipment that is
standard in Australia and New Zealand.
An estimated 77,000 operating rooms in
developing countries around the world
don’t have access to pulse oximeters,
putting at risk about 35 million patients
each year.
“Delegates at
the ASM raised
$A46,142,
including
$A35,654 at
the Gala Dinner,
for the Lifebox
charity
This page Clockwise from top: Dr David Jones with invited speaker, Dr Daniel Bennett; FPM new Fellows; Professor Henrik Kehlet presenting at an FPM session; (top) Dr Jones with FPM
Free Paper winner Dr Sarika Kumar; (bottom) Immediate past Dean Dr David Jones with new Dean, Associate Professor Brendan Moore; Dr David Jones with invited speaker Professor
Henrik Kehlet. Opposite page Clockwise from top: The College Ceremony; the College mace; a new Fellow is photographed; Robert Orton Medal winner, Dr Duncan Campbell; Orator,
Associate Professor Kelvin Kong.
16
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Snapshot
Full registrants: 1125
Day registrants: 68
Total attendees: 1782
New Fellows: 177
Sessions: 58
ePoster sessions: 6
Masterclass sessions: 12
Workshops: 47
Small group
discussions (SGDs): 38
Quality assurance
sessions: 4
Prize winners
Robert Orton Medal
Dr Duncan Campbell – For positively
affecting the professional life of thousands
of anaesthetists and the care of millions
of patients by the invention of a fluidic
ventilator that is widely known as
“The Campbell Ventilator”.
Gilbert Brown Prize
Dr Mary Katherina Hegarty – “Does takehome analgesia improve post-operative
pain after elective day case surgery? A
comparison of hospital versus parentsupplied analgesia”
ANZCA Formal Project Prize
Dr Rohan David Mahendran – “Measuring
cardiac output in the setting of different
intra-abdominal and positive endexpiratory pressures: Comparison of
trans-cardiac and trans-pulmonary
thermodilution in a porcine model”
ASM 2012 Open Poster Prize
Dr Paul Anthony Stewart – “Ipsilateral
comparison of acceleromyography and
electromyography during recovery from
non-depolarising neuromuscular blockade
under general anaesthesia in humans”
ASM 2012 Trainee Poster Prize
Dr Stanley Tay – “Reduce volatile agent
usage following introduction of Et-control
system”
Renton Prize
Dr Katrina Pamela Pirie, May 2011
Dr On Yat Wong, September 2011
Cecil Gray Prize
2012 named lectures
Mary Burnell Lecture
Professor Ruth Landau (ANZCA ASM Visitor),
Seattle, US – “Pharmacogenetics and
anaesthesia: not yet ready for prime time?”
Michael Cousins Lecture
Dr Daniel Bennett (FPM ASM Visitor),
Colorado, US – “Opiophobia, regulation and
risk management: developments
in the USA, a cautionary tale”
Ellis Gillespie Lecture
Professor Patrick Wouters (ANZCA WA
Visitor), Ghent, Belgium – “The right
ventricle: more than a passive conduit?”
FPM WA Visitor Lecture
Professor Henrik Kehlet (FPM WA Visitor),
Copenhagen, Denmark – “Progression from
acute to chronic pain: what do we know
and need to know?”
Australasian Visitors Lecture
Associate Professor Andrew Davidson
(Lennard Travers Professor), Victoria,
Australia – “Translational research in
anaesthesia”
Regional Organising Committee
Visitor’s Lecture
Professor Joseph Neal (Western Australian
Organising Committee Visitor), Seattle,
US – “Ultrasound – guided regional
anaesthesia: a game-changer or just
steady progress?”
Dr Jai Nair LePoer Darvall, May 2011
Dr Stuart Lachlan Hastings, September 2011
17
Spreading the ASM word
Media activities occurred both internally
and externally at the annual scientific
meeting – via daily multimedia ASM
E-Newsletters sent to meeting delegates and
Fellows and trainees not at the ASM and
through a very successful media program,
which resulted in widespread coverage in
print, on radio and TV in Australia and New
Zealand.
The ASM E-Newsletter was distributed
on the Friday before the ASM started (on
the FPM Refresher Course Day) and each
day of the meeting including Wednesday,
the final day.
It featured a video interview with every
keynote speaker plus audio recordings of
each plenary lecture. Additional interviews
with selected speakers also ran as well as
photo galleries and media updates. All ASM
E-Newsletters can be found on the ANZCA
website under “Events/ANZCA annual
scientific meetings”.
A total of 347 ASM-related media reports
mentioned ANZCA, reaching a potential
cumulative audience of more than six
million in Australia and New Zealand with a
value of more than $700,000 in equivalent
advertising dollars, according to a report
from our media monitoring service, Media
Monitors.
Nine media releases were issued, resulting
in interviews with 17 speakers. Highlights
included coverage of neurotoxicity
for newborns, a possible genetic link
to anaesthesia awareness, an update
on oxytocin, new data on pregnancy
complications associated with extremely
obese women, the use of hypnosis in
pain management, and developments
in artificial blood.
The attendance of medical reporters from
The Australian (News Ltd), The Age (Fairfax
Media) and the Australian Associated Press
wire service at the meeting resulted in
18 reports that were widely syndicated
throughout Australia and New Zealand. This
proved invaluable in terms of building our
relationships with key media organisations
not to mention raising the College’s profile
– and that of anaesthesia and pain medicine
– in the community.
For more details, please see “ANZCA in the
news” on page 60..
Clea Hincks
General Manager, Communications
ANZCA
“media
347 ASM-related
reports
mentioned
ANZCA, reaching
a potential
cumulative
audience of
more than six
million
Clockwise from top: Gala Dinner pre-dinner drinks; dancing at the Gala Dinner; more scenes from the Gala Dinner; the WA Regional Organising Committee.
18
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
New Fellows’
Conference
Leaders – born or made?
Leadership earned or learned?
These were just some of
the questions we wanted to
explore during the 2012 New
Fellows’ Conference (NFC).
“Team Leadership in Anaesthesia” took
place on May 9-11, prior to the Perth ASM.
Our aim was to put together a thoughtprovoking program, showcasing aspects
of anaesthetic leadership outside the
usual theatre setting and, in the process,
providing delegates with some new
skills and ideas about leadership.
After gathering at the Perth Convention
and Exhibition Centre, we had a three
hour bus ride in the rain to the beautiful
surrounds of Caves House in Yallingup,
Western Australia.
To get tired legs moving, and to get to
know each other, our first session was a
series of team challenges. Figuring out the
strengths and weaknesses in our teams to
solve the various puzzles culminated in
the teams having to cross an imaginary
crocodile-infested ravine with two short
planks, two milk crates and an iron bar.
Everyone made it out alive to the other
side. The “time machine challenge”
record time previously set by the AFL
Eagles team was well and truly smashed
by our anaesthetists, a feat to remember
by all.
This was followed by a relaxed
sundowner, which included a wine
tasting run by Howard Park Winery,
before an informal sit-down dinner in
front of a roaring fireplace strengthening
new acquaintances.
Our second day commenced with early
morning jogging and swimming for the
superfit. The next workshop, presented
by Anveeta Shrivastava and Wynand
Hamman from Deloitte Consulting, took
us through understanding cognitive
types, and how individuals respond to
different motivators and inspirations.
We were able to type ourselves into the
four categories of the Hermann-Brain
Dominance Instrument, which were
colour-coded, resulting in the group
referring themselves by their “colour”
for the remainder of the conference.
After a scenario role play, we learnt about
leadership and followership archetypes,
and how an understanding of these
allows for successful team interactions.
This stimulating workshop was
followed in the afternoon by an
interactive panel discussion session,
with the aim of debating issues requiring
anaesthesia leadership outside the
theatre environment. Our esteemed
panel consisted of Dr Mary Pinder, FICM
Examinations Chair, Dr Justin Burke, New
Fellows’ Councillor, Dr Prani Shrivastava,
Welfare SIG Chair, Dr David Scott, ANZCA
councillor and councillor in residence at
the 2012 NFC and Dr Emily Wilcox, the
representative from the 2011 NFC.
Topics covered included how we deal
with being a role model, a position of
unconscious and unchosen leadership
(leading to a discussion thread on the
need to improve mentoring of new
Fellows); how we deal with ethical issues
arising from our responsibilities to act
in our patients’ best interest and be nice
to our surgical colleagues; and whether
we have created unrealistic expectations
in the community regarding the role of
the anaesthetist. This was successful in
stimulating debate and discussion, which
continued after David Scott’s talk relating
the journey of his involvement in the
College, into the Conference Dinner held
at Cullen’s Winery.
Cullen’s Winery is a renowned
organic winery in the region, with a long
association with the medical community.
Dinner was one of the highlights of the
meeting, with a short talk from Vanya
Cullen, Chief Winemaker at Cullen’s,
showcasing leadership in the winemaking
industry with their sustainable biodynamic
cultivation. A special tasting of some
of their premium wines pre-empted a
fantastic meal showcasing local produce.
Nearly everyone made it out of bed in
time the next morning for Mary Pinder’s
workshop on debriefing after medical
disaster. This involved small groups
working together on various hypothetical
scenarios to identify issues and learning
how to design a debriefing plan.
After concluding the conference with
the election of a representative for next
year’s NFC, we embarked on the bus
trip back to Perth, with many noisy and
excited conversations taking place among
new friends and associates across the
Australasian regions.
Dr Angeline Lee
Dr Irina Kurowski
New Fellows Conference Co-convenors
Above from left: New Fellows Conference
delegates; Teamwork was needed to cross
the (imaginary) “crocodile-infested ravine”.
19
ANZCA’s revised
training program
How the new primary
examination will work
General overview
The broad aim of the new primary
examination is to provide an integrated
approach to learning.
While the candidate will still be
learning about individual topics via
the reference texts, the examination
process, especially with regard to the oral
examination, will not specifically aim
to examine individual subject areas in
isolation.
Rather the examination will aim to
present candidates with a broad range
of questions covering the scope of the
various major topics. The exam can no
longer be thought of as being distinct
subject areas that will be examined
individually. Subsequently, there will be
no “passing” of individual subject areas
possible in the new exam. A satisfactory
performance in the examination overall
is needed to ensure a pass in the primary
examination. The allocation of marks
will remain as it is now with the written
and oral sections each worth 50 per cent
toward the final mark.
Eligibility to sit
One of the crucial changes will be that
only trainees occupying accredited
training posts, who have completed six
months of anaesthetic training, will be
allowed to sit the primary examination.
This will make the exam process much
more relevant for candidates since, in the
past, no experience in anaesthesia was
required. This meant examiners had to
be very cautious in framing questions
so they did not have a specific clinical
anaesthetic focus to ensure no candidate
was disadvantaged.
Now that has changed and questions
will tend to have a more clinical focus
wherever possible. That does not mean
the examination is changing focus – it
is not – it will remain an assessment
of basic sciences applicable to the
conduct of clinical anaesthesia and pain
management.
Syllabus in general
The examination team has been through
the new learning objectives, which are
collected together in appendix three
of the master curriculum document
(found at www.anzca.edu.au/trainees/
20
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
curriculum-revision-2013) and matched
them to the old primary examination
syllabus. Statistics have been removed
from the new curriculum, although the
format in which they are to be assessed
is still to be determined. There have been
other minor changes but, in general terms,
most of the other components of the
old primary examination syllabus have
been translated into the new learning
objectives.
There has been additional material
added in the form of about 30 learning
objectives dealing with anatomy,
equipment and safety. These have
been transferred, as it were, from the
final examination program and are all
appropriate for early year trainees. While
this extra material may at first seem
daunting, it is all very applicable to the
conduct of anaesthesia and mirrors many
of the procedures that basic trainees will
be involved in.
Written
The written component, consisting of
a multiple-choice question paper and
a short-answer question paper, will
remain. However, the format will change
to bring it in line with the style of the
final examination and consist of a single
multiple-choice question paper of 150
items, and a single short-answer question
paper of 15 questions. Each of these will
cover physiology, pharmacology, clinical
measurement, safety, anatomy and
equipment. In order to be invited to the
oral examination, the candidate must
achieve a minimum of 40 per cent in
each paper.
Oral
This is where the major changes will
occur. To start, there will be three vivas,
each with two examiners lasting 20
minutes each. While this may appear to
candidates as making life even harder
than before, in fact, the opposite is the
case. By having three vivas, each of
which will cover four subject areas, the
candidate will have a chance to talk about
12 different topics.
This change is necessary in order to
assess the additional material that has
been added to the learning objectives
while, at the same time, maintaining the
depth of knowledge needed. It also means
that if a candidate performs poorly in
one, or even two topic areas, there is still
a good chance of being able to pass the
vivas overall. Each viva will be integrated
in format. The material being covered in
the vivas will be examined in detail each
day to ensure that candidates are being
assessed on a wide range of topics and the
candidate is not being re-assessed on the
same material during the different viva
sessions.
Each of the vivas will differ in
content. While the vivas will indeed
be “integrated”, there should be no
expectation that each viva will contain
equal amounts of material from all parts
of the syllabus. Indeed some vivas may
have a leaning towards one broad aspect,
such as physiology with some questions
on other learning objectives included
throughout, while others may be broader,
for example covering pharmacology,
physiology and anatomy topics in the
one viva.
Resources and feedback
One of the strengths of the primary
examination has been that examinable
material has always been based on the
objectives provided in a syllabus (or what
are now learning objectives) coupled with
a prescribed set of recommended texts.
Every question asked in the primary
examination must have a direct reference
back to one of the recommended texts.
This will continue into the new primary
examination. The list of recommended
texts will soon be published on the
College website, once approval has been
obtained. It is also our intention to post
on the website a selection of integrated
viva questions, written by the current
examination panel, which can be used
for practise in trial viva settings, so
candidates can get a feel for the new oral
examination format.
Lastly, the Primary Examination
Sub-Committee is aware that the College
has placed a limit on the number of
attempts that may be made to sit the
primary examination. We are looking at
ways to provide high quality feedback
to unsuccessful candidates so they can
improve their performance in subsequent
attempts.
Associate Professor Ross MacPherson
Chairman, Primary Examination
Sub-Committee
ANZCA
Curriculum
Revision
2013
Sample viva
questions for the
new format primary
examination
A number of sample viva questions
have been written by members of the
Primary Examination Sub-Committee.
These questions are available on the
College website in the Curriculum
Revision 2013 section - www.
anzca.edu.au/trainees/curriculumrevision-2013.
The viva questions are designed to
give candidates some practice in the
type of integrated vivas that will be
used in the new primary examination.
The best way to utilise the sample
questions when preparing for the
examination is outlined online.
The College aims to increase the
number of sample questions over time.
Fundamental to
anaesthesia: the
ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals
Among a number of innovations in
ANZCA Curriculum Revision 2013 will be
the introduction of seven ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals.
These fundamentals have been
developed to define the range of clinical
knowledge and skills required for
specialist anaesthetic practice, and will
be taught and experienced throughout the
curriculum, particularly within the first
four years of training, in parallel with the
ANZCA Roles in Practice.
The seven ANZCA Clinical Fundamentals
consist of:
• General anaesthesia and sedation.
• Airway management.
• Regional and local anaesthesia.
• Perioperative medicine.
• Pain medicine.
• Resuscitation, trauma and crisis
management.
• Safety and quality in anaesthetic
practice.
These areas define the fundamental
aspects of anaesthetic practice, and
clearly indicate the major areas of
expertise that are required by all
anaesthetists for specialist practice as
an anaesthetist regardless of the clinical
areas in which they work.
The specific learning outcomes,
expected to be achieved for these ANZCA
Clinical Fundamentals, have been
defined and grouped to the various
periods of training (introductory, basic
and advanced training) where they build
from basic knowledge and skills to more
advanced levels as the trainee progresses.
Log on to the ANZCA website to read more
about these learning outcomes:
www.anzca.edu.au/trainees/curriculumrevision-2013/pdfs/anaesthesia-trainingprogram-curriculum.pdf.
The development of the ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals derived from a desire to
define more accurately the core elements
that make up and distinguish the practice
of anaesthesia regardless of the areas in
which anaesthetists work.
“No longer is (pain medicine)
a subject to be ticked as
Module 10 and forgotten!”
Past emphasis on surgery
Previously, considerable emphasis had
been placed on describing anaesthesia
according to the surgery for which it is
used. This has under-emphasised many
important expert contributions made by
anaesthetists to other areas of medicine,
as well as failing to recognise the
universal application of many aspects
of anaesthetic knowledge and skills.
Airway management
Airway management is a good example
of where all branches of medicine
readily acknowledge the pre-eminence
of anaesthetic skills and knowledge.
Training and education in airway
management in the revised curriculum
will no longer be somewhat haphazard
by “association” with anaesthesia for
surgery. As a clinical fundamental it will
become the focus of the training itself.
The curriculum review undertaken
in 2008-10 recommended that there be
improved emphasis on other core areas
of anaesthesia, including perioperative
medicine, pain medicine and regional
anaesthesia. These areas were perceived
to be under-represented in the training
program. This particularly applies to
perioperative medicine and to pain
medicine.
Pain medicine
In the existing ANZCA curriculum, pain
medicine was included as a specific
module (10), which could be experienced
as a single block of activity, as well as
a component of another module (1). It
was commonly not perceived by trainees
as being integral to their training as
anaesthetists.
By incorporating pain medicine as
an ANZCA Clinical Fundamental, the
revised curriculum emphasises the
intrinsic importance of pain medicine to
all activities undertaken by anaesthetists.
It thus demonstrates that the knowledge
and skills of pain management are
learned and applied across the whole
training period and cannot be studied
in isolation.
(continued next page)
21
ANZCA’s revised
training program
continued
No longer is it a subject to be ticked
as Module 10 and forgotten! The
importance of early, adequate and
ongoing management of acute pain to
minimise the development of chronic
pain syndromes must be integral to every
anaesthetic; and the ability to provide the
best clinical care for chronic pain patients
who need concurrent therapy through the
perioperative period is essential.
Perioperative medicine
Similarly, perioperative medicine is
emphasised throughout training to
enable the whole patient to be managed
as part of the perioperative process, and
not just to be swotted up for the final
examination! This ability to assess and
medically manage patients throughout
the perioperative period is what provides
the most compelling argument as to why
anaesthesia is best managed by medical
graduates.
Regional anaesthesia
Patients will benefit from recognition
in the revised curriculum that regional
anaesthesia is a very important
alternative or adjunct to general
anaesthesia in many areas of practice.
The advent of good compact ultrasound
imaging has improved the safe
application of regional anaesthesia,
and this technology has helped in the
resurgence of this form of anaesthesia,
which has considerable benefits for the
perioperative care of patients.
Crisis management
Anaesthetists have been integral to the
development of the team management
of the critically ill, especially in
advanced life support and trauma teams.
Anaesthesia itself can be associated
with the management of life-threatening
crises such as anaphylaxis and malignant
hyperthermia. The knowledge and skills
required of anaesthetists to manage the
crises that may occur in their practice,
and to contribute to the team management
of the critically ill have been defined
in the resuscitation, trauma and crisis
management fundamental.
Safety and quality in
anaesthetic practice
The issues of safety and quality in
anaesthetic practice have not previously
been gathered together and highlighted
for training, though anaesthetists have for
over 60 years led the medical profession
in these aspects of practice. Anaesthetists
were the first to systematically investigate
deaths that may have been due to
their own clinical management of the
patients; anaesthetists were also the
first to introduce knowledge generated
from aviation experience to improve
crisis management and implement safety
algorithms; and similarly anaesthetists
were the first within the medical
profession to use high fidelity team
simulation exercises to improve the safety
and high quality of anaesthetic delivery.
It is appropriate to acknowledge this role
in anaesthetic practice by introducing the
safety and quality in anaesthetic practice
fundamental.
Thus the ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals were developed to expand
on areas where there were perceived
deficiencies in the 2004 curriculum. Most
importantly, they focus the attention
of trainees, supervisors, Fellows and
other Colleges on the main areas where
anaesthetists are trained and educated
to be clinical leaders.
Tutors
To implement these clinical
fundamentals, the College plans to
have clinical fundamental tutors
within teaching departments for each
ANZCA Clinical Fundamental. In small
departments, some Fellows may need
to tutor more than one fundamental.
We hope that there are enthusiastic
anaesthetists with particular interests and
expertise for each of the ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals in each department. These
tutors will lead the way in making the
learning experience for trainees satisfying
and educational. Above all, they will
support their trainees so that they obtain
the best possible clinical experience to
develop essential knowledge and skills
in these clinical fundamentals. This
support may require greater opportunity
for regional anaesthesia in hospitals
where this activity is not strong; the
development of simulation situations,
for example, for specific rare airway
management scenarios; improved
perioperative assessment procedures
prior to and following anaesthesia; and
carefully supervised acute pain rounds
with strengthened links to services for
patients with persisting pain.
Enhanced curriculum
There are many challenges in developing
the full potential of these ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals, but the enthusiasm that
Fellows have displayed for this concept
means we are confident this initiative will
considerably enhance the curriculum.
The ANZCA Council is extremely proud
and excited to be part of the delivery
of ANZCA Curriculum Revision 2013
with its innovative ANZCA Clinical
Fundamentals. We believe it will enhance
considerably the training and education
of our trainees.
Professor Barry Baker
Dean of Education, ANZCA
22
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
OTSAN Supporting anaesthetists from abroad to achieve fellowship in Australia
The Overseas Trained Specialist Anaesthetists’ Network (OTSAN) assists international medical graduate
specialist (IMGS) anaesthetists in their quest to start a successful life in Australia.
OTSAN was established by Fellows who have passed ANZCA’s professional accreditation process.
It supports international medical graduate specialists through many facets of the process, including
education and social networking as well as liaising with national and local structures and industrial relations.
Join us in Melbourne on 14 & 15 July for our first ever ‘Exam Boot Camp’. During this 2-day workshop
you will learn ‘correct exam technique’ as well as participate in mock medical clinical and anaesthesia
vivas. For information see our website www.otsan.org or contact Renee McNamara ([email protected]).
Our website also offers a virtual meeting place to help IMGS anaesthetists overcome social and
educational isolation. It supplements OTSAN activities such as meetings and workshops.
The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists has received Australian Government funding under the Specialist
Training Program. This funding will be used to support the activities of OTSAN.
Chair of the Scholar
Role Panel
An exciting opportunity is available for an ANZCA Fellow of high
standing to take a leadership role in the development of research
and teaching within the ANZCA Training Program.
The Chair of the Scholar Role Panel will lead a key committee
of 20 Fellows appointed to develop, assess and evaluate the
scholar role activities in the revised 2013 ANZCA curriculum.
The scholar role activities include teaching skills: critical
appraisal and evidence-based practice; audit research
manuscripts; and relevant post-graduate programs. The
Scholar Role Panel will make assessment decisions on formal
audit reports, research manuscripts and on the suitability of
postgraduate study proposals. The panel will have at least
one face-to-face meeting per year and three teleconference
meetings.
The Chair will fulfil the following criteria:
• Hold a FANZCA or equivalent.
• Be appropriately qualified and experienced to assess the
learning outcomes of the scholar role activities.
• Have enthusiasm, credibility and commitment.
• Demonstrate leadership abilities.
For an outline of scholar role activities, the terms of reference
of the Scholar Role Panel and the roles and responsibilities of
ANZCA chairs of committees and subcommittees please contact
Daniela Doblanovic ([email protected]).
For any other inquiries please contact Associate Professor
Jennifer Weller ([email protected]).
The Chair will sit on the Assessments Committee and contribute
to the overall assessment strategy of ANZCA. The Assessments
Committee meets three times a year in Melbourne and reports
to the Education and Training Committee.
23
A mad idea – or
several – is just what
the doctor ordered
Dr Duncan Campbell proves
ageing is no barrier to a
lifetime of medical innovation.
He spoke to Meaghan Shaw.
Remarkably, Dr Duncan Campbell, 81,
who nearly 40 years ago invented the
Campbell ventilator which became the
standard for hospitals around Australia
and New Zealand, is still inventing.
In January this year, he took out a
patent for a non-invasive cardiac output
monitor that can determine cardiac
output using optical sensors.
It’s the latest in a stream of inventions
by the indefatigable octogenarian,
who last month was presented with
the Robert Orton Medal at the ANZCA
Annual Scientific Meeting in Perth for his
contribution to anaesthesia, in particular
for the invention of his eponymous
ventilator.
“I thought they had forgotten about me
long ago!” was his initial response when
learning he was to be honoured.
With a wry sense of humour and
turn of phrase, Dr Campbell recounts
a remarkable life from a childhood in
Iran and India, to serving in the army
during the Malayan Emergency, working
with IVF and laparoscopy pioneer Dr
Patrick Steptoe, and creating a series of
anaesthetic-related innovations.
An interest in the wireless at a young
age, and a desire to take things apart to
see how they worked, perhaps can be
seen as the spark that set off his passion
for invention.
He was conceived in India, born in
Britain, and spent his infancy in India
and early years in Iran, where his Scottish
father was the vice consul.
Incredibly, he knows the date of his
conception because his mother, from
Yorkshire, was quite the correspondent
and wrote to a friend the day he was
conceived saying: “Today, I started
Duncan”.
His earliest memories are from
Zahedan, Iran, near the border of
Pakistan and Afghanistan, where his
father once fired a revolver into the air
to frighten an intruder in the dead of
the night.
24
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
“The anaesthetists were
wandering around
having a whale of
a time, chatting to
everybody and laughing.
And I thought perhaps
that’s the life!”
He recalls the intruder tearing around
the compound in distress because his
accomplice, waiting on the consular wall
to pull him up with a rope, disappeared
at the sound of gunshots, taking the rope
with him.
By the beginning of World War II,
Dr Campbell was back in Britain and
educated in London, the Lake District
and the Kings School in Canterbury,
before delaying national service by
studying for an intermediate bachelor of
science degree in agriculture – an interest
prompted by his parents running a farm.
His agricultural studies led to a
desire to study medicine – his father
was delighted – and his first job after
qualifying was as a house surgeon
at Charing Cross Hospital, where he
contemplated his future.
“I didn’t really relish the idea of going
into general practice,” he recalls. “I
thought something hospital orientated
would be more interesting. And I was
always intrigued by the fact that while I
was stuck holding retractors and things
for the surgeons, the anaesthetists were
wandering around having a whale of a
time, chatting to everybody and laughing.
And I thought perhaps that’s the life!”
At his second house job at the
Metropolitan Hospital, London, Dr
Campbell became friendly with the
registrar anaesthetist who took him
under his wing until the registrar had
a confrontation with the night porter
and was dismissed.
“He was marched in front of the
administrator who said, ‘Good night
porters are far more difficult to get than
anaesthetists. Goodbye!’” Dr Campbell
says, saddened at the memory.
His second attempt to defer national
service failed when he told the
army board the reason was to study
anaesthetics.
“They laughed and laughed and
said, ‘The army’s short of anaesthetists.
You’ll have no trouble at all getting an
anaesthetic job in the army. Off you go.’”
Doubtful he’d be posted as a trainee
anaesthetist anywhere more exotic
than the north of Scotland, Dr Campbell
suggested the Far East and ended up in
Singapore, where he was also appointed
blood transfusion officer. His ploy to
encourage commanding officers and
adjutants to set an example and give
blood proved highly effective as well as
entertaining for the troops.
After only a year’s training, he was
promoted to captain, graded clinical
officer in anaesthetics and sent as the
sole anaesthetist to the Kluang military
hospital in (then) Malaya, about 120
kilometres north of Singapore.
“The parting words were, ‘We’re only
a phone call away’, which wasn’t much
help,” he says.
In Kluang, Dr Campbell met his wife,
Mary, who was a nursing sister at the
military hospital. They subsequently had
two sons – one of whom is an anaesthetist
and the other a dentist.
Kluang was also where he played his
part in a hospital-inspired truce between
the British and communist terrorists,
which perhaps led to a cessation of
hostilities in that area.
At that time, injured terrorists who
were sent to the civilian hospital didn’t
survive the night because the locals
detested them so much they slit their
throats.
As part of a goodwill gesture, the
military hospital started taking problem
cases from the civilian hospital, including
the terrorists.
The first time this happened, only Dr
Campbell and the surgeon were on duty.
Short of staff and wards, they patched
up the unarmed terrorists, and sent them
to share the ward where the British were
recovering.
The terrorists were astonished to wake
up as they expected to be given a lethal
injection and were discovered the next
day by the returning commanding officer
playing a card game, pontoon, with the
injured British soldiers.
Dr Campbell says the terrorists were
reluctant to return to their jungle units
after their recovery and apparently told
their comrades they didn’t want to fight
the British, who had become their friends.
“And do you know, there was one
other skirmish when another lot of
terrorists came in and after that, none.
Absolutely nothing. We never had any
more terrorists,” he says. “And I wonder
very much whether it was to a large extent
associated with the fact that we actually
demoralised them with our treatment.”
Returning to England, Dr Campbell
did his formal anaesthetic training after
which, for interview practice, he applied
for a job as an anaesthetist in charge of
the anaesthetic services for the Oldham
group of hospitals on the outskirts of
Manchester.
“So absolutely blasé, I went up for this
interview,” Dr Campbell recalls, expecting
to be roasted for wasting the interview
panel’s time by applying for such a senior
job when he wasn’t even a consultant.
At the interview, he was asked by
panelist Dr Patrick Steptoe what he knew
about pneumoperitoneum and if he, like
other anaesthetists, would be worried
about pushing gas into the peritoneal
cavity.
“I said, ‘Well I’d be worried if it was air,
but if it was carbon dioxide or oxygen, I’d
be quite happy because you wouldn’t get
an air embolus with that,’” he replied.
(continued next page)
“An interest in the wireless at
a young age, and a desire to
take things apart to see how
they worked, perhaps can be
seen as the spark that set off
his passion for invention.”
Opposite page from left: Dr Duncan Campbell;
Dr Campbell and his son, Dr David Campbell,
who was presented as a Fellow at the Perth
ASM; and Dr Campbell inspecting the latest
ventilators at the Ulco stand at the Perth ASM.
25
A mad idea – or
several – is just what
the doctor ordered
continued
Astonished to get the job, he worked
alongside Dr Steptoe as the specialist
developed the technique of laparoscopy.
Dr Campbell was still working at the
hospital as Dr Steptoe began procuring
human eggs from ovaries using a
laparoscope, a precursor to IVF treatment,
but moved to Australia nearly a decade
before the first live birth in 1978.
Living along the Pennines, where it
gets cold, wet and windy, Dr Campbell
got fed up with the miserable weather.
One day, having dug out the snow that
had blocked his driveway and garage,
only to have the wind fill it up again, he
turned to his wife and said: “Mary, where
can we go where it doesn’t snow?” Her
response was “What about Australia?”
and a glance through the British Medical
Journal revealed an anaesthetic staff
specialist job advertised at the Royal
Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney.
He got the job and moved in 1969.
One of his first duties was to design an
anaesthetic tray that could store the
daily supply of anaesthetic ampoules.
Flicking through the Yellow Pages,
he found an advertisement for Ulco
Engineering, which made specials to
order and was willing to do medical
work. They took on the production
of the anaesthetic tray, and so began
Dr Campbell’s long and productive
association with the company and its
managing director, John Uhlir.
His next invention was a pneumatic
lifting trolley, operated by two carbon
dioxide cylinders, which could lift
patients off the bed, transport them, and
lower them onto the operating table. It
could tilt patients up and down, and also
had a radiotranslucent sheet to enable
X-rays to be taken.
Ulco made a prototype, trials were
conducted and a few were sold to
Australian hospitals, but demand and
profit margins were low and production
ceased.
But his next invention hit the jackpot.
For some time, even before he came
to Australia, Dr Campbell had been
frustrated with the ventilators available
and wanted to design a robust and
versatile ventilator for theatre use that
could be used on all ages, with the
parameters – pressure, volume, flow and
time – all controlled by the anaesthetist.
First he needed to find an alternative
26
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
McKr
Scan LR
to an electronic control system as, at that
time, there was considerable concern
about the dangers of micro and macro
shock in the operating theatre, as well
as possible explosive hazards from
flammable anaesthetics.
His breakthrough came when, literally
inspired by rocket science, he learnt that
long-range rockets used a system of fluidic
controls to withstand severe vibrations
and magnetic forces.
Having sourced through Ulco some
miniature fluidic control modules, in 1973
Dr Campbell made his first prototype.
“It took up a lot of space with a mass
of spaghetti-like tubing connecting the
various components, but it worked,”
he says.
He crammed all the workings into
a plastic lunch box and took it to Ulco
and various manufacturing companies
to gauge their interest. Commonwealth
Industrial Gases (CIG) was tempted and
said they’d get back to him. He’s still
waiting.
The main obstacle to production was
that the mass of tubes made assembly too
complicated. But inspired by transistor
radios, where all the wiring was replaced
by circuit boards, he designed a template
so that channels could be engraved on a
board for mounting the fluidic elements.
The channels could then be sealed with a
back plate to eliminate connecting errors.
He returned to Ulco and Mr Uhlir
was hesitant but said he would make
a prototype for $1100 – a substantial
amount of money – during the company’s
quieter periods.
“I scratched my head and thought
about it, and said, ‘Ok’,” Dr Campbell
recalls.
With the manufacture of the first
machine under way, he went to the
Australian Society of Anaesthetists’ (ASA)
meeting in Hobart in 1974 to present a
paper on the ventilator.
On the plane back to Sydney, he
sat beside Dr John Keneally, who was
working at the Children’s Hospital, then
at Camperdown. He was interested in
a ventilator that was suitable for both
children and adults.
“I said, ‘We’re making it so that it’ll
ventilate anything from a mouse up to an
elephant’,” Dr Campbell says.
Unknown to him, Ulco was captured
by his enthusiasm and made a second
machine at the same time as the first,
which was completed in April 1975.
The first was used by Dr Campbell and
has since been donated to the ASA’s Harry
Daly Museum. The second was trialed and
then sold to the Children’s Hospital.
Associate Professor Greg Knoblanche
was then a registrar at the Children’s
Hospital and the Royal North Shore.
He told Royal North Shore’s director of
anaesthetics Dr Ted Morgan about the
ventilator, and the hospital promptly
ordered four. The Children’s Hospital
bought another, and the soon-to-beopened Baulkham Hills Private Hospital
also bought four.
“All without any advertising at all,”
Dr Campbell proudly explains.
His description of the ventilator was
published in Anaesthesia and Intensive
Care in February 1976.
Improvements were made to the
ventilator over the years: negative
expiratory pressure was eliminated as it
was never used; the bellows configuration
was changed from hanging to rising;
a disconnect alarm was incorporated;
and the fluidic controls were replaced
by improved and more manageable
electronics with a visual display.
The absence of mechanical moving
parts, precision engineering and attention
to detail resulted in a ventilator with longterm reliability and legendary success.
By the time Mr Uhlir retired and sold
the company in 2003, more than 3400 of
the ventilators, including the updated
electronically controlled EV500, which
is still affectionately known as the
Campbell ventilator, had been made and
sold. A recent inquiry to the company
revealed the figure is now more than 4000
and, despite a trend toward integrated
anaesthesia machines and ventilators,
they’re still being sold, with more than
1000 units still in use in Australia, New
Zealand, throughout the Asia Pacific,
the Middle East, Africa and Greece.
Spin-offs included a horse ventilator;
an anti-DVT system using an inflatable
sleeve to perfuse legs, which was not
commercially viable; a kidney perfusing
system, which was successful until
research showed kidneys left on ice did
better than perfused kidneys; a system
for measuring airways resistance; a new
ventilator alarm giving almost immediate
indication of a disconnect; and a project
for recycling volatile anaesthetics for
hospitals.
His last project with Ulco was for a
system of working out cardiac output,
but Mr Uhlir reluctantly pulled the plug
on the proposal because he was selling
the company and the project would take
a further two-to-three years to get to
market.
Dr Campbell sold the patent for the
system to Edwards Laboratories in the US.
But he kept thinking about it. “At
the back of my mind I was always a bit
worried about the fact that this was an
invasive procedure requiring arterial
cannulation in order to get cardiac output.
And I suddenly realised that it could be
done entirely non-invasively. You could
do it optically, with optical sensors.
I tried it out, and it worked.”
He took out a new patent in January
and the project is in the pipeline, but
he’s wary about talking about it because
he thinks people will say he’s mad –
although he’s used to that.
“They told me I was pretty mad about
the ventilator,” he recounts. “I said, ‘I’m
going to have a ventilator with no moving
parts whatsoever’. They said, ‘Oh, you’re
mad’. I said, ‘No. There will be not a single
mechanical moving part’. They said,
‘How will it work?’ I said, ‘Very nicely!’”
Meaghan Shaw
Media Manager, ANZCA
“The absence of mechanical
moving parts, precision
engineering and attention to
detail resulted in a ventilator
with long-term reliability and
legendary success.”
Opposite page: A younger Dr Duncan Campbell
with a Campbell ventilator. This page:
Dr Campbell taking possession of the first
Campbell ventilator.
27
ANZCA contribution
helps improve patient
care in Papua New Guinea
The Overseas Aid Committee is
working to assist the delivery
and quality of anaesthetic
services in Papua New Guinea
(PNG), writes Meaghan Shaw.
Papua New Guinea has so few anaesthetists
you can count them. There are only 15
consultant anaesthetists working in
government hospitals, for a population
of seven million.
In addition, there are about 100 nonmedical trained anaesthetic scientific
officers providing the rest of the country’s
anaesthetic services.
Coupled with health spending of about
$A50 per person and a paucity of basic
anaesthetic equipment and drugs, the
contrast with Australia and New Zealand
couldn’t be starker.
For Dr Lisa Akelisi-Yockopua, one of
PNG’s few consultant anaesthetists, a
recent visit to Perth’s annual scientific
meeting was an “eye opener”, giving
her an insight into the latest anaesthetic
advances and exposing her to an array of
new equipment in the healthcare industry
exhibition area.
“Obviously we do need a lot of
equipment up in Port Moresby,” she says
at the Perth meeting. “Seeing the display
of different equipment here, it’s like,
‘Oh, wow. It’s so different’.”
28
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Dr Akelisi-Yockopua is in her second
year out of training and came to Australia
as a guest of ANZCA’s Overseas Aid
Committee. She has been selected for the
ANZCA International Scholarship and is
hoping to pass her English language test
soon so she can come back to Australia
and work with Adelaide anaesthetist,
Dr Chris Acott, who specialises in head
and neck surgery.
She also wants to specialise in
anaesthesia for head and neck surgery –
an area of need in PNG, which has a high
incidence of head and neck cancer due
to betel nut chewing and smoking. PNG
also has other developing country health
problems such as chronic tuberculosis,
leprosy and HIV.
The sessions Dr Akelisi-Yockopua
attended at the ASM – including a
resuscitation update, difficult airway
session, updates on opioids and reversal
drugs, and a fibreoptic intubation
workshop – were incredibly useful.
“I just can’t express how appreciative I
am,” she says. “This is a great opportunity
for any of us who haven’t been to such
a conference. It will be very nice for my
other colleagues who (can learn from
me). I’m very fortunate to come to this
conference where I’m exposed to so many
things which I didn’t expect, and also
meeting up with the other consultants
from overseas.”
Since 1993, ANZCA has been involved
with training in PNG through the efforts
of Professor Garry Phillips and a PNG
senior lecturer in anaesthesia, Dr Harry
Aigeeleng. This has included funding two
educational visits to PNG each year, at the
invitation of the University of PNG.
Dr Michael Stone, from the Royal
Prince Alfred and St Vincent’s hospitals in
Sydney, went to PNG earlier this year for
a week to train the anaesthetic scientific
officers and anaesthetic registrars.
The anaesthetic scientific officers
typically start their careers organising
equipment for anaesthetists and
doing general cleaning duties before
undertaking a one-year diploma in
anaesthetic science. Often they have a
nursing background. They provide the
bulk of the anaesthetic services in the
country, especially in the provincial
hospitals.
The anaesthetic registrars undertake
a four-year masters in medicine course to
become consultant anaesthetists.
Dr Stone provided tutorials and
lectures on subjects such as airway
skills, rapid sequence induction, failed
intubation, defibrillation, advanced life
support, paediatric syndromes and crisis
management, aided by mannequins
donated by the College.
It’s the second trip to PNG for Dr Stone,
who was encouraged to do the teaching
visit by new Overseas Aid Committee
Chair, Dr Michael Cooper, who had
previously taken part. Both were partly
inspired to work in PNG having been to
school with native Papua New Guineans.
Dr Stone says of the 100 kina (about
$A50) per capita spent on health each year
by the PNG government, only a miniscule
amount ends up in the anaesthetic
budget.
“Consequently, there is a shortage
of simple things like drugs such as
suxamethonium and analgesics;
halothane is the only volatile anaesthetic
agent; there’s shortages of simple
equipment like spinal needles, so spinal
anaesthesia is provided using a standard
cannula to give a spinal injection; and the
gas supply runs out frequently,” he says.
Coupled with this, the standard of
secondary school education in PNG is
lower than Australia, mortality rates are
high, and any death can potentially lead
to the risk of payback from disgruntled
relatives due to the country’s strong
wantok system of allegiance and
obligation to extended family.
Given this, Dr Stone is impressed
with the students who he finds to be
conscientious, motivated and hard
working.
“They make up for educational and
resource deficits through enthusiasm,”
he says. “I take my hat off to them that,
despite working under incredibly difficult
circumstances and often having high
anaesthetic morbidity and mortality,
they still come back to work each day and
continue to work hard for their patients
and the community.”
A former chairman of the Overseas
Aid Committee, Dr Wayne Morriss, says
ANZCA supports a range of initiatives
for PNG, with the other annual
educational trip to PNG undertaken by
fellow committee member Dr Roni Krieser,
who provides basic science teaching for
trainee medical anaesthetists.
In addition, ANZCA helps organise
an anaesthetic refresher course in Port
Moresby in September every second year,
when a large proportion of anaesthetic
staff from PNG can gather in one place.
At the upcoming course this year,
the committee will distribute about 40
Lifebox pulse oximeters provided through
a $10,000 ANZCA donation to the Lifebox
initiative, which provides low-cost
oxygen monitors to developing countries,
alongside associated resources and
training to raise the safety of surgery.
ANZCA also will provide about
40 packs of textbooks and electronic
learning resources sourced by Dr Cooper
as part of ANZCA’s educational initiative.
A further 10 packs will be distributed to
other developing countries supported by
ANZCA.
“For a small investment,
we can make quite large
changes in anaesthetic
practice, patient safety,
all these things.”
Above from left: Dr Lisa Akelisi-Yockopua,
from Port Moresby, who came to Australia and
attended the ASM as a guest of the Overseas
Aid Committee; Port Moresby General Hospital;
Training in PNG; A tray of drugs.
29
ANZCA contribution
helps improve patient
care in Papua New Guinea
continued
Dr Morriss says small donations of this
kind can help reduce the gap between
anaesthetic practice in Australia and New
Zealand, and our closest neighbours, such
as PNG.
“For relatively little expenditure or little
resource, we can make a huge benefit,” he
says. “We work very hard to get maximum
bang for buck. So for a small investment,
we can make quite large changes in
anaesthetic practice, patient safety, all
these things.”
Beyond PNG, the committee is
also looking at overseas development
opportunities in other countries.
This includes a new initiative, the
inaugural ANZCA Overseas Aid Trainee
Scholarship, which was recently awarded
to Dr Steven Smith from the Mater Mothers’
Hospital in Brisbane.
This scholarship provides support for
a final year ANZCA trainee to accompany
a visiting team to a developing country
and improve their knowledge and
understanding of the challenges of
providing anaesthesia and pain medicine
in the developing world. Dr Smith plans to
visit Vanuatu later this year.
The committee also supports the
teaching of the Essential Pain Management
course, which aims to improve knowledge
of pain in developing countries, provide a
simple framework for managing pain, and
explore ways of overcoming local barriers
which include lack of staff, inadequate
pain knowledge and the scarcity or
absence of analgesic drugs.
30
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The course was developed and piloted
by former Faculty of Pain Medicine dean
Dr Roger Goucke and Dr Morriss in PNG
in 2010, and has been taught in Fiji, the
Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Micronesia,
Cook Islands, Mongolia, Vietnam, Rwanda
and Tanzania, with plans to introduce
it to Spanish-speaking Central America
later this year and other parts of Asia.
It has been translated into Mongolian,
Vietnamese and Spanish.
Dr Morriss says the Essential Pain
Management course is an example of
starting with important principles and
building on the basics of practice.
“The message of the course is extremely
simple so that facilitates early hand-over
to local instructors,” he says. “But the
course is also very flexible so people can
layer on as much complexity as they like.”
Overall, he says the Overseas Aid
Committee has achieved a lot in its two
years of operation, ensuring ANZCA is
“an outward-looking rather than inwardlooking College” and providing benefits
for all areas of the College.
“It increases the relevance and
profile of the College internationally and
ensures people are gaining skills from an
anaesthetic and teaching point of view,”
Dr Morriss says. “From an individual point
of view, people often do it for altruistic
reasons. And, from a regional point of
view, we think that it’s also good to be
good neighbours.”
Meaghan Shaw
Media Manager, ANZCA
“We work very hard to get
maximum bang for buck.
So for a small investment,
we can make quite large
changes in anaesthetic
practice, patient safety,
all these things.”
Above from left: Learning to use equipment;
An emergency trolley.
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1st DECEMBER
2011
31
On April 15, 1912, the RMS
Titanic sank with loss of more
1
than 1500 lives . A century
later, it remains one of the
worst peacetime maritime
disasters, caused by failings
that continue to both shock
1
and fascinate the world .
In Australia and New Zealand, 20,000
people die annually from tobacco-related
disease, equivalent to the RMS Titanic
sinking in the Tasman Sea every month2.
Like the Titanic disaster, regulatory
failure contributes to this tobacco death
toll. For example, some tobacco products
contain additives, such as ammonia, that
increase the addictiveness of nicotine (by
increasing its unionised fraction) without
the manufacturers being required to state
this on the packaging3,4.
Gender and class inequity occurred in
the Titanic death toll. Ninety two per cent
of second-class male passengers died
compared to 3 per cent of the female
passengers in first class1.
Class and gender inequity occurs with
the tobacco death toll too. The poorest
20 per cent of Australian men are 1.8
times more likely to face premature death
compared with the wealthiest 20 per
cent. This is due largely to socio-economic
differences in smoking prevalence5.
Many patients quit smoking before
surgery, particularly those having cardiac
surgery, cancer surgery and other major
operations6. Surgery can promote quitting
and quitting itself improves surgical
outcome, including significant reductions
in wound infection and cardiovascular
complications7. Despite this, evidence
suggests that preoperative clinics do not
systematically provide adequate smoking
cessation care to patients having elective
surgery8,9. Such organisational failures
may be costing lives in the same way that
systemic failings led to unnecessary deaths
in the icy Atlantic waters more than
100 years ago.
Clinicians dropping the ball on
smoking cessation
TOBACCO AND SuRGERy:
ISSuES OF TITANIC IMPORTANCE
32
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Prior to August 2011, Peninsula Health
provided little organisational support to
encourage smokers to quit before elective
surgery. A survey of pre-admission services
in Victoria, NSW and the ACT showed
we were not unusual in this regard9. Our
waiting-list patients were sent a brochure
entitled “About your anaesthetic”, which
included just two lines about smoking
on page three:
“Give up smoking at least six weeks
before your surgery to give your lungs and
heart a chance to improve. You need to
let the surgeon and anaesthetist know if
you smoke.”
The “chance” for cardiovascular
improvement appeared not to motivate
most patients, who continued to smoke
until the day of surgery. Perhaps many
believed their lungs and heart were fine.
Perhaps others would be motivated if
told their chance was increased by 30
to 100 per cent for a range of major
morbidity including surgical site infection,
pneumonia, myocardial infarction, stroke
and septic shock10. Whether patients
“need to let the...anaesthetist know”
about their smoking or whether it is our
responsibility to ask is a point that could be
argued. However an audit of preoperative
assessments in the UK showed smoking
status was documented in less than 25 per
cent of cases so perhaps there is a need
for smokers to volunteer the information11.
The existing brochure was weak and 50
per cent of surgical patients who smoke
did not recall receiving this limited advice12.
Fewer than 40 per cent of smokers were
aware that smoking increased anaesthetic
complications or made wound infections
more likely13. Clinicians were not talking
to their patients about smoking either.
Only 9 per cent of smokers were told to
stop by an anaesthetist and 25 per cent
by a surgeon12. Surgeons advised quitting
smoking in only 6.5 per cent of patients in
a previous study at a Melbourne teaching
hospital14. Clinician behaviour in this
regard may be influenced by concerns that
cessation just prior to surgery increased
respiratory complications, although this
is increasingly recognised as medical
myth that has persisted far too long2,7,15.
In taking advantage of the “teachable
moment” that surgery provided for smoking
cessation, it appeared that clinicians had
dropped the ball.
Stop before the op
From August 2011, all smokers entering
the Peninsula Health waiting list were
sent a locally developed quit pack, which
addressed the deficiencies identified
above. This was marketed as the “Stop
before the op” program.
It consisted of a colour brochure
detailing how quitting before surgery
could reduce postoperative morbidity/
mortality and improve long-term health
if staying quit. A referral form for Quitline
was included together with a reply-paid
envelope to our anaesthetic department.
The brochure advised signing and posting
this form, which would be faxed to Quitline.
It advised that Quitline is staffed
by smoking cessation specialists who
offered a standard service of six free
telephone counselling sessions that would
at least double the chances of long-term
abstinence compared with trying alone2.
Quitlines in all Australian states and New
Zealand offer a similar service. Prior to
“Stop before the op” less than 2 per
cent of smokers having surgery had used
Quitline in the past year.
The new brochure included links for
other support options such as face-to-face
counselling offered by Peninsula Health
Community Health.
During the six-month pilot program,
650 quit packs were posted to smokers
entering the waiting list, resulting in 83
requests (12.8 per cent) for Quitline
services. Other patients contacted the
anaesthetic department to say they had
quit without Quitline or saw a GP for help.
Data was collected prior to the pilot shows
that although some patients did quit while
on the waiting list, this mostly occurred
within a few weeks of surgery when there
may be little benefit (see figure below).
“Stop before the op” increased Quitline use
more than fivefold and transformed quitting
to clinically meaningful times of a month or
more. Following this success, the program
is now permanent with a slightly modified
quit pack being sent to every waitinglist patient (smokers and non-smokers)
as identification of smokers was timeconsuming and sometimes difficult.
More lifeboats on the Titanic
Since 1944, there have been more than
300 papers showing the adverse effects
of smoking on surgical outcome, including
increased risks of perioperative myocardial
infarction10,16. While it is appropriate to
explore risk reduction strategies through
research on beta-blockers (POISE),
clonidine/aspirin (POISE-2) or nitrous oxide
avoidance (ENIGMA-2), smoking cessation
is a life-boat that is here and now.
Our responsibility is to ensure that
all patients are offered the chance to
get in the lifeboat if they choose.
Dr Ashley Webb
Frankston Hospital, Victoria
Distribution of quit durations before surgery
following implementation of “stop before
the op” quit pack: increased % of clinically
meaningful quit times (>1 month)
<1 week
1-6 months
1-3 weeks
>6 months
31.8 27.3 29.5 11.4
11.1 16.7 72.2 5.6
Before quit packs
After quit packs
References:
Links: Australian Quitline referral form: www.quitnow.gov.
au/internet/quitnow/publishing.nsf
New Zealand Quitline referral form:
www.quit.org.nz/94/helping-others-quit/healthprofessionals
1. Spignesi SJ. The Titanic For Dummies. Hoboken:
John Wiley & Sons; 2012.
2. Webb A. Smoking and surgery: time to clear the
air. In: Riley R, ed. Australasian Anaesthesia 2011.
Melbourne: ANZCA; 2012:115-124.
3. Henningfield J, Pankow J, Garrett B. Ammonia and
other chemical base tobacco additives and cigarette
nicotine delivery: issues and research needs.
Nicotine Tob Res. Apr 2004;6(2):199-205.
4. Heydon NJ, Kennington KS, Jalleh G, Lin C. Western
Australian smokers strongly support regulations on
the use of chemicals and additives in cigarettes. Tob
Control. May 2012;21(3):381-382.
5. AIHW. Australia’s Health 2010. Australia’s health
series No. 12. In: Welfare AIoHa, ed. Vol Cat. No
122. Canberra: AIHW; 2010.
6. Shi Y, Warner DO. Surgery as a teachable moment
for smoking cessation. Anesthesiology. Jan
2010;112(1):102-107.
7. Myers K, Hajek P, Hinds C, McRobbie H. Stopping
Smoking Shortly Before Surgery and Postoperative
Complications: A Systematic Review and Metaanalysis. Arch Intern Med. Jun 2011;171(11):
983-989.
8. Wolfenden L, Wiggers J, Knight J, et al. Increasing
smoking cessation care in a preoperative clinic:
a randomized controlled trial. Prev Med. Jul
2005;41(1):284-290.
9. Lee B, Webb A. Smoking cessation strategies at
public hospital preadmission clinics in Victoria, NSW
and ACT. ANZCA Annual Scientific Meeting 2012;
www.anzca.edu.au/events/ANZCA per cent20annual
per cent20scientific per cent20meetings/2012anzca-annual-scientific-meeting/epostersessions-2012/asm-2012_435.pdf.
10. Turan A, Mascha EJ, Roberman D, et al. Smoking
and perioperative outcomes. Anesthesiology. Apr
2011;114(4):837-846.
11. Simmonds M, Petterson J. Anaesthetists’ records of
pre-operative assessment. Clin Perform Qual Health
Care. 2000;8(1):22-27.
12. Webb A, Robertson N, Sparrow M, McCormack
M, Connell G. Smoking cessation before elective
surgery: who is telling patients to stop before
the operation? ANZCA ASM 2012; www.anzca.
edu.au/events/ANZCA per cent20annual per
cent20scientific per cent20meetings/2012-anzcaannual-scientific-meeting/eposter-sessions-2012/
asm-2012_382.pdf.
13. Webb A, Robertson N, Sparrow M, McCormack M,
Connell G. Elective surgical patients who smoke
have low awareness of their increased perioperative
risks. ANZCA ASM 2012; www.anzca.edu.au/events/
ANZCA per cent20annual per cent20scientific per
cent20meetings/2012-anzca-annual-scientificmeeting/eposter-sessions-2012/asm-2012_381.pdf.
14. Myles PS, Iacono GA, Hunt JO, et al. Risk of
respiratory complications and wound infection
in patients undergoing ambulatory surgery:
smokers versus nonsmokers. Anesthesiology.
Oct 2002;97(4):842-847.
15. Shi Y, Warner DO. Brief preoperative smoking
abstinence: is there a dilemma? Anesth Analg.
Dec 2011;113(6):1348-1351.
16. Peters MJ, Morgan LC, Gluch L. Smoking cessation
and elective surgery: the cleanest cut. Med J Aust.
Apr 2004;180(7):317-318.
33
Lessons abound
on a Dili adventure
Volunteer anaesthetist,
Dr Jane McDonald,
in Timor Leste
I flew into Dili from Darwin
at 8am on Saturday. When
we landed, a blast of warm
and humid air hit me as I
stepped off the plane. I noticed
immediately the smell of
burning wood from hundreds
of outdoor cooking fires,
reminding me of bushfires
back in Australia.
This was my first trip to Timor Leste
and I was travelling with ear nose and
throat surgeon Dr John Curotta and nurse
Danielle Doughty. We were volunteers
coming to provide specialist ear nose
and throat surgery through the Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS).
I carried a large padlocked bright orange
case with me, containing a smorgasbord
of anaesthetic drugs provided by RACS.
34
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
We were cleared through customs and
then met by Dr Eric Vreede, a specialist
anaesthetist and team leader of the
Australia-Timor Leste Assistance for
Specialised Services (ATLASS) program,
which is funded by AusAID.
Timor Leste is a small country only
640 kilometres north-west of Darwin, and
is one of Australia’s nearest neighbours.
Colonised by the Portuguese in the 16th
century, the predominantly Catholic
population is made up of people of
Malayo-Polynesian and Papuan descent.
The population is just over one million,
though a high birth rate means it is
increasing rapidly. In 1974 Timor Leste
was invaded by Indonesia and years
of violence followed, culminating in a
massacre of Timorese in 1991. This was
a turning point, and an international
peacekeeping force was sent in until
order was restored.
In May 2002, Timor Leste became
an independent sovereign state. Years
of fighting have destroyed much of
the country’s infrastructure. The new
president was military-fatigues-wearing
and bearded ex-Fretilin guerrilla leader
Jose Xanana Gusmao. In 2003, Gusmao
met Fidel Castro at a non-aligned
nations meeting in Kuala Lumpur and
on hearing of the young nation’s poor
social indicators of life expectancy
and infant mortality, Castro offered “a
thousand doctors”. Timorese students
have since been training in Cuba on
scholarships and more than 200 doctors
have graduated and returned to Timor.
Also the Cuban Government has set up a
faculty of medicine within the University
of Dili, which has been running since
2005. This has been the biggest Cuban
health assistance program outside Latin
America.
Since 2001 RACS has been providing
surgical services through the Australian
East Timor Specialist Services Project
(AETSSP). This has included facilitating
a continuous surgical service at Dili’s
Hospital Nacional Guido Valadares
(HNGV) through the provision of a
long-term general surgeon, anaesthetist
and emergency medicine physician.
Local doctors have had their training
strengthened in areas of general
surgical practice and there has been the
development and implementation of a
certified 12-month training course for 15
nurse anaesthetists. ATLASS is building
on these achievements.
After arrival, Dr Vreede looked after
our team. We collected a hire car and
headed towards our hotel. The roads were
chaotic and crowded with tooting cars,
buses, motor scooters, pedestrians and
dogs, competing with each other for right
of way over the narrow and rough roads.
We left our bags at our accommodation
and made our way to Dili’s hospital to
find a large crowd of almost 500 patients
waiting to be seen by the ear, nose and
throat team from Australia.
Communication is difficult in Timor.
The official languages are Portuguese
and Tetum though few people speak
Portuguese. Many people also speak
Bahasa Indonesian. There are many
Cuban-trained doctors who speak
Spanish, and some Chinese doctors who
speak only Mandarin. An interpreter
helped us with the patients at the ear,
nose and throat clinic.
Mr Samento Faus Correia, the local
co-ordinator and interpreter for RACS,
wore a bright red Mao cap, which gave
him an appropriate air of authority. He
controlled the crowd and organised the
patients efficiently so Dr Curotta could
see as many as possible. I became an
“acting ear, nose and throat registrar”
making notes and writing prescriptions.
Australian volunteer and ear-care nurse
Julie Sousness was able to triage patients
with the help of a surgical registrar
trained in Fiji who worked at the hospital.
There was a high incidence of
chronic ear infection and associated
complications. There were also patients
with chronic sinusitis, various untreated
congenital abnormalities, sensorineural
deafness, vocal cord problems and
allergic rhinitis. Several patients had
oropharyngeal cancers caused by
chewing betel nut, and one patient had
juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma
causing severe epistaxis.
We managed to see 280 of the patients
and identified 65 that would benefit from
surgery. Unfortunately, we could not
see the rest. Prioritisation is difficult.
We chose to concentrate on ear surgery
and gave priority to younger patients,
those with bilateral tympanic membrane
perforations, and those needing
mastoidectomies.
(continued next page)
“Several patients had
oropharyngeal cancers
caused by chewing
betel nut.”
From top left: A view of Dili Harbour; Dr Jane
McDonald (left) puts a patient to sleep with the
help of local Ear Care Nurse Julie Sousness
acting as interpreter; Halothane vapouriser;
Dr John Curotta reviews a patient on the ward
post-operatively.
35
Lessons abound
on a Dili adventure
continued
We operated on 20 patients over the
next week, aged from two to 32 years,
performing mostly mastoidectomies for
cholesteatoma, and myringoplasties.
The average age of patients treated
with surgery was 14 years. All surgical
patients were in otherwise good health,
though they were notably small in stature
compared with the Australian population.
The heaviest patient was a man of 30 who
weighed just 52kg.
Oxygen and halothane were available,
but no other gases or volatile agents.
Suction was provided by means of a
portable electric pump. Drugs and some
anaesthetic airway equipment came with
us, provided by RACS.
Nearly all patients I left to breathe
spontaneously. The available monitoring
was pulse oximetry, ECG and BP. There
was no capnography. My anaesthetic
assistants were Timorese trained, but did
not speak English, so communication was
a problem. Medical students attended
many of the sessions, though teaching
was also handicapped by language
difficulties.
The cost of our trip was assisted by
the generous efforts of the Rotary Club
of Balwyn Victoria. We hope we have
improved the lives of a few Timorese
people by our visit. It has definitely
provided an opportunity to mentor
Timorese trainees.
“All surgical patients were
in otherwise good health,
though they were notably
small in stature compared
with the Australian
population. The heaviest
patient was a man of 30
who weighed just 52kg.”
Dr Jane McDonald
Westmead Hospital and Children’s
Hospital at Westmead
Above from left: Final year Timor Leste
medical students, trained in Cuba, watching
Australian ENT surgeon Dr John Curotta do a
mastoidectomy. Danielle Doughty (volunteer
with the ENT team) is scrub nurse; Dr John
Curotta (back to camera) examining patients at
the ENT clinic. To the left is Danielle Doughty.
A patient who had surgery on a previous trip,
in the green shirt, named Colito, acts as
interpreter.
36
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
NZ Anaesthesisia Annual
Scientific Meeting
By combining with a specialist
international conference, this
year’s NZ Anaesthesia Annual
Scientific Meeting is able to
offer an exceptional line up of
about 100 international speakers
covering a wide range of
generalist and specialist topics.
Scientific Co-Convenor Professor Alan
Merry says the combined conference has
attracted the best anaesthesia faculty
yet seen in New Zealand – and one that
means there will be something of interest
for all anaesthetists and trainees.
The usual NZ Anaesthesia ASM is being
held in Auckland between November
14-17 along with the 2012 International
Congress of Cardiothoracic and Vascular
Anesthesia (ICCVA).
“Combining with ICCVA has enabled
us to attract an excellent international
and Australasian faculty,” Professor
Merry says. “I consider it the best we have
ever had for a New Zealand conference,
and they will be providing a first-class
generalist stream.” Speakers in the
general stream come from the US, New
Zealand, Australia, Germany and Canada.
Professor Merry is one of a team of
scientific program advisors who have put
together a comprehensive program under
the theme “What becomes of the broken
hearted? Outcomes and how to change
them”. It has a broad-ranging general
stream, a specialist ICCVA stream and
a third stream that straddles the two.
Registrants are able to attend any session
in any stream.
The combined conference is being
hosted by ANZCA and the New Zealand
Society of Anaesthetists in association
with the Society of Cardiovascular
Anesthesiology (SCA), which is US-based
but with an international membership of
over 6000 cardiac, thoracic and vascular
anaesthesiologists. Its ICCVA congress is
held in different venues around the world
every two years. This is the first time it
has been held in Australasia.
Topics in the general stream include
perioperative management of stents,
transthoracic echo for non-cardiac
anaesthetists, dynamic monitoring
for non-cardiac surgery, goal-directed
therapy in non-cardiac surgery, and fast
track anaesthesia and outcome. Some
of the other subjects covered include
airway management, trauma, obstetrics,
paediatrics, acute and high risk patients,
risks in older patients, operating room
efficiency, simulation and outcome,
intubation skills and perioperative
assessment.
Professor Merry says the quality of
the faculty overall is exemplified by the
keynote speakers – Dr Richard Dutton
from the US, Professor Scott Beattie from
Canada and the NZSA Visiting Speaker,
Dr Paul Baker, from Auckland.
Dr Dutton is an attending
anaesthesiologist at the University
of Chicago and the newly-appointed
Executive Director of the Anaesthesia
Quality Institute, which runs the National
Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry.
Dr Dutton has been involved in myriad
research endeavours for the past two
decades and has shared his professional
expertise at more than 200 grand
rounds and national and international
symposiums, specifically addressing
such issues as haemostatic resuscitation,
massive transfusion and factor VIIa
in civilian practice.
Dr Dutton will present a Saturday
morning plenary session on “Outcomes:
how to measure them and change
them: perspectives from AQI”, as well
as speaking on “Trauma – anaesthesia
and outcomes” in one of the concurrent
sessions.
In his plenary session, Professor Scott
Beattie from Canada will present on
“What becomes of the broken hearted
– angina: stents, coronary surgery and
modern medical management”. In a
human factors concurrent session, he will
speak to “Perioperative assessment
– how does it change outcome?”
Dr Beattie is a professor in the
Department of Anesthesia, University of
Toronto, Faculty of Medicine and works
in the Department of Anesthesia and
Pain Management at the Toronto General
Hospital, University Health Network .
He is recognised internationally as an
expert in the area of cardiac anaesthesia.
The NZSA Visiting Speaker, Dr Paul
Baker, has 25 years’ experience as a
consultant anaesthetist at Starship
Children’s Health in Auckland. He is also
a senior lecturer in the Department of
Anaesthesiology, University of Auckland.
His research interest and MD thesis is
“Improving the safety and management
of the difficult airway”.
In 1996, Dr Baker founded the
AirwaySkills course, which has taught
hundreds of anaesthetists, intensivists
and emergency physicians in New Zealand
and Australia. He is also the developer
of the Orsim bronchoscopy simulator.
Dr Baker will present a plenary session
on “Education in airway management”
and a paper on the “Quality and safety
of airway equipment”.
The combined NZ Anaesthesia ASM/
ICCVA conference begins on Wednesday
November 14 with various satellite
symposiums covering general and cardiac
topics during the day, and the welcome
reception in the evening. It opens formally
on Thursday morning, with the conference
dinner held on Friday evening.
For the full program and other speaker
details, and to register, go to www.
iccva2012.com. Early bird registration
is open until September 5. Abstract
submission for the moderated poster
session, NZSA Ritchie Prize and NZSA
Trainee Prize is open until July 31.
The NZ Anaesthetic Technicians
Society conference is running in parallel
with the NZ Anaesthesia ASM/ICCVA
conference.
Susan Ewart
NZ Communications Manager, ANZCA
37
ANZCA and government:
building relationships
ANZCA continues to work
with the Australian and
New Zealand governments
which both handed down
their budgets in May.
Australia
Aged-care boost in budget
The Australian government’s 2012-13
budget, released in May, was consistent
with previous commitments made to the
healthcare system. The biggest ticket item
in the recent budget was a $3.7 billion
dollar aged-care package, with additional
support for dental health, the National
Bowel Cancer Screening Program, health
infrastructure projects, as well as ehealth.
The government’s commitment to
ehealth was expanded with additional
funding to support the roll out of the
Personally Controlled Electronic Health
Record (PCEHR) over the next two years.
Health Minister Tanya Plibersek has taken
a number of opportunities to promote
the PCEHR as a cost-effective method
for managing the health information of
Australians, in the lead up to the system’s
launch on July 1.
38
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Recent ANZCA submissions
ANZCA continues to advocate on behalf
of Fellows, providing submissions to
government and health stakeholders in
a variety of areas. ANZCA has recently
made submissions to the:
• Medical Board of Australia’s
consultation on the board funding
external doctors’ health programs.
• The Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare’s consultation on National
definitions for elective surgery urgency
categories.
• The Australian Health Workforce
Ministerial Council’s Development of
National Criteria under the National
Registration and Accreditation Scheme.
• Health Workforce Australia in response
to its proposed Health Professionals
Prescribing Pathway in Australia.
ANZCA’s past submissions, including the
College’s accreditation submission to the
Australian Medical Council, can be found
at www.anzca.edu.au/communications/
submissions.
ANZCA recently met with
representatives from Health Workforce
Australia regarding the ongoing health
workforce 2025 study into the supply and
demand of medical practitioners with
a focus on the data on the anaesthesia
workforce. The College is providing
input into a report for Australian health
ministers due later in the year.
Specialist Training Program
The Specialist Training Program (STP) has
made significant achievements over the
past four months. All funding agreements
with hospitals have been finalised, most
hospital reports have been received, and
payments have been made to support
the training positions. ANZCA has been
developing systems to streamline the
processes involved in managing the 37
training positions across anaesthesia,
pain medicine and intensive care
medicine.
The College has made it a priority
to develop networks with STP staff
from other colleges, in order to share
knowledge and experience, in addition
to continuing to engage with government
on training in expanded settings. The
2013 STP application round has recently
closed. ANZCA, including the Faculty of
Pain Medicine, received 23 applications,
which were assessed for funding.
The Australian Department of Health
and Ageing will assess the College’s
assessment, as well as those made by the
relevant health jurisdictions. The results
of the application round are expected
later this year.
ANZCA is working with regional/
rural/remote area sites through the Rural
Support Loading Grant (RSL) to assist
these sites to meet costs of supporting
trainees. All inquiries regarding the
RSL and the 2013 STP application round
should be directed to the STP project
manager at [email protected].
New Zealand
Health in the 2012/13 budget
The New Zealand government’s 201213 budget was delivered on May 23.
Health Minister Tony Ryall announced
an increase of $101 million for elective
surgery and cancer services. One of
the goals of the funding is an increase
in 4000 elective surgeries per year.
Other areas of interest include directing
funding to reduce the waiting time for
imaging and diagnostic tests, and IT
improvements to support faster access to
results. The government also earmarked
an additional $143 million for disability
services. In a so-called “zero budget”,
the reallocation of funding still favours
Vote:Health.
Physician assistants
Health Workforce New Zealand (HWNZ)
has released the summative evaluation
from its demonstration of the physician
assistant (PA) role at Middlemore
Hospital, where two PAs trained in the
United States joined surgical teams for
one year. Based on the results of that
demonstration, HWNZ is now progressing
with the trial of the PA role in primary
care. The New Zealand office is working
with HWNZ to ensure that the College is
kept up-to-date with the PA project, and
is providing advice to HWNZ on the new
role from an anaesthesia perspective.
This project is an example of HWNZ’s
approach of rapid project development
and implementation.
ANZCA is developing a position
statement on physician assistants and
other alternative providers. The results of
the Middlemore Hospital trial and other
trials will be used to inform this process.
CPD for general registrants
The Medical Council of New Zealand
(MCNZ) has developed a continuing
professional development (CPD) program
for doctors who are not vocationally
registered or who are not participating
in a vocational training program, known
as “general registrants”. The program
is designed to strengthen the CPD
requirements and monitoring of general
registrants’ ongoing education.
The Chair of the New Zealand National
Committee, Geoff Long, ANZCA’s Chief
Executive Officer, Linda Sorrell, and the
New Zealand General Manager, Heather
Ann Moodie, met with MCNZ to propose
that general registrants working only in
a specialist area (such as anaesthesia)
and participating in an accredited
college program are able to fulfil MCNZ’s
requirements. Following agreement
by MCNZ, work is now underway to
ensure the CPD program meets MCNZ’s
requirements by March 2014.
Submissions
New Zealand’s drug purchasing agency,
Pharmac, has sought the input of the New
Zealand National Committee into the
development of its Preferred Medicines
List. Submissions have been compiled
on anaesthetic, analgesic and antiemetic
agents, and on fluids and electrolytes.
Recent submissions also include
advice to the Health Quality and Safety
Commission, the Ministry of Health,
and Health Workforce New Zealand
on technical workforce planning and
development, including anaesthetic
technicians.
John Biviano
General Manager, Policy
ANZCA
39
Quality and safety
Australian and
New Zealand
Anaesthetic
Allergy Group
Anaesthetists know that anaphylaxis
during anaesthesia is a potentially
life-threatening crisis. The event is
often traumatic both for patient and
anaesthetist.
It is also clear that anaesthesia is
increasingly delivered in a wide variety
of settings.
Busy anaesthetists need readily
available information regarding
management and referral centres for
these patients to ensure subsequent
anaesthesia is safe.
Furthermore, anaesthetists involved
in subsequent care need clear guidelines
about which anaesthetic agents can safely
be used.
The Australian and New Zealand
Anaesthetic Allergy Group (ANZAAG)
was established in response to these
challenges. ANZAAG members are
specialists with an interest in the
management and diagnosis of allergy to
anaesthetic agents.
Members have been recruited through
the network of specialists regularly
working in this area. ANZAAG comprises
68 members, including 50 anaesthetists,
15 immunologists, one technical specialist
and one perioperative physician, to date.
The group represents 28 testing centres
throughout Australia, New Zealand and
Hong Kong.
ANZAAG arose from a concept
developed by New Zealand anaesthetists
involved in the management and
investigation of patients who experienced
anaphylaxis during anaesthesia.
40
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The New Zealand group first met in
the early 1990s and rapidly demonstrated
the benefits of a network of specialists
including anaesthetists, immunologists
and technical/laboratory specialists
involved in this area of care. It was
apparent that a similar Australasian
group could deliver benefits throughout
the region.
ANZAAG has since developed a
structure to reflect the inter-collegiate
nature of the members of the group. The
executive members of ANZAAG will form
a sub-committee of ANZCA’s Quality
and Safety Committee to ensure a close
working relationship between the two
bodies.
The current executive of ANZAAG
includes the chair, Dr Michael Rose
(specialist anaesthetist, Sydney),
ANZAAG co-ordinator Dr Helen Crilly
(specialist anaesthetist, Gold Coast),
immunologist representative Dr Katherine
Nichols (consultant immunologist and
pathologist, Melbourne) and anaesthetist
representative Dr Peter Cooke (specialist
anaesthetist, Auckland).
The group first met in May 2010 and
has met twice a year since. ANZAAG
meetings focus on education and
developing resources to aid colleagues in
the event of allergic reactions associated
with anaesthesia.
ANZAAG is finalising a number of draft
documents that will be available from
a website that will launch at the ANZCA
annual scientific meeting in Melbourne
next year.
The aims for ANZAAG are:
1. To work towards best practice and
safety in relation to the treatment,
investigation and prevention of
anaesthesia related anaphylaxis,
working with other agencies nationally
and internationally.
2. To foster information exchange,
standardisation of practice and
good working relationships between
anaesthetists, immunologists, allergists
and technologists involved in the follow
up and investigation of patients who
experience perioperative anaphylaxis
in Australasia.
3. To foster critical inquiry and other
research in the area of perioperative
allergy and in the long term, to support
these endeavours by establishing a
research database of anaestheticrelated allergy within Australasia.
4. To provide and maintain web based
resources including Australasian
guidelines for the management and
investigation of anaesthesia related
anaphylaxis and to advise on referral
and investigations after such an event.
5. To seek opportunities to keep
anaesthetists, immunologists and
allergists updated regarding the subject
of anaesthesia related anaphylaxis.
ANZAAG will hold its annual general
meeting and educational symposium
from March 16-17, 2013 at the Princess
Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane. The
educational component will be open to
all anaesthetists and immunologists
and will focus on areas of interest in
anaesthetic drug allergy.
Anaesthetists with a special interest
in anaesthetic drug allergy management
are invited to join the group. For further
information please contact Dr Helen Crilly
at [email protected].
Dr Helen Crilly
ANZAAG Co-ordinator
Anaphylaxis to drugs
during anaesthesia
From January 1993 to December 2011,
the Victorian Consultative Council on
Anaesthetic Mortality and Morbidity
(VCCAMM) reviewed 164 cases of adverse
drug reaction. The actual number of cases
may be higher and the true frequency for
any drug is unknown in the absence of
accurate denominator data.
1. Reactions to neuromuscular blockers:
• Life threatening anaphylactic reactions
to muscle relaxants comprises the
highest risk. It is suggested that
whenever unexpected hypotension is
encountered during induction, it is wise
to consider anaphylaxis and institute
treatment with adrenaline, even if
the diagnosis is in doubt.
• Hypotension may be the only clinical
feature but cutaneous signs (rash,
blanching, pallor) coughing or
bronchoconstriction (increased airway
pressure, difficulty with ventilation,
hypoxia) may also occur.
• All anaesthetists should be prepared
to initiate an emergency call to obtain
immediate support for co-ordinated
crisis management in any case of
suspected anaphylaxis.
• Review of these cases revealed that
delayed diagnosis, failure to rapidly
escalate adrenaline dose and co-existent
cardiac disease were associated with
increased risk of mortality.
2. Reactions to intravenous antibiotics
can also be severe and life-threatening.
In the case of cephazolin, careful
inquiry should be made about
previous hypersensitivity reactions
to cephalosporins and penicillin. A
history of major allergy to penicillin
should be a contraindication to the
use of cephalosporins as there is some
evidence of cross reactivity.
Associate Professor Larry McNicol
Chair, VCCAMM
Figure 1: Intraoperative Drug Anaphylaxis 1993-2011
41
Quality and safety
continued
Comment on VCCAMM Report
on Anaphylaxis
• The total number of cases investigated
is almost certainly a fraction of those
occurring over the period 1993-2011.
This number of cases would be seen
by a single busy anaesthetic allergy
investigation clinic in approximately
18 months rather than 18 years. This is
probably due to the lack of mandatory
reporting of anaesthetic anaphylaxis.
• There is no doubt that muscle relaxant
anaphylaxis has been and remains
the principle cause of anaesthetic
anaphylaxis. The proportion of
reactions to each relaxant is dynamic
and will have changed during the
investigation period. It is unusual
that all muscle relaxants (for example
vecuronium and pancuronium) are not
listed here, presumably due to imperfect
reporting of these events although by
1993 many anaesthetists had changed
to rocuronium in preference to older
agents. Thus it is important that this
table is not seen as a true reflection
of the relative risk for perioperative
anaphylaxis.
• The statement that “it is wise to consider
anaphylaxis and institute treatment
with adrenaline, even if the diagnosis
is in doubt” is excellent, and could
easily be bolded.
42
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
• Hypotension may be the only feature,
but it is also worth noting that
bronchospasm may be the only feature.
Anaphylaxis should be considered
in cases of severe and/or unexpected
hypotension, bronchospasm, as
well as when one or more of these
is present with skin signs (rash,
erythema, urticaria) or angioedema.
In cases when the diagnosis is unclear,
treatment should be instituted and
mast cell tryptase assays taken to help
investigations later.
• The statement “All anaesthetists should
be prepared to initiate an emergency
call to obtain immediate support for
co-ordinated crisis management in
any case of suspected anaphylaxis”
is excellent. Training/drills for
anaphylaxis management should
be routinely practised.
• It should be noted that it is the treating
anaesthetist’s responsibility to arrange
follow-up testing by an expert in
anaesthetic allergy investigation.
Significant morbidity, including further
episodes of anaphylaxis, have occurred
with failure of referral and investigation
of perioperative anaesthetic
anaphylactic reactions.
• Cross-reactivity between cephalosporins
and penicillins has been the subject
of great misunderstanding over the
years. While cross-reactivity does
exist (particularly between penicillins
and first generation cephalosporins)
it is uncommon. Cross-reactivity is
related more to similarities between
the side chains of antibiotics than the
beta lactam ring itself. It should be
remembered that there is potential
morbidity involved with the avoidance
of the most appropriate antibiotic. The
best approach in patients with allergy
to penicillins or cephalosporins is to
obtain clarification of exact antibiotic
sensitivity by an immunologist with
expertise in this area of testing. In
a setting where such an opinion is
unavailable and delay inappropriate,
cross reactivity should be assumed
if the reaction to the penicillin or
cephalosporin was anaphylactic,
involved evidence of angioedema,
or significant cardiovascular or
respiratory compromise.
Dr Michael Rose
Chair, Australia and New Zealand
Anaphylaxis Allergy Group
Methylene blue and
serotonin reuptake
inhibitors – an update
Mixing methylene blue and SRIs
triggers severe toxicity
An informed understanding of serotonin
toxicity with methylene blue has not
changed since my previous comment in
20081. The seriousness and accuracy of
the previous warning has been borne
out by subsequent international reports
of severe reactions and a few deaths. For
those who wish to refresh their memory
about methylene blue and serotonin
toxicity there is a summary in my most
recent review 2, as well as updated
information on my website (Google
“Gillman methylene blue”).
The story of interactions between
monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs),
which includes methylene blue, and
drugs that possess significant serotonin
reuptake inhibitor (SRI) capacity, mostly
antidepressants,3 has confused not only
the profession, but also the regulatory
authorities. For instance, various sources
incorrectly warn against mirtazapine,
nortriptyline, bupropion etc, which do
not have any SRI action and pose no risk.
That is confusing and may precipitate
unnecessary disruption or rescheduling
of operations.
One particular aspect of the (usually
postoperative) presentation of serotonin
toxicity warrants attention. Anaesthesia
itself is not only an effective treatment
for the central nervous system and core
hyperthermia of serotonin toxicity,
but also tends to modify and disguise
signs and symptoms in the immediate
postoperative period. Body temperature
tends not to be elevated for a few hours
postoperatively, but can then rapidly
rise. In one recent case such a patient
died of hyperthermia, despite energetic
cooling efforts4. Monitoring of core temp
is essential, and judicious use of 5-HT2A
antagonists to treat hyperthermia may
sometimes be required as a life-saving
measure.
There is no firm evidence as to which
of the available 2A antagonist candidates
is best. The choice may depend on the
history and condition of the patient, the
required speed of onset (sub-lingual, IMI
or IV) and the experience of the doctor.
The possibilities are cyproheptadine
(PO only), chlorpromazine (IMI/IV),
risperidone (IM), olanzapine (sublingual), droperidol (IMI/IV), but not
ziprasidone, because it has significant
SRI potency). As a guide, all these drugs
would be expected to produce significant
blockade at the 5-HT2A receptor in “usual
clinical” doses 5.
Evidence supports the proposition
that in Australia, in contrast to other
countries, we have been successful in
avoiding the toxic drug interaction of
serotonin toxicity.
No cases have been reported to the
Therapeutic Goods Administration
(personal communication, March 2012),
and all inquiries to me about methylene
blue toxicity have been from Europe
and USA. There have been none from
Australia.
I would like to think that it is at least
partly because of the attention that
Australian anaesthetists have given to
the evidence that has been presented.
Congratulations are due not only to
the medical profession, but also to
the manufacturers of methylene blue
in Australia (Phebra), who included a
specific warning about serotonin toxicity
on my advice. In contrast, warnings from
national agencies (US Food and Drug
Administration and the British Medicine
and Healthcare Products Agency), and in
the package inserts, are either absent or
imprecise.
Conclusions
Mixing methylene blue with serotonin
reuptake inhibitors predictably and
frequently causes severe and potentially
fatal serotonin toxicity: discontinuation
of SRIs, with appropriate washout periods
before using intravenous methylene blue,
is a high priority and should probably
be considered mandatory. The situation
with smaller doses of methylene blue via
other routes is uncertain. Oral absorbency
is good and proposed uses of methylene
blue, such as chromo-endoscopy, may
generate blood levels sufficient to provoke
serotonin toxicity6.
Dr P Ken Gillman, MRC Psych
Dr Gillman is a retired clinical
psychiatrist with a special interest
in neuropharmacology.
References
1. Gillman, PK, Methylene Blue: A Risk for
Serotonin Toxicity. ANZCA Bull, 2008.
17: p. 36.
2. Gillman, PK, CNS toxicity involving
methylene blue: the exemplar for
understanding and predicting drug
interactions that precipitate serotonin
toxicity. J Psychopharmacol (Oxf), 2011.
25(3): p. 429-3.
3. Gillman, PK, Monoamine oxidase inhibitors,
opioid analgesics and serotonin toxicity.
Br. J. Anaesth., 2005. 95: p. 434-441.
4. Top, W, Gillman, PK, de Langen, C, and
Kooy, A, Fatal methylene blue associated
serotonin toxicity. 2012: p. [in preparation].
5. Kapur, S, Zipursky, RB, Remington, G, Jones,
C, et al., 5-HT2 and D2 receptor occupancy
of olanzapine in schizophrenia: a PET
investigation. Am J Psychiatry, 1998. 155:
p. 921-928.
6. Repici, A, Di Stefanob, AFD, Radicionib,
MM, Jasc, V, et al., Methylene blue MMX®
tablets for chromoendoscopy. Safety
tolerability and bioavailability in healthy
volunteers. Contemporary Clinical Trials,
2011. 33: p. 260–267.
43
Quality and safety
continued
ECRI alerts
The ECRI Institute is a non-profit
organisation that issues alerts from
four sources: the ECRI International
Problem Reporting System, product
manufacturers, government agencies
including the US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) and agencies in
Australasia, Europe and the UK as well
as reports from client hospitals.
Some alerts may only involve single
or small numbers of cases, there is no
denominator to provide incidence and
there is not always certainty about the
regions where the equipment is supplied.
This section can only highlight some
of the alerts that may be relevant. It is the
responsibility of the hospitals to follow up
with the manufacturer’s representatives
if they have not already been contacted.
Flow rate inaccuracy in Bayer MR
tubing sets used with Continuum
pumps (designed for use in MRI
environments)
Bayer MEDRAD Continuum MR infusion
system tubing may exhibit variations in
flow when used with Continuum infusion
pumps. There has been a recall of the
tubing and continuum pumps that have
been calibrated with the tubing.
Accurate delivery of critical
medications in the MR environment is
difficult without appropriate pumps.
Although it is possible to the use
“regular” volume or syringe pumps sitting
outside the field and to connect to the
patient with several extension tubing sets,
the compliance and length of tubing may
affect rate accuracy and responsiveness
to rate changes. Other MR conditional
pumps are available.
Cassette test failure alarm on loading
of Hospira PlumSet Administration Set
onto pump
Hospira has recalled its 104-inch Lifeshield
Primary PlumSet Administration Sets.
A cassette failure alarm may occur when
these sets are loaded onto the pump,
possibly due to failure in welding of the
cassettes. The cassette cannot and should
not be used. The main potential adverse
outcome is a delay in administration of
the required therapy.
44
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Luer connection leak in COBE spectra
blood warmer systems (Caridian BCT)
Green armbands in ophthalmic
surgery
If specific directions are not followed,
a leak may occur at the return luer
connection to an elevated blood warmer
potentially resulting in air entrainment
into the system.
Caridian BCT has inserted an
addendum to the labelling: “When
connecting a blood warmer tubing
set to the return line, ensure that the
tubing connection is tight. Put the luer
connection no higher than 50cm above
the return access to prevent the possibility
of air entering the tubing”.
Australian anaesthetists should be aware
patients who have vitreo-retinal surgery
get a green wristband if they have had gas
instilled in the globe of the eye.
The band remains on until the surgeon
considers the gas has completely gone,
usually 4-6 weeks. The administration of
nitrous oxide under these circumstances
may be a potential risk to the eye and
should be avoided.
Dr Phillipa Hore
Communications and Liaison Portfolio
Quality and Safety Committee
General alerts
Coronial alert
An Australian coroner investigating the
death of a patient undergoing repair of a
clavicle recently highlighted his findings
that a screw had been inadvertently
inserted into the right subclavian vein.
There was considerable haemorrhage,
which was aggressively managed, but
the patient did not improve and could
not be resuscitated. The possibility
of concomitant air embolism was a
late diagnosis, probably due to the
concentration of the surgical and
anaesthetic team on managing the
haemorrhage.
While not critical of the team, the
coroner sought to highlight the possibility
that whenever a large vessel is perforated,
other causes of refractory resuscitation
such as air embolism should be
considered as well as the hypovolaemia
that results from massive haemorrhage.
Dr Patricia Mackay
Communications and Liaison Portfolio
Quality and Safety Committee
Safety of Anaesthesia
latest report
ANZCA’s Safety of Anaesthesia, a review
of anaesthesia-related mortality reporting
in Australia and New Zealand 2006-2008
is now available on ANZCA’s website
under resources. A web booklet version
will be available soon and publicised in
an upcoming ANZCA E-Newsletter. For
queries please contact ANZCA’s Quality
and Safety Officer on [email protected].
The dangers of
self-inflating
resuscitation bags
Self-inflating resuscitation bags
are essential but rarely used
adjuncts to the anaesthesia
machine, a vital back up
when the oxygen supply or
anaesthesia machine fails.
They are also essential items
of equipment in the postanaesthesia care unit (PACU),
on cardiac arrest trolleys and
in emergency departments.
However, a number of hazards are
associated with the use of these bags, both
re-usable and disposable models, many of
which will be well known to anaesthetists
and intensivists.
Dr Jane Torrie, the Director of the
Simulation Centre for Patient Safety in
Auckland, has identified an issue with one
particular bag and reports:
“Our usual bag valve mask product
stocked in our university medical
simulation centre was recently replaced
with the L670 BVM single use product
made by Allied Healthcare, Missouri, and
imported by Care Medical.”
“During teamwork research over three
days in late February 2012, we videoed
25 teams (anaesthetist, post-operative
care nurse and anaesthetic assistant)
managing highly-realistic simulated cases
of deteriorating patients in a post-operative
care area. All team members were
clinically experienced and work in large
local medical institutions where similar
bag valve mask systems are stocked
and used.
“The research team observing the cases
noticed that in 11 out of 25 cases (44 per
cent), a member of the team disconnected
oxygen tubing from the manikin’s
oxygen face mask and connected it to
the manometer port of the L670 BVM
after removing the white port cap. In
all 11 cases, none of the team members
detected the error during the remainder of
the simulated case, and the oxygen was
delivered at maximum flow rate (12-15 lpm)
into the port for several minutes.
“The research team felt that barotrauma
was a possibility in these cases, so at
the end of the research simulations we
connected a two-litre test lung bag to the
L670 BVM, connected oxygen tubing to
the manometer port and turned gas flows
to 12 lpm.
“It was apparent that the test lung
bag expanded alarmingly to a volume
of several litres and that there was no
pressure relief system functioning to
protect patient lungs from O2 supply
pressure in this device configuration.
A photo is attached. This behaviour
could also be reproduced using a brand
new L670 BVM found in an operating
room at Auckland City Hospital, but not
consistently. There is no visible difference
between the two BVMs.
“Patients whose lungs are ventilated via
a closed system (endotracheal tube) would
be at high risk of life-threatening lung
barotrauma if the L670 manometer port
was connected to oxygen tubing.
“It is obvious that this connection error
will also reduce the inspired O2 in most
cases, as the reservoir bag does not fill
despite high O2 flow rates. A second
photo is attached demonstrating this.
“While we are aware that this is not
the intended configuration of the L670, we
observed a large proportion of experienced
healthcare professional teams, who were
using it for the intended purpose, actually
assemble it in a hazardous configuration.
Even more concerning, the error was
not apparent to them and thus was not
corrected.”
The problem was reported to Medsafe
(the authority responsible for regulating
therapeutic products in New Zealand),
which did not think it appropriate to
take formal action as it understood this
particular product had already been
withdrawn from the market; the issue was
one of incorrect use rather than device
failure; and there had been no adverse
events arising from such incorrect use
of this or similar products.
Despite this, MedSafe is keen that
word of this potential hazard is distributed
to all anaesthetists.
This is a timely reminder that there
are many hazards associated with these
bags. Some hazards – such as the facility
for incorrect assembly rendering them
useless and foreign material such as vomit
accumulating in the old black Ambu bags
– have largely been eliminated, or at least
reduced by improved design.
A further series of problems is associated
with the use of a filter between the bag and
the patient. This is, of course, unnecessary
if a disposable bag is used but several
brands of re-usable bag are still available.
This is not the forum to discuss the pros
and cons of disposable devices but some
of the hazards are as follows:
• High pressure oxygen could be connected
to the CO2 monitoring port of the filter
resulting in exactly the same issues that
Dr Torrie had in the simulation centre.
• The same port can be left open or even
broken off, resulting in a large leak and
totally inadequate ventilation.
• The filter can be blocked by patient
secretions.
• There are other disposable devices with
ports between the bag and the patient.
All anaesthetists should be aware of these
problems and take the following actions:
• Check the self-inflating resuscitation
bags in your clinical area frequently.
• Never use a filter with a disposable
device.
• Make sure the O2 tube is connected to
the end of the bag away from the patient.
(It should be stored in this configuration,
which will prevent the last minute
incorrect assembly experienced by
Dr Torrie’s subjects.)
• Educate nursing and other staff at
every opportunity on the safe use
of these devices.
Dr Joe Sherriff, FANZCA
ANZCA’s National Quality and Safety
Officer, New Zealand
45
ANZCA Trials Group meets
at the annual scientific
meeting in Perth
Perth meeting
One of the important core activities for
the ANZCA Trials Group is the annual
scientific meeting. This year, the Perth
meeting included two trials group
scientific sessions, the annual trials group
lunchtime meeting and a trials group
executive committee meeting.
For the first time since the 2011 Palm
Cove research workshop, the newly
formed ANZCA Research Co-ordinators’
– Special Interest Group (ARC-SIG) met
at lunchtime on May 12 at the Perth
Exhibition and Conference Centre. The 11
participants, led by Sofia Sidiropoulos,
discussed terms of reference for future
meetings and a program for the breakout
sessions for the forthcoming ANZCA Trials
Group Strategic Research Workshop in
Palm Cove on August 10-12.
All co-ordinators were partially
supported to attend by the National
Health and Medical Research Council
grant for the Peri-operative Ischaemic
Evaluation-2 Trial (POISE-2 trial).
Associate Professor David Story
chaired the first ANZCA Trials Group
scientific session on Saturday morning.
Professor Steve Webb, the chair of the
Australian and New Zealand Intensive
Care Society-Clinical Trials Group
(ANZICS-CTG), opened the session
with a talk on what is new in intensive
care research. Professor Matthew Chan
followed with a presentation on his
work with the neuro-vision pilot study.
Professor Julia Fleming wrapped up the
session with a presentation on intraguanethidine for Raynaud’s syndrome:
a pilot study. Both Professors Chan and
Fleming were recipients of the ANZCA
Trials Group Pilot Grant Scheme, and
were awarded grants of $5000 last year.
The chair of the ANZCA Trials Group,
Associate Professor Tim Short, chaired
the second session, “Methods and
46
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
madness in clinical trials”, on Tuesday
afternoon. Professor Paul Myles gave an
informative talk on equipoise in clinical
research. Professor Myles was followed
by Dr Nolan Mc Donnell, who demystified
the mysterious with a presentation
on superiority, non-inferiority and
equivalence trials.
The ANZCA Trials Group sessions
at the annual scientific meeting follow
an update/methodology/results format
and Professor Stephen Schug finished
the session with a presentation on
measurement tools in acute pain research:
is there room for improvement?
The annual ANZCA Trials Group
lunchtime meeting followed and was
attended by more than 30 participants
from Australia, New Zealand and Hong
Kong, including research co-ordinators
associated with trials group research.
Professor Tim Short chaired the meeting.
Professor Myles opened the discussion
on how future research could be better
funded especially for investigatorinitiated research, as well as updating the
attendees on research activity associated
with ANZCA multicentre research.
Most of the lunchtime meeting was
assigned to a POISE-2 investigator
meeting, chaired by the national coordinator for Australia and New Zealand,
Professor Kate Leslie. She informed the
meeting that POISE-2 is engaged with 33
sites across Australia, 10 are activated and
27 patients have been recruited to date.
Professor Leslie thanked the investigators
and co-ordinators at the meeting for
their hard work and persistence in
getting POISE-2 up and running in a
difficult research environment. The
Royal Adelaide Hospital (Dr Tom
Painter and Sue Lang, and colleagues)
was identified as having made an
outstanding contribution to POISE-2,
with 16 patients recruited to date. This
site is also the largest contributor to the
Aspirin and Tranexamic Acid for Coronary
Artery Surgery Trial (ATACAS Trial).
Congratulations to Tom and Sue and
their colleagues!
Pilot grants
The ANZCA Trials Group is pleased to
announce that the first pilot grant of
$A5000 for 2012 has been awarded to
Dr Ben Olesnicky, Royal North Shore
Hospital, NSW, for his project “Effect
of Analgesic Regime on Outcomes
Following Major Hepatobiliary Surgery
– A Comparison of Epidural Analgesia
and Intrathecal Morphine”.
For more information of the ANZCA
Pilot Grant Scheme, which is open to
applicants all year, see: www.anzca.edu.
au/fellows/Research/trials-group/pilotgrant-scheme.html
Publications
Leslie K, Myles PS, Chan MTV, Forbes A,
Paech M, Peyton P, Silbert BS, Williamson
E. Nitrous oxide and long-term morbidity
and mortality in the ENIGMA Trial.
Anesth Analg 2011; 112:387-393.
Graham AM, Myles PS, Leslie K, Chan MT,
Paech MJ, Peyton P, E I Dawlatly AA. A
cost-benefit analysis of the ENIGMA trial.
Anesthesiology 2011 Aug;115(2):265-72
Myles PS; the ENIGMA Trial Investigators.
Correspondence. Anesthesiology. 2012
Mar; 116(3):736
Leslie K. Myles P.S. Halliwell R. Paech
M.J. Short T.G. Walker S. Beta-blocker
management in high-risk patients
presenting for non-cardiac surgery: Before
and after the POISE Trial. Anaesthesia
and Intensive Care 2012; 40(2): 319-327.
Events
4th Annual Strategic Research
Workshop, Sea Temple, Palm Cove,
Qld, August 10-12.
Following a very successful workshop
meeting in Palm Cove in 2011, the ANZCA
Trials Group is returning to Palm Cove
for its 4th annual consecutive meeting
this year. The workshops bring together
experienced researchers as well as new
and emerging researchers from Australia,
New Zealand and Hong Kong. These
meetings aim to present, mentor and
encourage new ideas for multicentre
research in anaesthesia, perioperative
and pain medicine. Participants receive
updates about existing research and are
encouraged to engage in multicentre
trials.
We also encourage anaesthesia
research nurses and co-ordinators to
attend.
ANZCA Research Co-ordinators’ –
Special Interest Group (ARC-SIG) has
invited the Australian and New Zealand
Intensive Care Society-Clinical Trials
Group (ANZICS-CTG) Research Coordinators – Special Interest Group chair,
Rachael Parke, from Auckland, to present
at one of the breakout sessions.
Associate Professor Steve Webb, the
chair of the ANZICS-CTG, is a guest
speaker along with biostatistician
Dr Katherine Lee from the Clinical
Epidemiology and Biostatistical Unit,
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute
Melbourne. There will also be a POISE-2
trial investigators’ meeting.
Participants are encouraged to bring
along their ideas for future multicentre
research. Please contact spoustie@anzca.
edu.au prior to the workshop with the
title and a one-page summary of your
proposal(s).
More information can be found at:
www.anzca.edu.au/fellows/Research/
anzca-trials-group-events.html
Stephanie Poustie
ANZCA Trials Group
Research Fellow and Co-ordinator
8th ISHA 2013
ISHA 2013
!
s
r
e
t
t
a
M
y
r
o
t
s
Hi
8th International Symposium on
the History of Anaesthesia,
22–25 January 2013, University of Sydney, Australia
‘The Anaesthetist’ by Harold
Cazneaux 1933
Satellite meeting, Melbourne, January 29-30
Geoffrey Kaye Museum of Anaesthetic History, Australian
& New Zealand College of Anaesthetists
The University of Sydney
www.isha2013.com
[email protected]
47
Welcome to the Melbourne 2013 Annual Scientific Meeting of the
Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists and Faculty
of Pain Medicine. Taking place from May 4 to 8, 2013, the regional
organising committee has planned a scientific program in a venue with
an international green star rating that prides itself on high quality food
and wine, complemented by an engaging social program. All in one of
the best cities in the world – which combines refined culture with cutting
edge cool! With its leafy boulevards, intimate laneways, cultural precincts
and known for its dining-out scene, Melbourne is the perfect setting to
reconnect with colleagues and to meet new ones.
The theme ‘Superstition, dogma and science’ is an opportunity for each
of us to critically examine our practice and reflect on these elements in all
that we do.
Are we creatures of habit? Are we as open to change as we think? Can
we justify and explain the choices we make every day?
We have embraced this theme by developing a diverse scientific program
to be delivered by an exceptional group of world-renowned anaesthetists
and pain specialists, in conjunction with many other outstanding medical
specialists, scientists and non-medical professionals. We will showcase
the strengths of our specialty through these highly respected champions
and support their teaching with dynamic workshops and small group
discussions. The flexibility and scheduling of the program will allow you
to choose your own adventure and create the conference experience
that you seek. We invite you to bring an open mind and look forward to
welcoming you to Melbourne in 2013.
Dr Debra Devonshire, Convenor
Dr Mark Hurley, Deputy Convenor
Dr David Bramley, Scientific Co-Convenor
Dr Rowan Thomas, Scientific Co-convenor
Dr Michael Vagg, FPM Scientific Convenor
48
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
ConFIrmed keynote SPEAKERS
Professor Kevin Tremper
MD, PhD (ANZCA ASM Visitor, USA), University of Michigan
and head of the Multicenter Perioperative Outcomes
Group, whose plenary lecture will address the translation
of large population outcome study results into decisions for
individual patients under our care.
Associate Professor Timothy Short
MB, ChB, MD Otago, FANZCA, FHKCA (Australasian Visitor,
New Zealand), current chair of the ANZCA Clinical Trials
Group, an expert in pharmacological interactions as
reflected in response surfaces, as well as the association
between depth of anaesthesia and outcomes.
Professor Edzard Ernst
MD, PhD, F Med Sci, FRCP, FRCP(Ed) (FPM ASM Visitor,
UK), the first full professor of complementary medicine
in the UK, who has vast experience in bringing science
and evidence to this often unscientific and largely
unregulated field.
Register your interest
at www.anzca2013.com or via email
at [email protected]
Coming soon...
The regional organising committee
recommendations on the top FIVE
coffee houses, bars, bike routes
and kick back venues.
Professor Paul White
PhD, MD, FANZCA (ANZCA Victorian Visitor, USA) from
Cedar Sinai Medical Centre, a widely published expert in
anaesthesia for ambulatory surgery and section editor for
Anaesthesia & Analgesia, who will focus particularly on
some of the myths and science behind anaesthesia for our
aging population.
Professor Fabrizio Benedetti,
MD (FPM Victorian Visitor, Italy), internationally recognised
for his research in the neuroscience of placebo and for his
book The patient’s brain: the neuroscience of the doctorpatient relationship.
Professor Colin Royse,
MBBS MD FANZCA (Organising Committee Visitor, Australia),
known for his research in cardiac anaesthesia, ultrasound
and echocardiography, who will address the outcomes
that really matter to patients.
KeY dates
Call for Abstracts
Open September 2012
Registration
Opens November 2012
Call for Abstracts
Close February 2013
Notification to Authors
Early March 2013
Early Bird Registration
Closes March 2013
ANZCA ASM 2013
May 4-8, 2013
49
Successful
candidates
Primary examination
February/April 2012
One hundred and sixty four candidates
successfully completed the Primary
Fellowship Examination and are
listed below:
Nathan Mark Oates
Ross Ingle Hanrahan
Adam Mark Hill
Adelene Su-Chen Ong
Alison Beth Main
Alyson Patricia McGrath
Aman Bamra Deep Singh
Amardeep Singh
Ananth Kumar
Andrew Mena Nikola
Ashokkumar Murugesan
Christopher Michael Mason
Daniel Hernandez
David Jack Zalcberg
David Sai-Wo Cheng
Jang Cheu Cham
Jessie Ly
Joseph Peter Wilbers
Karen Ann Hungerford
Karina Simone Berzins
Lara Rybak
Leonid Pinski
Lucy Rebecca Kelly
Mahsa Mirkazemi
Marcin Felix Teisseyre
Michael Patrick Reid
Nathan Andrew Moore
Nathan Roy Thompson
Neil Lawrence Pillinger
Penelope Gaye Taylor
Peter Alexander Baird
Phui Leng Chan
Rebecca Jade McNamara
Rebecca Scott
Sheung Hei Anthony Wan
Shirin Jamshidi
Simon Christopher McLaughlin
Sunshine Kaya Austin
Trylon Matthew Tsang
Abigail Ngar-Yee Wong
Behruz Mohammad Jamshidi
Catherine Ann Abi-Fares
Christian Van Nieuwenhuysen
Christopher John Gorton
Claire Margaret Amy Manning
Clinton John Patricks
50
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
ACT
ACT
NSW
NSW
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NSW
NSW
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NSW
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NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Craig Andrew McDonald
Daniel James Robertson
David Gutierrez-Bernays
David Liu
Desiree Vanguardia Perez
Jacqueline Yung
Joanne Lyn Cummins
Jolyon Jay Bond
Karl James Gadd
Kellie Maree Bird
Linh Tien Nguyen
Michael John Saba
Ohmar Aung
Paul Robert Mills
Peter Francis Correa
Rajdev Toor
Rebecca Helen Kamp
Samuel Michael Bongers
Sim-Wei How
Sorcha Eibhlin Evans
Stephen Chi-Wei Fung
Thomas Michael Walsh
Victor Khi Lee
Wai-Mee Foong
Yee-Jen Jane Chia
Adam Richard Storey
Alexandra Alison Bull
Ann-MareeBarnes
James Arthur London
Laura Jane Willington
Marni Calvert
Richard Peter Champion
Richard Samuel Lumb
John James Carney
Alireza Shangarffam
Amandeep Singh Sarai
Bishoy Moussa
Bronwyn Calire Scarr
Carolyn Sarah Varney
Clara Anamaria Cotaru
Damien Elsworth
Daniel Knox Joyce
Darragh Eoiw O’Brien
Dorothy Wai-Lin Chan
Fazian Zia
Gordana Ukalovic
Gregory Michael Bulman
Harriet Clare Beevor
James Austin McGuire
Jenny Clare Hewlett
Joshua Anthony Szental
Julia Kuchinsky
Julie Yin Mei Chan
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
Tas
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Kacey Nicole Williams
Marissa Ferguson
Melinda Neroli Miles
Murthi Sangeetha
Nathalie Mei Gomes
Noam Benjamin Winter
Peter Doukas
Ryan Basil McMullan
Sophia Cotton Bermingham
Thomas Peter Sullivan
Vanita Mohan Bodhankar
Verity Rachel Sutton
Vina Meliana
Vincent Andrew Kun-Sai Yuen
Ying Chen
Andrew Jin-Meng Lee
Anna Carter
Christine Siang-Yin Ong
Daniel Eric Anderson
Ing-Kye Sim
Jan David Janmaat
Jen Aik Tan
Mumtaz Anwar Khan
Nathan Jon Curr
Paul Anthony Cosentino
Paul Matthew Ricciardo
Renuka Alakeson
Rohan David Mahendran
William Henry Fellingham
Ka-Hei Chong
Maggie Wai Ying Tsui
Sen Yin Stevienne Tam
Wai-Naam Wales Chan
Woon-Lai Lim
Abhishek Jain
Alison Jackson
Beau Curby Klaibert
Chen Seong Ong
David Samuel Prior
Emily Claire Rowbotham
Erica Ting-Yi Hsu
Gemma Anne Malpas
Graham Clifford Wesley
Heidi Joanna Mary Nelson
Jeremy Stephen Young
Joesph Raoul McKerras
Julia Kate Taylor
Katia Vanya Hayes
Madison Rosanna Elaine Goulden
Michael Richard Tan
Rochelle Amanda Barron
Ruth Elizabeth Brown
Sallie Elizabeth Malpas
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
HK
HK
HK
HK
Mal
NZ
NZ
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NZ
NZ
NZ
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NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
Sathish Krishnan
Scott Yu-Chun Wu
Siew Ting Chin
Sophie Caroline Van Oudenaaren
Yiyi Zhang
Desmond Yu Mun Ho
Fung Chen Tsai
Lik Han Tee
Selene Yan Ling Tan
Stella Lin Ang
Xian’en Hope Ang
Zhi-Xiang Tan
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
NZ
Sing
Sing
Sing
Sing
Sing
Sing
Sing
Renton Prize
The Court of Examiners recommended
that the Renton Prize for the half year
ended June 30, 2012, be awarded to:
Ing-Kye Sim
WA
Merit Certificates
Merit Certificates were awarded to:
Jacqueline Yung
Jen Aik Tan
Julie Yin Mei Chan
Andrew Mena Nikola
Emily Claire Rowbotham
Yiyi Zhang
Jeremy Stephen Young
Julia Kuchinsky
Selene Yan Ling Tan
Daniel Eric Anderson
Gregory Michael Bulman
Adam Richard Storey
Thomas Peter Sullivan
Jolyon Jay Bond
Sangeetha Murthi
Alexandra Alison Bull
Qld
WA
Vic
NSW
NZ
NZ
NZ
Vic
Sing
WA
Vic
SA
Vic
Qld
Vic
SA
Final examination
March/May 2012
One hundred and thirty five candidates
successfully completed the Final
Fellowship Examination and are
listed below:
Hon Earn Sim
Adrian Boyn
Alexander Duthie
Andrew Alexander Lovett
Angela Suen
Arjun Nagendra
Brendan Alexander Irvine
Caroline Anne Jackson
Caroline Liana Fung
Christopher Charles Stone
Dinesh Harkishin Thadani
Elizabeth Mei-Ying Symons
Emily Ching-Ying Yeoh
Jia Jia Ye
Jonathan Douglas Minton
Marie Christiane Hadassin
Paul Mark Healey
Rachel Ruff
Ragu Nathan
Robert Patrick Heavener
Stanley L. Yu
Stephanie Wei Yin Fong
Stephen Jonathan Smith
Thananchayan Elalingam
Timothy Suharto
Wajdi Hadi Mohamad
Ahmad Al-Salhi
Yasmin Vivian Celeste Zarebski
Alistair Grant Kan
Bradley John Smith
Brooke Jean Vickerman
Colin Thomas Brodie
Emma Lucinda Walters
Francesca Lee Rawlins
Jacqueline Annette Evans
Jeremy Luke Brammer
Joshua Surian Daly
Kellie Anne Ovenden
Lisa Deecke
Lynda Glenys Veronica Allchurch
Minka Grenier
Mitchell Morse
Nurul Shamsidar Mohamed Bakri
Paul Francis Wigan
Paul Joseph Bennett
ACT
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
NSW
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NSW
NSW
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Paul Robert Nicholas
Peter David Koudos
Philip Lloyd Stagg
Torben Neal Wentrup
Wendy Julia Morris
William Thomas Meade
Yasmin Whately
Andy Sisnata Siswojo
Arvinder Grover
Benjamin Philip Jones
Chuan-Whei Lee
Daniel Hsin-Kai Liu
Gareth Iain Symons
Gauri Sangeeta Resch
Grace Mei Ling Seow
Herman Lim
Ian Thomas Chao
Jamahal Maeng-Ho Luxford
James Stuart Clark
Joseph Isac
Josephine Agnes Morrison
Kirsten Alice Bakyew
Lahiru Nipun Amaratunge
Lakmini Kamithri De Silva
Li Ann Teng
Mark Joseph Heynes
Martin N-H Hoai Nguyen
Matthew Garry Richardson
Melinda Kelly Same
Michelle Sue-Lin Chia
Nam Van Le
Nerida Frances Telec
Rachel Dilernia
Sina Mahjoob
Suet-Ling Goh
Suzanne Claire Whittaker
Timothy James Byrne
Trung Thien Du
Andrew Fah
Andrew Norman Richard Wing
Jeremy Thomas Sutton
Kuan Lee Ng
Michael Douglas Schurgott
Nathan Trent Judd
Vicki Anne Cohen
Daniel John Aras
Mark Michael Alcock
Byrne Erik Redgrave
Claire Louise Hinton
David Andrew Kingsbury
David Edward Bridgman
David William Hoppe
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Qld
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
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SA
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(continued next page)
51
Successful
candidates
continued
Hamish Stuart Mace
WA
Marlene Louise Johnson
WA
Miles Earl
WA
Natasha Kamala Epari
WA
Riyad Adul Aziz Dawood
WA
Vanessa Greta Percival
WA
Wong Yoke Mooi
WA
Alastair James Ineson
NZ
Andrew Lynn Hamiliton Childs
NZ
Benjamin Thomas Hayes Greenwood NZ
Ching Wan Wu
NZ
Conrad Engelbrecht
NZ
David Heather Laurence
NZ
Geoffrey Paul Carden
NZ
Jaime Leigh O’Loughlin
NZ
James Edward Moore
NZ
Jeffrey Ian Reddy
NZ
Jennifer Anne Wright
NZ
Jeremy James Archer
NZ
Jin Hyuk Kang
NZ
Jonathan Colin Kersley Taylor
NZ
Joseph Charles Luke Taylor
NZ
Kathryn Frances Dawson
NZ
Lucy Rebekah Stone
NZ
Marsha Kim Heus
NZ
Nicolas William Rogers
NZ
Owen Callender
NZ
Phillip John Quinn
NZ
Po Che Yip
NZ
Rachel Clair Dempsey
NZ
Samuel Morrow Grummitt
NZ
Victoria Yien Freeman
NZ
Ku Ying Wai
HK
Ling Wai Yip
HK
Mak Wai Yin
HK
Or Yin Ling
HK
Tse King Yan Catherine
HK
Tsui Sin Yui Cindy
HK
Wong Tak Yee
HK
52
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Fifteen candidates successfully completed
the International Medical Graduate
Specialist Exam and are listed below:
Namita Rakheja
Mahesh Ganji
Caroline Collard
Sibi Kurian
Kajari Roy
Nitin Nair
Tharapriya Ramkumar
Tilo Willy Klinger
Arnold Beeton
Adly Ariff Abas
Andreas Rassamy Manopas
Cristina Revenga Cilla
Jesco Kompardt
Raymond Sinnadurai
NSW
NT
Qld
Qld
SA
SA
SA
Tas
Vic
WA
WA
WA
WA
WA
Cecil Gray Prize
The Court of Examiners recommended
that the Cecil Gray Prize for the half year
ended June 30, 2012, be awarded to:
Hon Earn Sim
ACT
Merit certificates
Merit certificates were awarded to:
Andrew Norman Richard Wing
Chuan-Whei Lee
Ian Thomas Chao
Jamahal Maeng-Ho Luxford
Lahiru Nipin Amaratunge
Marlene Louise Johnson
SA
Vic
Vic
Vic
Vic
WA
Combined Education,
Management,
Simulation and
Welfare SIG Meeting
“Workforce: future force”
September 21-23, 2012
Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove, Qld
For further information:
Hannah Burnell, SIG Coordinator
T: +61 3 8517 5392
E: [email protected]
www.anzca.edu.au/events/sig-events
The Perioperative Medicine
Special Interest Group in
conjunction with the Acute
Pain Special Interest Group
presents: “When worlds collide:
Perioperative medicine – the
new specialty on the block?”
The Byron at Byron Resort,
Byron Bay, NSW
July 27-28, 2012
For further information, please
contact the conference organiser:
Kirsty O’Connor
T: +61 3 8517 5318
E: [email protected]
www.anzca.edu.au/events/sig-events
53
Anaesthetic history: Museum
receives valuable historical
gifts from South America
Three items of historical
significance, including a
Takaoka ventilator and a
Takaoka universal vaporiser,
have been donated to the
Geoffrey Kaye Museum of
Anaesthetic History at a
presentation in Buenos
Aires, Argentina.
At the recent World Congress of
Anaesthesiologists, the honorary
curators of the Geoffrey Kaye Museum,
Rod Westhorpe and Christine Ball, were
guests at a historians lunch, hosted by
the Asociación de Anestesia, Analgesia y
Reanimación de Buenos Aires.
The association, whose headquarters
are in a suburb of the great city of 14
million inhabitants, proudly showed us
their museum, with its own street frontage
and display window.
Two of the items donated to the
museum were invented by Brazilian
anaesthetist and engineer Dr Kentaro
Takaoka in the 1950s. The Takaoka
ventilator and the Takaoka universal
vaporiser were enormously popular in
Latin America, and elsewhere in the
world. The ventilator is particularly
interesting because of its compact size.
The third gift was a copy – one of only
two known to remain in existence – of
the first edition of the journal Revista
54
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Argentina, Anestesia y Analgesia, April,
1939. This is one of the earliest anaesthesia
journals ever published and, after being
brought home very carefully, it is now in
the proud possession of the Geoffrey Kaye
Museum.
The Geoffrey Kaye Museum
of Anaesthetic History enjoys an
international reputation as one of the
major collections in the world and many
international historians admire and
envy the role the museum has played
in furthering professional and public
knowledge of the history and practice
of anaesthesia.
The visit to the World Congress
of Anaesthesiologists gave us the
opportunity to renew the many close
relationships that the museum maintains
with international anaesthesia historians.
Christine Ball presented at one of the
historical sessions. The Buenos Aires
association presented a fascinating
display throughout the congress,
including what is believed to be the oldest
film of an anaesthetic. Taken in 1899,
the film shows the surgical removal of
a hydatid lung cyst. The anaesthetic,
believed to be chloroform, is administered
by open drop by a medical student while
the surgeon, without gloves, mask or
headwear, removes the cyst. The Geoffrey
Kaye Museum now has a copy of the film
on DVD.
The Geoffrey Kaye Museum of
Anaesthetic History and ANZCA are
proud supporters of the forthcoming
International Symposium on the History
of Anaesthesia, to be held in Sydney in
January. A two-day satellite symposium
in Melbourne will follow a few days
later, when we expect to host many
international guests at the College.
Dr Rod Westhorpe, Honorary Curator,
Geoffrey Kaye Museum of Anaesthetic
History
Dr Christine Ball, Honorary Assistant
Curator, Geoffrey Kaye Museum of
Anaesthetic History
ANZCA history
and heritage
update
ANZCA’s history is highly
valued among many Fellows
and trainees who identify
history and heritage as a
tangible reminder of the high
standards and achievements
of previous generations.
Consequently, the ANZCA Council signed
off on a history and heritage strategy in
2011 that aims to meet 10 key objectives in
capturing and documenting the history of
the College while enhancing the Geoffrey
Kaye Museum of Anaesthetic History,
an internationally significant collection.
The 10 objectives are focused around
preservation, engagement, accessibility
and relevance to Fellows and trainees.
In 2012, key activities to date have
included the filming of three interviews
with key College figures – Professor
Emeritus Tess Cramond, Dr Duncan
Campbell and Dr Nerida Dilworth.
Dr Dilworth is a well-known retired
paediatric anaesthetist from Western
Australia, Dr Campbell designed the
Campbell ventilator and was awarded the
Orton Medal at the Perth annual scientific
meeting and Professor Cramond is a
significant historic figure in Australasian
anaesthesia.
These engaging oral histories will be
available to all Fellows via the ANZCA
website during the second half of 2012,
forming part of an ongoing series.
Other activities have focused on the
implementation of robust historical
collection and archiving policies that
will provide guidance on the collection
and maintenance of items of historical
importance.
Work has also commenced on
improving accessibility to the collection
held by the College through the use of
information technology. This is focused
on providing a rich and interactive
experience of material via the ANZCA
website.
Also under way are plans for a strong
historic presence at next year’s ANZCA
annual scientific meeting in Melbourne
and the development of materials that
highlight the history of the College.
Opposite page clockwise from top left:
Group photo outside the Anaesthesia Museum
of the Buenos Aires Anesthesia Association.
From left: Dr Enrico Buffa, Dr Hector Venturini
(Curator), Dr Rod Westhorpe, Dr Christine
Ball, Dr David Wilkinson (WFSA President), Dr
Douglas Bacon (Wood Library Laureate), Dr
Alberto Varela (Director), and Dr George Bause
(Curator, Wood Library Museum); Dr Christine
Ball being presented with the Takaoka ventilator
by Dr Enrico Buffa, Dr Alberto Varela (Director),
and Dr Hector Venturini (Curator); A copy of the
first issue of the Argentinian journal Anestesia y
Analgesia, 1939.
This page from left: Filming oral histories are
Dr Nerida Dilworth and Dr Wally Thompson;
Dr Duncan Campbell and Dr Christine Ball.
Mark Harrison
General Manager, Fellowship Affairs
55
The early development
of anaesthesia practice
in Queensland
This is the fifth article
in a series about the
foundation Fellows
of the Faculty of
Anaesthetists, Royal
Australasian College
of Surgeons. Professor
Tess Cramond takes up
the story as it unfolded
in Queensland1.
The first practitioner with a higher degree
in anaesthetics to practice in Brisbane
was Dr “Doggie” David Aubrey Davis, MB
ChM (Syd) 1923, Diploma in Anaesthetics
(DA), Royal Colleges of Physicians
and Surgeons (RCP&S) 1939. There is a
record of his having an appointment at
the Brisbane Hospital as an Honorary
Physician (1932-38).
Dr Horace Johnson completed
physician training in Edinburgh as well
as special training in anaesthetics and
is also recognised as one of the founder
practitioners in Queensland. He worked
as honorary anaesthetist to the Mater
Children’s Hospital in Brisbane from 1935
until the wartime period. As his resident
in 1952, my interest in anaesthetics was
nurtured by him. When Dr Johnson
volunteered for the Australian Imperial
Force (AIF), his anaesthetic practice
was taken over by Dr Vera Madden
(married name Watson) MBBS (Melb)
1935, who provided yeoman service to
an overworked surgical community.
She was the first full-time appointment
in anaesthetics at Brisbane Hospital
(1938-41). She went into private practice
when Dr Horace Johnson volunteered for
56
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
the AIF, remaining in practice until her
husband, Dr Donald Watson (orthopaedic
surgeon), returned from active service
in 1946.
Dr Madden was followed (1941-45) by
Dr Agnes Coates Earl, MBBS (Syd) 1939
and, when she resigned, from 1945-49
by Dr Ray Robinson, MBBS (Qld) 1943,
who obtained the two-part DA (Syd)
1951. Dr Robinson was to play a pivotal
role not only as one of the “Queensland
Girls”, but also in the development of
paediatric anaesthesia at the Hospital
for Sick Children and in thoracic
anaesthesia at the Brisbane Hospital
and later at the Princess Alexandra
Hospital. She anaesthetised the first
neonate to have surgery for repair of
a tracheo-oesophageal fistula by Dr
Morgan Windsor, and it was a memorable
experience for me to have been the
anaesthetic registrar helping her that
night in 1954.
Dr Robinson was joined in 1947-49
by Dr Joan Dunn, MBBS (Qld) 1944.
She completed her training in Oxford,
obtaining the two-part DA,RCP&S
(1951) – the first Queensland graduate to
obtain a higher degree in anaesthetics.
She was appointed the first anaesthetics
supervisor (later called director), at the
Brisbane Hospital (1951-53). A superb,
quietly efficient administrator, she had
the unenviable task of providing clinical
care, supervising and training junior
staff and organising a new department.
There was limited finance, facilities were
primitive and the administration less
than supportive. For Dr Dunn, there “were
no problems, only solutions”. There were
20 operating theatres in eight areas of the
three hospitals – the Brisbane Hospital,
the Women’s and the Hospital for
Sick Children.
Another woman whose re-entry to
medicine after 21 years was to have
a marked impact on the future of
anaesthetics in Queensland was Dr
Isabel McLelland, MB ChM (Syd) 1918.
She was almost 50 before she retrained
in medicine to give anaesthetics for
her husband, gynaecologist Dr Hugh
McLelland. Mrs McLelland, as she
was always known, established the
partnership which was later known
as “The Queensland Girls”, interstate
and overseas. She did much to foster
the role of the specialist anaesthetist
“She managed even the most irritable surgeons
superbly telling them to get on with the surgery
for which they were trained – and giving them a
score on her ‘grizzle graph’!”
providing excellent service for elective
and emergency surgery. She was
elected to membership of the faculty of
anaesthetists but later declined election to
fellowship on the grounds that fellowship
was the accolade for those who did formal
training and successfully fulfilled the
examination requirements. It was my
privilege to be invited to join the group
– with Mrs McLelland, Dr Robinson,
Dr Dunn and Judith Foote.
Dr Ruth Molphy, MBBS (Qld) 1947,
was appointed registrar 1948-1950 and
then proceeded to the UK, obtaining the
two-part DA in 1952 before returning
to the Brisbane Hospital as director of
anaesthetics 1953-1963, and later as
foundation director at the Prince Charles
Hospital 1963-1983. Dr Molphy was an
innovator. She built on Dr Dunn’s firm
foundation and introduced the recovery
room and the respiratory unit, the
forerunner of the modern intensive care
unit. She managed even the most irritable
surgeons superbly telling them to get
on with the surgery for which they were
trained – and giving them a score on her
“grizzle graph”!
The input of three remarkable
women – Dr Dunn, Dr Robinson and
Dr Molphy – moulded anaesthetic
practice in Queensland. They were
exceptionally competent clinicians,
gentle and technically dextrous, ready
to be innovative with new drugs and
techniques. Importantly, they related well
to patients, surgeons, nurses and other
health professionals. So the precedent
was set – women doctors make good
anaesthetists! Appointment of women as
anaesthetic registrars was accepted.
On the other side of the river, the
first anaesthetics registrar at the Mater
was Dr Patricia O’Hara (Lady Brennan)
MBBS (Qld) 1950, in 1952, followed by
Dr Gavan Carroll MBBS (Qld) 1952, who
served in the position from 1954 to 1955.
He undertook all the teaching of medical
students until the appointment of Dr
Sheila Power MRCS LRCP (Sheffield) 1957,
DA 1959 as the first director, from 1963
to 1973.
The last two-part DA,RCP&S was
held in 1953 and it was replaced by the
two-part FFARCS. Both Dr Dunn and
Dr Molphy were admitted to FARCS in
1954. The Faculty of Anaesthetists of the
Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
was established in 1952 and Dr Dunn
and her colleagues, including Dr Averil
Earnshaw MBBS (Qld) 1950, DA 1953, were
disappointed to miss out on early offers
of foundation membership of the new
faculty although many did in fact
become foundation members.
It is apparent that many ex-servicemen
had learnt anaesthetics under field
conditions, working with surgical
colleagues who were now in private
practice and important in medical
politics. It is not surprising that prominent
ex-servicemen – Dr Arnold Robertson
MBBS (Syd) 1936, Dr Hec Willson, MBBS
(Syd) 1939, Dr Hugh Connolly MBBS (Qld)
1941, Dr Edward Muller MBBS (Qld) 1940,
and Dr John Woodley MRCS LRCP 1940
– were sponsored for admission to the
fledgling Faculty of Anaesthetists, RACS.
Dr Robertson and Dr Willson were
admitted as foundation Fellows and Dr
Connolly, Dr Dunn, Dr Win Fowles MBBS
(Syd) 1939, Dr Molphy, Dr Muller, Dr
Robinson and Dr Woodley, who graduated
from the University College Hospital
London, as foundation members2.
(continued next page)
From left: Dr Arnold Robertson; Dr Joan Dunn;
Professor Tess Cramond.
57
The early development
of anaesthesia practice
in Queensland
continued
Dr Robertson was the son of a
distinguished ear, nose and throat
surgeon and had a privileged education
– the Armidale School, St Andrew’s
College and the University of Sydney. He
had blues for rowing and rugby. Initially
a general practitioner in Queensland, he
drifted into full-time anaesthetics practice
because “he enjoyed it and was good at
it”. He was appointed visiting specialist at
the Mater and could be described as the
founder of the specialty in Queensland.
His war service was equally outstanding.
He retired with the rank of Lieutenant
Colonel, an OBE and several mentions in
dispatches. He served on the Council of
the British Medical Association and was
its secretary in 1948. He became state
representative to the federal executive of
the Australian Society of Anaesethetists,
and then its federal president in
1950-51, when he was convenor of the
anaesthetics section of the Australian
Medical Conference. In 1952 he decided to
migrate to the United Kingdom, where he
remained for 20 years.
Dr John Hector “Hec” Willson
enjoyed a long successful career as a
clinical anaesthetist, which included
a post as Special Lecturer in General
Anaesthesia, Faculty of Medicine and
Dentistry, University of Queensland, and
senior roles at the Mater and Brisbane
General hospitals as well as visiting
and consultant roles at Greenslopes
Repatriation Hospital and Yeronga
Military Hospital.
58
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
With the establishment of the regional
committees of the faculty in 1956, Dr
Willson, Dr Connolly and Dr Muller all
accepted a role for a short period, but the
driving forces were Dr Dunn, Dr Robinson
and Dr Molphy, later supported by
Dr Roger Bennett MBBS (Qld) 1945.
References:
1. Professor Cramond served as Dean of the
Faculty of Anaesthetists, RACS, from 1972
to 1974 and has published a number of
previous articles in the ANZCA Bulletin
about outstanding women anaesthetists,
including:
Obituary article - Dr Lillian Joan Dunn,
published in the March 2002 edition,
pp. 26-27
Obituary article – Dr Margaret Smith, March
2008 edition, pp. 16-17
Obituary article – Dr Agnes Mary Daly,
March 2010 edition, pp. 98-99
Obituary article – Dr Ruth Molphy, June 2011
edition, pp. 106-107
2. Three doctors were added to the list
of foundation members in June 1953:
Dr William Ackland-Horman of South
Australia, Dr Isabella McLelland of
Queensland, and Dr Stewart Peddie of
New Zealand. Please refer to the Register
of Fellows and Members of the Faculty of
Anaesthetists, Royal Australasian College of
Surgeons, page 43 [held in ANZCA Archives].
“The input of three
remarkable women
– Dr Dunn, Dr
Robinson and Dr
Molphy – moulded
anaesthetic practice
in Queensland.”
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59
ANZCA
in the news
Media coverage of ANZCA and the Faculty
of Pain Medicine has reached a potential
cumulative audience of nearly 10 million
people (9,452,995 people) over the past
few months, mainly due to media reports
generated from the annual scientific
meeting (ASM) in Perth.
Highlights of the ASM media coverage
included outgoing president Professor
Kate Leslie appearing on the new national
Channel 10 breakfast show promoting the
conference and talking about key topics,
and the new ANZCA President, Dr Lindy
Roberts, taking talkback calls on ABC 720
Perth’s Drive program with host Russell
Woolf.
Nine media releases were issued
promoting the ASM, the Faculty of Pain
Medicine Refresher Course Day and
the Joint Trauma and Anaesthesia and
Critical Care in Unusual and Transport
Environments (ACCUTE) Special Interest
Group meeting, which focused on mass
casualties and burns.
Topics that generated the largest
amount of media interest included Dr
Bob Large from the Auckland Regional
60
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Pain Service talking about the uses
of hypnosis in analgesia and pain
management; Professor Geoffrey Dobson
from James Cook University explaining
how he is developing a resuscitation
fluid for injured soldiers inspired by
hibernating hummingbirds; Associate
Professor Andrew Davidson from
Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital
talking about the increased risks of
anaesthesia for newborns; Professor
Jamie Sleigh from New Zealand’s Waikato
Hospital explaining a possible genetic
link to anaesthetic awareness; Dr Nolan
McDonnell from Perth’s King Edward
Memorial Hospital for Women outlining
increased complications associated
with extremely obese pregnant women;
Professor Amy Tsai from the University
of California, San Diego, explaining how
worms are being used to develop artificial
blood; and visiting US Professor Ruth
Landau talking about the “love hormone”
oxytocin.
Seventeen speakers from the
conference and associated meetings
were interviewed and ANZCA greatly
appreciates their contribution. Full
coverage from the meeting can be found
on the ANZCA website under “Events”.
Apart from the ASM, ANZCA also
contributed to a 4000-word feature on
chronic pain in the Weekend Australian
(circulation 300,000) quoting Associate
Professor Milton Cohen and Professor
Michael Cousins, and a pain medicine
career special in the MJA Careers section
featuring FPM spokesmen. Also in the
pain area, former FPM Dean, Dr David
Jones, was interviewed by a NZ wire
service about the need for New Zealand
to follow Australia’s lead on prescription
opioid tracking.
A media release promoting publication
of the Safety of Anaesthesia: A review of
anaesthesia-related mortality reporting
in Australia and New Zealand 2006-08
received coverage, as did one about the
Specialist Training Program funding
secured by ANZCA, which was widely
reported in regional and rural areas.
Meaghan Shaw
Media Manager, ANZCA
Since March this year,
ANZCA has generated…
Media releases distributed by ANZCA since March this year
$50,000 raised to save lives in developing countries (May 16)
Perth anaesthetist and pain expert new ANZCA president (May 16)
67 print stories
85 online stories
170 radio reports
44 television reports
Oxytocin: the love hormone’s new role in pain relief (May 14)
Primordial species could be the key to artificial blood (May 13)
Post-operative nausea and vomiting: is there a genetic link (May 12)
Hypnosis in pain management (May 11)
Revolutionary pain service leads the way on pain relief (May 10)
Hibernating hummingbirds inspire new resuscitation fluid (May 10)
More than 1300 anaesthetists to attend key meeting in Perth (May 8)
Anaesthesia remains extremely safe (April 23)
Boost for rural health with extra specialists trained (April 12)
ANZCA Bulletin out now: ANZCA turns 20; NZ urged to adopt prescription opioid
monitoring; Christchurch one year on – NZ release (March 30)
ANZCA Bulletin out now: ANZCA turns 20; training Mongolian skeptics;
NZ urged to adopt prescription opioid monitoring – Australian release (March 30)
14 - 17 November 2012
Auckland, New Zealand
www.iccva2012.com
Register now
www.iccva2012.com
New Zealand
Anaesthesia Annual
Scientific Meeting
combined with the
13th International
Congress of
Cardiothoracic and
Vascular Anesthesia
Hosted by
In association with
61
The Anaesthesia and
Pain Medicine Foundation
Dr Roderick Deane
appointed Knight
Companion
Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine
Foundation Board member Dr Roderick
Deane, who joined the board in October
2011, has received the honour of
appointment to the New Zealand Order of
Merit as a Knight Companion. Sir Roderick
was appointed by Her Majesty the Queen
on the occasion of the celebration of the
Queen’s Birthday and Diamond Jubilee
this year.
The significance of this honour is
reflected in the fact it is one of just four
Knight Companion appointments made
to the New Zealand Order of Merit in this
year’s Queens Birthday and Diamond
Jubilee Honours List.
Sir Roderick’s senior level
contributions to New Zealand in corporate
and business leadership, public sector
reform and central banking, particularly
through his leadership during the
currency crisis of 1984, are widely
recognised for having significantly
improved economic opportunities for
all New Zealanders.
62
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The appointment also reflects Sir
Roderick’s long-term commitment to
the arts and his provision of assistance
and leadership to charitable causes
and organisations. Along with his
participation on ANZCA’s Anaesthesia
and Pain Medicine Foundation Board,
Sir Roderick’s contributions have been a
strong example of personal community
service that helps to improve the quality
of life through expanding economic,
cultural, creative, and health and wellbeing opportunities.
Sir Roderick’s contribution to the board
of the Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine
Foundation comes at a time of renewed
effort to increase the foundation’s
fundraising, to increase support for
scientific research, overseas aid and
indigenous health. Improving support in
these areas is vital for delivering better
health outcomes to millions of New
Zealanders, Australians and people
in developing countries.
Give to the foundation’s research
funding appeal
As part of its fundraising program, the
foundation recently sent an appeal to
Fellows and the public in Australia
and, pending the response, is planning
a similar appeal in New Zealand. If
you haven’t responded already, please
consider sending a contribution. Previous
research by ANZCA Fellows has produced
results and further grants far outweigh
the small initial costs. Making a gift to
the foundation is one of the best and
most relevant philanthropic investments
available!
Thank you to all Fellows who have
already given generously. Gifts can be
made by mail or by calling Rob Packer
at the foundation on +61 3 8517 5306.
Robert Packer
General Manager,
Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine
Foundation, ANZCA
To donate, or for more information
on supporting the foundation,
please contact Robert Packer,
General Manager, Anaesthesia and
Pain Medicine Foundation on
+61 3 8517 5306 or email
[email protected].
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63
New Zealand news
Next meeting
New Zealand
National Committee
(NZNC) news
NZNC 2012-13 membership
The ANZCA Council has ratified the
following as the 2012-13 New Zealand
National Committee (NZNC): Dr Vanessa
Beavis, Dr Kerry Gunn, Dr Gary Hopgood,
Dr Indu Kapoor, Dr Geoff Long, Dr Sabine
Pecher, Dr Nigel Robertson, Dr Joe
Sherriff, Dr Malcolm Stuart, Dr Jennifer
Woods and Dr Sally Ure. The NZNC has
co-opted Dr Geoff Laney from Dunedin
Hospital to make up the 12 and Dr John
Smithells of Hamilton as the New Fellows’
Representative.
Since the nominations were declared,
Dr Vanessa Beavis (pictured above) has
been confirmed as having been elected to
the ANZCA Council. She will now sit on the
NZNC ex officio as a councillor so at the
June meeting the NZNC will consider coopting a further member in her stead.
Internal elections for officers will be
held at the June meeting.
Dr Vanessa Beavis has been appointed
chair of the NZ Panel for Vocational
Registration.
The NZNC meets on June 22-23, with
the 2011 ANZCA Media Award winner,
health reporter for TVNZ Lorelei Mason,
as the guest speaker. She will talk to the
committee about how the media works
and what they are looking for when putting
together a story.
This meeting is preceded on the Friday
by the NZNC’s annual joint meeting with
the New Zealand Society of Anaesthetists’
Executive.
ANZCA CEO Linda Sorrell and ANZCA
President Dr Lindy Roberts will attend
both meetings.
General news
Non-specialists practising
anaesthesia
The Medical Council of New Zealand
(MCNZ) has revised the recertification
requirements for general registrant doctors
who are not vocationally registered or in
a specialty training program. The MCNZ
has contracted with Bpac (Best Practice
Advocacy Centre – a joint venture between
some primary care organisations and the
University of Otago) to offer the required
recertification training program.
About 20 of these general registrants
are already registered in ANZCA’s CPD
program and in March the NZNC raised
with the MCNZ and Bpac the issue of how
to avoid these doctors having to undertake
two CPD programs. The MCNZ has since
advised that those registered in the ANZCA
CPD program as at March 14, 2012 will
not also have to undertake the Bpac
program, provided that within two years,
the ANZCA program is meeting all the
MCNZ’s administrative requirements for
general registrant recertification.
Registration for anaesthetic
technicians
The new registration regime for
anaesthetic technicians, bringing
them under the Health Practitioners
Competence Assurance Act 2003
(HPCAA), came into full effect as at
April 1. Now only those registered as
an anaesthetic technician can hold
themselves out to be anaesthetic
technicians or practising anaesthetic
technology. Their registration is
64
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
administered by the Medical Sciences
Council of New Zealand (MSCNZ), formerly
the Medical Laboratory Sciences Board
(MLSB). Under the new regime, health
practitioners who undertake anaesthetic
technology duties for a minimum of 384
hours in one year are expected to be
registered in the scope of practice of an
anaesthetic technician. While trainee
technicians do not need to be registered,
they are required to work under the
supervision of a registered anaesthetic
technician. As at May 31, 620 anaesthetic
technicians had registered.
Anaesthetic nurses without the
anaesthetic technician qualification but
relevant experience have the option of
registering as an anaesthetic technician
through a process that includes a
workplace-based assessment. Several are
going through this process. Alternatively,
such nurses may choose to continue
performing an anaesthetic nursing role
but then may not use the title ‘anaesthetic
technician’. The MSCNZ is considering
allowing nurses until 2014 to register
as an anaesthetic technician.
40th anniversary celebrations now
next February
Ongoing repairs to the University of Otago,
Christchurch’s main building (damaged
in the earthquakes) has seen a further
postponement of the 40th anniversary
celebrations of the Christchurch
Medical School. The damage forced out
researchers and students and repairs
have prompted postponement of the
celebrations twice – firstly from February
2012 and now from September 2012.
However, the building is being repaired
rapidly and on February 20-22, 2013
the University of Otago, Christchurch, will
celebrate both a return to these premises
and 40 years of research and teaching
in Christchurch. Those who have worked
or studied at the school are invited to
participate. Celebrations include an
anniversary dinner on February 22 and a
day of scientific sessions as well as tours
through refurbished laboratories. Register
your interest by completing an online form
accessible via a 40th anniversary button
on http://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch, or
email [email protected].
Council of Medical Colleges (CMC)
At its March meeting, it was agreed
that the Council of Medical Colleges
(CMC) would continue with its enlarged
secretariat, which will involve a 36 per
cent increase in subscriptions phased
in over two years. A CMC website is
being developed to provide a conduit
for information sharing and to progress
matters between meetings.
At the May meeting, Professor Alan
Merry, as Chair of New Zealand’s Health
Quality & Safety Commission, and Dr
Leona Wilson, as Chair of the Perioperative
Mortality Review Committee (POMRC),
each gave updates on the work of the
HQSC and POMRC, and outlined how
colleges can help with this work,
especially disseminating information arising
from their reports.
HWNZ Executive Chair Professor Des
Gorman (pictured above) spoke to the
group about health workforce issues, noting
that a shortage of nurses is a larger and
more pressing problem than the shortage
of doctors.
Professor Gorman said HWNZ was
focusing on ways of improving what
already exists, for example productivity
improvements, addressing mal-distribution,
and looking at the impact of models of
care on the demand for doctors and other
healthcare practitioners. The best mix of
generalist and specialist skills remains
on the HWNZ agenda, as does the
development of a ‘flexible, redeployable
workforce”. A document on prioritisation
of funding for medical disciplines has been
released to district health boards and
Professor Gorman said it would be sent to
colleges in the near future.
Anaesthesia research
ARGONZ (Anaesthetic Research Group of
New Zealand) is an informal association for
New Zealand anaesthetists and trainees
interested in furthering scientific and
clinical research in anaesthesia. The group
would like to collect information about
current and planned research so that it
can be made available to the anaesthesia
community in case others can usefully
contribute to that research. ANZCA has
agreed to assist with this. As a first step,
anyone who has a current research project
(or an idea for a future project) is asked to
email ANZCA’s New Zealand office (anzca@
anzca.org.nz) with the title of their research
and a few lines explaining where they are
up to and any difficulties they face.
NZ government news
More operating theatres for
Middlemore Hospital
The Counties Manukau District Health
Board, which administers Middlemore
Hospital in South Auckland (pictured
above), has received government approval
for three new operating theatres and
the replacement of 11 existing aged
theatres. The new clinical services block
will also include a 42-bed assessment and
planning unit, an 18-bed high dependency
unit, and replace the clinical sterile supply
department.
New trauma network
The government has established a Major
Trauma National Clinical Network to
develop a national, strategic approach to
the provision of major trauma services,
from pre-hospital emergency care to
rehabilitation and injury prevention
services, and to co-ordinate major trauma
service improvements.
The network’s clinical leader is surgeon
Mr Ian Civil, Director of Surgery at the
Auckland District Health Board and the
immediate past president of the Royal
Australasian College of Surgeons (pictured
above).
Faster broadband for rural hospitals
Under the second phase of rural
broadband initiative contracts, 37
rural hospitals, including Thames and
Taumarunui, as well as 10 health centres,
will receive ultra-fast broadband. The
faster links will allow rural staff to take
part in training sessions being run in
urban centres and enable clinicians to
view immediately electronic information
recorded across the country, rather than
having to wait for reports or films to
be sent.
Tobacco plain packaging
Cabinet has agreed in principle to
introduce plain packaging for tobacco
products in alignment with Australia.
However, this is subject to the outcome
of a public consultation process to be
undertaken later this year.
65
The Australian Society of Anaesthetists invites you to join
them at their 71st National Scientific Congress in Hobart
from 29 September to 2 October 2012
For further
further information
information please
please visit
visit www.asa2012.com
www.asa2012.com
For
Anaesthesia
and Intensive Care
Want to
to access
access the
the latest
latest research
research and
and
Want
developments in
in Australasian
Australasian anaesthesia?
anaesthesia?
developments
Read original
original papers,
papers, reviews,
reviews, case
case reports,
reports,
Read
correspondence and
and more!
more!
correspondence
For more
more information
information or
or to
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subscribe
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website.
please
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66
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
www.aaic.net.au
People and events
Airway Management SIG Meeting
The third Airway Management SIG Meeting was held at the Mantra
Erskine Beach Resort in Lorne, Victoria from March 9-11. The
theme of the meeting was “Everything airways: Airway problems
outside the OT” and the international guest speakers were
Dr Josef Holzki (Germany) and Dr Paul Phrampus (US). The
convenor was Dr Chris Acott and the co-convenors were Dr Zoe
Lagana and Dr Louisa Heard. More than 250 delegates attended
lecture sessions and workshops with 20 companies from the
healthcare industry supporting the meeting. The next Airway
Management SIG meeting will be held in 2014.
Trauma & ACCuTE Special
Interest Group Conference
The joint one day Trauma and Anaesthesia and Critical Care in
Unusual and Transport Environments (ACCUTE) SIG Meeting
was held at the Parmelia Hilton Perth on Friday May 11, 2012.
The meeting was well attended and covered a wide variety of
topics under the general theme of “Mass casualty- burns”. Guest
speakers included Professor Fiona Wood, Mr John Kelleher,
Professor Geoffrey Dobson and Lieutenant Colonel Michael Reade.
The next meeting of the Trauma SIG will be held in conjunction with
the Airway Management SIG in Melbourne, June 2013.
Associate Professor John Moloney
Dr Allan MacKillop
Joint Convenors
Obstetric Anaesthesia Special
Interest Group meeting
The 3rd Quadrennial Obstetric Anaesthesia Special Interest
Group meeting was held at the Quay West Resort, Bunker
Bay, following the 2012 ANZCA Annual Scientific Meeting.
The location was on the edge of the renowned Margaret River
Wine region and gave the delegates the opportunity to unwind
after the ASM.
The theme of the meeting was ‘high risk obstetric
anaesthesia’ and speakers included well-known anaesthetists
from around Australia and New Zealand. Invited speakers
included Dr Luke Torre (intensivist), Dr Nicole Staples
(haematologist), Dr Andrew Miller (lawyer and anaesthetist)
and Professor Yee Leung (gynaeoncologist). The program
included a number of interactive sessions, workshops and
PBLDs, which included practical tips and tricks for delegates.
There was a welcome reception at the resort and a wine
tour, which visited well-known vineyards in the Margaret River.
The social program also included a conference dinner at the
Wise Vineyard.
Meeting delegates raised more than $1000 for the Lifebox
project through a series of raffles supported by the sponsors,
adding to the success of this initiative from the ASM.
The meeting attracted 120 delegates and six healthcare
industry representatives, all of whom took away new ideas and
new friends and colleagues.
Thank you to all the delegates, speakers and workshop and
PBLD facilitators for attending and contributing to the success
of the meeting, a number of whom travelled a long way. A
special thank you to Kirsty O’Connor from ANZCA, for her help
with organising the meeting.
Dr Nolan McDonnell
Convener
Above clockwise from top left: Dr Paul Phrampus (US) and Dr Josef
Holzki (Germany); Dr Andrew Heard, Dr Pierre Bradley and Dr Richard
Semenov; Delegates at the 3rd Quadrennial Obstetric Anaesthesia
Special Interest Group meeting; Professor Fiona Wood and Dr Kylie
Hall; Lieutenant Colonel Michael Reade and Co-Convenor Associate
Professor John Moloney.
67
Australian news
Queensland
Queensland Regional Report
Activity in Queensland continues at a high level and in the last
three months has included:
•Aweek-longfinalexampreparationcourse.
•Primaryandfinalpracticevivasessions.
•Writtenandclinicalexams.
•Twoprimarylectures.
•Twowebinarsandrecordingoffourpodcasts.
•Athree-dayfoundationteachercourse.
•Thedirectorsofanaestheticsmeeting.
•The15thAnnualRegistrars’meeting.
Once again, the Queensland Regional Committee would like
to acknowledge the work of the dedicated and capable course
convenors, lecturers and mock examiners who have offered
trainees these valuable learning opportunities.
Committees have been elected for 2012-14. Office bearers
will be advised in the next edition of the ANZCA Bulletin.
The selection and allocation process for 2013 hospital
rotations has been reviewed and applications for placements
closed June 4. Assessment is in full swing.
Opposite page from left: Adjudicators Dr Helmut Schoengen and Dr Brian
Lewer; Dr Peter Moran and the formal projects officer for Queensland,
Dr Kerstin Wyssusek; Dr Yasmin Whately receiving the Tess Crammond
Award from Professor Tess Crammond; Formal project presenters Dr
Conrad Macrokanis and Dr Satnam Solanki; Adjudicators Dr Helmut
Schoengen, Dr Sanjiv Sawhney and Dr Brain Lewer; Dr David Goldsmith
receiving the lucky draw prize from Stefan Dooney of Pert & Associates;
Brian Pert of Pert & Associates with Dr Michael Steyn; Dr Chris Turnbull,
Dr Robert Miskeljin and Dr Andrew Wilke; Dr Conrad Macrokanis
receiving the Axxon Health Award from Dr Patrick See.
68
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
OPAL: Obstetrics,
Paediatrics and Law
Dr Ben van der Griend is the keynote speaker
at the Queensland combined ANZCA/Australian
Society of Anaesthetists annual conference
being held on Saturday July 7. Dr van der
Griend is a paediatric anaesthetist at the
Christchurch Hospital. He has a strong interest in training and
has set up a successful education program called PAT:CH
– Paediatric Anaesthesia Teaching: Christchurch.
Dr van der Griend’s presentation, “Is it safe to anaesthetise
children?”, will address the likelihood of a child dying or being
harmed by anaesthesia and whether anaesthesia damages
the developing brain.
The full conference program is available at on ANZCA’s
Queensland regional office website: http://qld.anzca.edu.au.
The 36th annual Queensland combined ANZCA/Australian Society
of Anaesthetists conference focuses on obstetric and paediatric
anaesthesia, as well as medico-legal principles relevant for
anaesthetists. The day will comprise a series of lectures and a
medico-legal panel discussion in the morning, followed by an
ultrasound workshop, a paediatric resuscitation workshop and
problem-based learning discussions in the afternoon.
Workshop 1 is led by Dr Phil Cowlishaw and will focus on ultrasound
for obstetric anaesthesia. Workshop 2 is led by Dr Amanda Harvey and
offers an update in paediatric resuscitation. This workshop will focus on
the current paediatric advanced life support guidelines. The workshop
will cover changes to the Australian Resuscitation Council guidelines
published in 2010, and paediatric anaesthetic emergencies including
anaphylaxis and local anaesthetic toxicity.
Problem-based learning discussions will include: ‘The headache of
providing safe, effective labour analgesia’ and ‘Paediatrics: the sniffling
snorer’.
Program and registration details are available on the ANZCA website
Queensland home page. We hope you join us at this significant
Queensland event.
We thank our conference sponsors for their support:
Avant, MDA National, Sonosite, AstraZeneca,
Abbott Australia, MSD, Pfizer, Medfin, Ferring Pharmaceuticals,
Hospira, LMA PacMed, Ultimate Medical, B Braun.
15th Annual Queensland
Registrars’ Meeting
The registrars’ scientific meeting for the presentation of
completed formal projects was held at the West End premises
of ANZCA’s Queensland office on Saturday April 28. This is a key
annual event in the training of anaesthetists and offers registrars
the opportunity to present their original research for their Formal
Project at a meeting of their peers.
The standard of presentations was high and the winner, Dr
Yasmin Whately, was commended by the adjudicators for the
significant development to her skills, required to collect and
analyse the pathology data needed to examine the contractile
function of cardiac tissue. Other prize winners included Dr
Conrad Macrokanis, who received the Axxon Health Award for
work on irukandji syndrome and Dr Brett Segal, who received the
Australian Society of Anaesthetists Chairman’s Choice Award for
his analysis of single-shot anaesthesia.
Professor Tess Crammond presented Dr Whately with first
prize, the Tess Crammond Award, and provided some sage words
of encouragement and advice for trainees.
We thank our major sponsor, Pert & Associates, who made a
strong case for the importance of sound financial management
for consultants.
69
Australian news
continued
Queensland continued
Foundation Teacher’s Course
A Foundation Teacher’s Course was held at the West End
premises of ANZCA on April 18-20. Maurice Hennessey
facilitated the course, assisted by Dr Kersi Taraporewalla,
our resident educator of international specialist graduates.
A total of 16 supervisors attended and were put to the test
through lively discussions and problem-based learning activities.
The main focus of these discussions and activities was how
to give relevant feedback that enhances the acquisition of
knowledge and skills, particularly in relation to the soon to be
implemented workplace-based assessments (WBAs).
The course also provided participants with an opportunity to
engage with colleagues who were able to offer different views
and opinions on the practice of assessment.
70
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Clockwise from top left: Dr Rudolf van der Westhhuizen sharing his
experience with newly appointed supervisor Dr Aled Hapgood; ANZCA’s
Maurice Hennessey observes the activities during a session on delivering
training at the Queensland Foundation Teacher’s Course; Dr Maree
Burke, Dr Julie Sherwin and Dr David Law practice the art of giving
feedback; Dr Helen Davies with Dr Tim Scholz at the Queensland
Foundation Teacher’s Course.
South Australia and Northern Territory
Current medico legal
anaesthetic controversies
On April 3, the SA & NT Continuing Medical Education Committee
held “Current medico legal anaesthetic controversies” presented
by Dr Andrew Miller. Dr Miller was an excellent speaker and
received very positive feedback from the 40 or so attendees. Hot
topics included information on mandatory reporting, anaesthetic
case studies, epidural disaster case and the proposed National
Disability Scheme. This initiated much discussion among the
attendees and many stayed after the presentation to network
and discuss.
Above clockwise from top left: Dr Douglas Fahlbusch, Helena Manis,
Dr Andrew Miller and Megan Sheldon; Dr Lynne Rainey and Dr John
Hughes; Speaker Dr Andrew Miller; WCH Queen Vic Theatre.
South Australia and Northern Territory
Combined ANZCA/ASA South
Australian & Northern Territory ASM
November 3
Theme: “Anaesthesia and the Failing Organ”
Venue: The Sanctuary, Adelaide Zoo
Contact: Kerri Thomas
Ph: +61 8 8239 2822
Email: [email protected]
71
Australian news
continued
Western Australia
News from Perth
A medical careers expo was held on March 27 at the Burswood
on Swan. The aim of the expo was to provide interns, residents,
service registrars, international medical graduates and senior
medical students with information regarding vocational training
programs and career pathways. The evening was very busy
and was attended by more than 200 junior doctors and senior
medical students. Thank you to Dr Suzanne Myles, Dr Michael
Veltman, Dr Joel Adams, Dr Jim Miller, Dr Bree Maciejewski and
Dr Melissa Haque who helped out with inquiries regarding the
anaesthetic training program in WA.
A supervisors of training workshop was held on the evening
of April 26 at the WA regional office. The workshop focused on
the workplace-based assessments (WBAs), which form part
of the revised curriculum, and was presented by the WA WBA
champions Dr Paul Kwei and Dr Ange Lee. Dr Jodi Graham also
assisted with the workshop. Supervisors of training will now
return to their departments and start teaching and recruiting
assessors.
On May 11, the WA regional office hosted an ANZCA
Teachers Course-Foundation level. The course was attended by
11 Fellows, some of whom were in Perth to attend the annual
scientific meeting, which was held at the Perth Convention and
Exhibition Centre from May 12 to 16. Maurice Hennessy from
the ANZCA Education Development Unit convened the course
and covered the following areas: planning effective teaching
and learning, teaching in context and effective feedback. The
feedback from the course was very positive.
The ANZCA WA annual general meeting was held at the Perth
Convention and Exhibition Centre on May 14. Thank you to those
who attended.
On the evening of May 14, Oliver Jones, ANZCA General
Manager, Education Development, gave a presentation at the
WA regional office about the transition of existing trainees to the
new curriculum in 2013. About 25 WA trainees attended. WA’s
regional education officer, Dr Jodi Graham, was also on hand to
answer questions. Thank you Oliver and Jodi.
72
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Above clockwise from top left: ANZCA General Manager, Education
Development Oliver Jones and WA Trainees; Attendees at the WA ANZCA
Teachers Workshop; Maurice Hennessey and attendees at the workshop.
Tasmania
Tasmanian Joint ANZCA/ASA
Meeting in 2013
The 2013 Tasmanian Joint ANZCA/ASA Meeting will be held from
February 22-23 at The Tramsheds Function Centre, Launceston.
For further enquiries, please contact: [email protected]
Australian Capital Territory
WBA workshop
The ACT regional office held a workplace-based assessment
workshop on June 9, which was attended by delegates from
hospitals in the ACT, Dubbo and Wagga Wagga.
As well as providing a valuable opportunity to learn about the
assessment tools required as part of the new ANZCA curriculum,
the workshop gave participants a welcome opportunity to meet
with colleagues.
Preparations are underway for a difficult airways workshop
to be held at the Hyatt Hotel, Canberra, on August 4.
Further information and registration forms will be available
on the ACT website soon.
New South Wales
Part Zero: An Induction to
Anaesthesia takes off
The 2012 Part Zero: An Induction to Anaesthesia course on
March 10 proved a popular way to spend a quiet Saturday
afternoon. Despite clear sunny skies outside, more than 100
interns, residents and registrars flocked to the Royal Prince
Alfred’s Education Centre to learn more about the exciting
life of an anaesthetic registrar.
After a welcome by the NSW Regional Trainee Committee, the
day kicked off with doctors Katherine Jeffrey, Simon Martel and
Anand Pudipeddi reminding us what being an anaesthetic trainee
is all about, and the various prestigious organisations a budding
anaesthetic trainee can join. This was followed by Dr Pat Farrell
covering “What is the College?”, Dr Simon Martel highlighting
the structure of training and the new ANZCA curriculum and Dr
Michael Stone’s famous exam tricks and tips lecture.
Afternoon tea was followed by a presentation by Dr Michael
Bonning, of Beyondblue, who covered the topic of mental health
and happiness. Dr Greg Downey discussed mentorship and Dr
Ken Harrison, of Careflight, gave a guide to career choice (as well
as his family photo album!) Dr Greg Knoblanche rounded off the
afternoon with his presentation on the ins and outs of medicolegal defence.
Despite squeezing a lifetime’s worth of information into five
hours, morale remained high thanks to the entertaining and
informative lectures. The day was rounded off with a question
and answer session followed by drinks at the local. Thanks go to
all the presenters, the 2011 Regional Trainee Committee, and
to Tina Papadopoulos and Warren O’Harae from the NSW ANZCA
office for all their work behind the scenes.
73
Australian news
continued
New South Wales
NSW Regional Committee
There is a significant and exciting “changing of guard” at the NSW
Regional Committee this year. Six members are leaving
the committee, including three former chairs, Jo Sutherland,
Michael Amos and Richard Halliwell.
I thank these three dedicated people, who have more than 30
years of experience at regional committee level. They have given
their time and experience to the College in many roles on the
committee.
Also leaving is Tracey Tay, who has made a great contribution
to the committee including as regional educational officer. Thanks
also to Michael Rose and Kar Soon Lim, who have contributed
particularly with formal projects and education over the past four
years. I sincerely thank all these retiring members of the state
committee for all the excellent work they have done.
This year presents the exciting challenge of the revised
ANZCA curriculum. The NSW region also has a large number
of hospital accreditation inspections ahead.
To help lighten the load, I welcome Andrew Armstrong, Michelle
Moyle, Nicole Phillips, Michael Stone, Suyin Tan, Emily Wilcox to
the committee. Please feel free to speak to any members of the
committee about any issues or concerns.
Simon Martel and Carl D’Souza will represent the new Fellows,
while we welcome Michael Wirth as Chair of the NSW Trainee
Committee. Thanks to Lewis Holford who has handed over to
Gavin Patullo representing the Faculty of Pain Medicine on the
committee.
The NSW Regional Committee as always has the support of
the NSW representatives at the ANZCA Council, Frank Moloney,
Patrick Farrell and Michelle Mulligan, and this continues.
The committee welcomes the continued input of Carmel
McInerney (ACT) and Michael Farr (Australian Society of
Anaesthetists).
To conclude, ANZCA Curriculum Revision 2013 presents an
exciting change to education within the College and this, combined
with the usual workforce and accreditation requirements, will
present some challenges to the new NSW Regional Committee.
I look forward to the contributions of all members as I thank
those who have contributed greatly in the past.
Dr Greg O’Sullivan, Director
Anaesthetic Department
St Vincent’s Hospital
74
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Australian Medical Association
Careers Day
Members of the ANZCA NSW Regional Committee and NSW
Trainee Committee attended the NSW Australian Medical
Association Careers Day on May 5 at Sydney Olympic Park.
The day was designed to introduce the various career options
available to junior doctors. Approximately 300 junior doctors and
medical students attended the event.
The NSW ANZCA table was well attended and questions
ranged from “How do I become an anaesthetist?” to “How do
I pass the primary exam?” and “How do I get a trainee job?”.
There were also many questions about the curriculum change
and how it will affect training.
A highlight of the day was a retrieval demonstration by
Careflight, who flew in to extricate an injured child from a mockup playground accident. This generated great interest among
attendees when it was revealed that anaesthetists are part of
the retrieval team.
Many thanks to NSW ANZCA staff and doctors who gave up
their Saturday to talk about anaesthetics.
Above clockwise from top left: Dr Richard Halliwell and Dr Greg O’Sullivan;
Mock retrieval at the Australian Medical Association Careers Day; The
ANZCA table.
Anatomy for Anaesthetists
NSW Part II Refresher Course
Saturday 24 November 2012
The University of Sydney
For more information please contact
NSW ACE Ph: +61 2 9966 9085 Fax: +61 2 9966 9087
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.nsw.anzca.edu.au/events
The NSW Regional Committee again conducted a very successful
Part II Refresher Course in Anaesthesia at Royal Prince Alfred
Hospital from February 20 to March 2.
The course enabled candidates sitting for the final fellowship
examinations a greater understanding of anaesthesia. It included
seminars, panel sessions, demonstrations, lecturers and
informal tutorial. A highlight on the last day of the course was
the anatomical workshop held at Department of Anatomy and
Histology, University of Sydney, which enlists the help of seven
lecturers in a hands-on workshop.
A special thanks to all the speakers who devoted a huge
amount of time and effort in assisting the candidates to prepare
for their final examinations, and especially to Dr Tim McCulloch
and Associate Professor Gregory Knoblanche.
New South Wales
NSW REGIONAL COMMITTEE
NEW SOUTH WALES SECTION
AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND
COLLEGE OF ANAESTHETISTS
THE AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY
OF ANAESTHETISTS
Primary refresher course
in anaesthesia
The course is a full-time revision course, run on a lecture/tutorial basis
and is suitable for candidates presenting for their primary examination
in the first part of 2013. The first week will cover mainly physiology
topics and the second week pharmacology topics.
Date:
Monday October 15 – Friday October 19 (physiology)
Monday October 22 – Friday October 26 (pharmacology)
Venue:
ANAESTHESIA CONTINUING
EDUCATION COORDINATING
COMMITTEE
AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND
COLLEGE OF ANAESTHETISTS
NEW SOUTH WALES SECTION
THE AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY
OF ANAESTHETISTS
Fee:
CONTINUING EDUCATION Seminar No 78
See one, Do one, Teach one
h ow
to
G aiN
aNd
Large Conference Room, Kerry Packer Education Centre
Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Missenden Road
Camperdown NSW 2050
m aiNtaiN S killS
3 - 4 November 2012, Shoal bay
www.nsw.anzca.edu.au/events1/2
A$880 (incl gst) (two weeks)
A$440 (incl gst) (one week)
A comprehensive set of supplementary notes, lectures notes
and USB will be given to each participant at the start of the course.
APPLICATIONS CLOSE on Friday September 28 (if not filled prior)
The number of participants for the course will be limited and late
applications will be considered only if vacancies exist.
For information contact: Tina Papadopoulos
ANZCA New South Wales Regional Committee
117 Alexander Street, Crows Nest NSW 2065
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +61 2 9966 9085 Fax: +61 2 9966 9087
page ad
75
Australian news
continued
Victoria
Victoria
Annual Victorian Registrars’
Scientific Meeting 2012
Friday November 9, 2012
ANZCA House
Melbourne 3004
Calling all trainees
Enhance your presentation skills
Draw attention to your research
Submit an abstract and be part of this annual event
Members of the ANZCA Trials Group will moderate the research
presentations
For information please contact:
Daphne Erler
Victorian Regional Coordinator
Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists
630 St Kilda Road
Melbourne VIC 3004
Victoria
Register and join us at the
33rd Annual Victorian ANZCA/ASA
combined CME Meeting
“The ultra Meeting”
Saturday July 28, 2012
Sofitel Melbourne on Collins
25 Collins Street, Melbourne
Registration
Fellows
Trainees
Retirees
Dinner
$330 including GST
$217 including GST
$110 including GST
$120 including GST
Registration form and flyer at: www.vic.anzca.edu.au/events
For information please contact:
Daphne Erler
Victorian Regional Coordinator
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: +61 3 8517 5313
Full-time Primary FANZCA Course
Our Course Coordinator, Minh Lam, has efficiently organised
and run the Victorian Full-time Primary FANZCA Course from
May 28 to June 8 at which we had a record attendance of 60
candidates.
As there was a change in some lecturers, the program was
challenging but resulted in a very successful course.
I thank our participating lecturers and the mock viva
examiners, both new and established, whose assistance and
cooperation we could not do without. Their efforts are greatly
appreciated and we look forward to their continued input.
As convenor, I thank the College for the use of their facilities
and the staff for their cooperation and understanding in the
event that the course caused any inconvenience or disturbance.
Dr Adam Skinner
Primary FANZCA Course Convenor
From top: Statistics lecturer Dr Craig Noonan (second from left) with
trainees; Course convenor Dr Adam Skinner (second from left) with
trainees.
76
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
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77
ANZCA Council
meeting report
April 2012
Report following the Council meeting
of the Australian and New Zealand
College of Anaesthetists held on
April 21, 2012
Death of Fellows
Council noted with regret the death
of the following Fellows:
• Dr Harold John White (NSW)
FANZCA 1992, FFARACS 1967
• Dr Maurice John Brookes (NSW)
FANZCA 1992, FFARACS 1968
• Dr Ronald Ernest Thiel (Qld)
FANZCA 1992, FFARACS 1966
College honours and awards
• Dr Leona Wilson has been appointed
chair of the New Zealand Perioperative
Mortality Review Committee.
• Dr Andrew Kenneth Bacon has been
awarded the Ambulance Service Medal
(ASM), Victorian Ambulance Service,
in the 2012 Australia Day Honours List.
Education and Training
ANZCA curriculum project: Council
approved in principle a preliminary draft
of the ANZCA Handbook for Training
and Accreditation, which will now be
circulated for wider consultation. A
further draft of Regulation 37 “Training
in anaesthesia leading to FANZCA, and
accreditation of facilities to deliver this
curriculum” was also approved. Copies of
both documents will be presented to June
meetings of the Education and Training
Committee and the council for approval.
Training program in Hong Kong,
Malaysia and Singapore: In light of
the achievement of the original purpose
for training in Hong Kong, Malaysia
and Singapore being fulfilled with
the development of internationally
recognised training programs and
qualifications in each country, the ANZCA
Council decided not to implement the 2013
curriculum in Hong Kong, Malaysia and
Singapore.
Trainees registered on April 21, 2012,
will be supported to complete the current
training program within a reasonable
timeframe, with provisions for these
trainees to be developed in consultation
with the regional training committees
of Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.
Support for and privileges of existing
Fellows will continue. The council will
work with anaesthesia leaders in Hong
78
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Kong, Singapore and Malaysia to shape
a new collaboration that builds on our
shared history and supports our shared
objectives over coming decades. More
information is available as a link from
the front page of the College website.
EMAC Course Subcommittee: Council
approved the formation of an EMAC
Course Subcommittee, which will
oversee the accreditation of simulation
centres for EMAC and provide advice to
the Education and Training Committee
and the ANZCA Council on trainee
access to EMAC courses. In line with this
decision, terms of reference have been
developed for the subcommittee and
Regulation 2 will be amended to reflect
the disbandment of the Courses
Working Group.
Training Accreditation Inspectors:
Council supported the development of
a formal process for the appointment of
training accreditation inspectors who
are not councillors or members of the
Training Accreditation Committee. They
will be appointed for three-year terms
and eligible for re-appointment three
times (a maximum of 12 years). The
process for appointments is outlined in
the terms of reference for ANZCA Training
Accreditation Inspectors.
Training Accreditation Committee
(TAC) 2013 Working Group: Council
approved the establishment of an
advisory body to review the changes and
the implications for accreditation and to
make recommendations to the Training
Accreditation Committee about necessary
changes. Terms of reference have been
developed to assist in this process.
Time limits for recognition of
outstanding AVT forms: A time limit of
May 31, 2012 has been placed on receipt
of outstanding approved vocational
training forms for training completed
in 2009 or before. Trainees who do not
submit relevant documentation by this
date will lose accredited time for the
relevant training terms. This is being
communicated to individual trainees
and their supervisors of training.
Dr Lisa Akelisi-Yockopua was supported
to attend the 2012 ASM in Perth from the
ANZCA scholarship fund.
Papua New Guinea: ANZCA will provide
the best medical student with a certificate
and $100, the best diploma of anaesthesia
with a certificate and $400, and the best
MMed student with the Professor Garry
Phillips Prize in the form of a medal
and $500.
Fellowship Affairs
New Fellows Conference: Council
approved the following resolutions:
(a) That new Fellows who attend the
New Fellows Conference are eligible
within five years of fellowship.
(b) New Fellows will receive financial
support to present at one annual
scientific meeting only.
(c) That the above recommendations are
implemented from 2013 onwards.
(d) That new Fellow representatives
will be required to report back to
their respective regional/national
committees, by writing a report on
the New Fellows Conference and
presenting it to the regional or
national committee.
Annual scientific meetings
2018 ASM: Canberra will host the 2018
Annual Scientific Meeting, to take place
at the National Convention Centre from
Friday May 4 to Wednesday May 9, 2018.
2014 ASM: Due to the redevelopment of
the Sydney Convention Centre, the 2014
ASM will be relocated to Singapore and
will be a co-located meeting with the
Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
Annual Scientific Congress from Monday
May 5 to Friday May 9, 2014. Dr Nicole
Phillips will be the convenor of the 2014
Annual Scientific Meeting and Dr Timothy
McCulloch the scientific convenor.
Internal Affairs
Appointment of external
representatives: Council approved the
following appointments:
• Dr Rowan Thomas – ANZCA
representative to the Standards
Australia IT-014-13 Clinical Decision
Support Sub-Committee.
• Dr Phoebe Mainland – ANZCA
representative to the Standards
Australia mirror committee for ISO
TC 210 (Quality Management and
corresponding general aspects for
medical devices).
• Professor Kate Leslie – Health Workforce
Australia – Expert reference group
for the expanding workforce scope
initiative: advanced practitioners in
endoscopy nursing
Indigenous Health Committee: In
seeking to determine and monitor the
numbers of indigenous trainees and
Fellows in Australia and New Zealand and
in line with a request from the Committee
of Presidents of Medical Colleges
Indigenous Subcommittee, questions
derived from the census of both Australia
and New Zealand will be included in the
training application and subscription
notices.
Terms of reference: Council approved
the following terms of reference for
Fellows and trainees occupying
leadership roles within ANZCA: President;
vice-president; honorary treasurer;
councillors; committee, subcommittee
and working group chairs; committee,
subcommittee and working group
members; chair of examinations; final
and primary examiners; Training
Accreditation Committee inspectors;
international medical graduate specialist
panel members; international medical
graduate specialist workplace-based
assessment assessors; and the annual
scientific meeting officer. Copies of these
documents will be made available on
the ANZCA website shortly.
Australian federal not-for-profit
sector reform: The CEO provided the
ANZCA Council information about
the establishment of an independent
regulator, the Australian Charities and
Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), a new
definition of ‘charity’ and other changes.
The college will ensure it is prepared for
these changes.
Regulations: Amendments have been
made as follows with copies to be made
available on the ANZCA website shortly:
• Regulation 2 – ‘Committees of the
Council’ to include the EMAC Course
Subcommittee and the Anaesthesia and
Pain Medicine Foundation (regulation
34 was withdrawn).
• Regulation 4 – ‘Examination
Subcommittees and Courts’ (this
regulation will be withdrawn from the
start of the 2013 Hospital Employment
Year, with content to be distributed to
regulations 2 and 37 and the terms of
reference).
• Regulation 6.4 – ‘Admission to
Fellowship by Assessment’.
• Regulation 30 – ‘Reconsideration and
Review’ to include a time limit of 3
months from the date of the decision
to applications for reconsideration
and review.
Quality and Safety
Recategorisation of ‘T’ documents
to ‘PS’ documents
During the work of the TE-Document
Development Group, it became evident
that the College’s professional documents
could be rationalised by reclassifying
all documents in the “technical (“T”)”
category as “professional standards
(“PS”)”. The proposed change in
categorisation would apply to:
• T01 Recommendations on Minimum
Facilities for Safe Administration of
Anaesthesia in Operating Suites and
Other Anaesthetising Locations.
• T03 Minimum Safety Requirements
for Anaesthetic Machines for Clinical
Practice.
• T04 Guidelines on Equipment to
Manage a Difficult Airway During
Anaesthesia.
PS42 Recommendations for Staffing
of Departments of Anaesthesia
A document development group will be
established to review the document and
develop an accompanying background
paper. The following individuals have
been appointed to the group: Dr Mark
Reeves (lead; Tas), Dr Vanessa Beavis
(NZ), Dr Kerry Brandis (Qld), Dr Peter
Roessler (Vic) and Associate Professor
Daryl Williams (Vic).
individuals have been appointed to
the document development group: Dr
Rod Mitchell (lead; SA), Dr Justin Burke
(Vic), Dr Alison Corbett (WA Regional
Committee Vice-Chair), Dr Vaughan
Laurenson (NZ) and Dr Peter Roessler
(Director of Professional Affairs).
Retiring Councillors
This was the last council meeting for
Councillor Dr Leona Wilson, the Faculty
of Pain Medicine Dean Dr David Jones,
and New Fellow Councillor Dr Justin
Burke. The president thanked them for
their contributions and wished them
well for their future endeavours.
Dr Roberts acknowledged the many
significant contributions made by
Professor Leslie as the ANZCA president
and wished her well for the future.
Professor Leslie will remain on the
ANZCA Council for the next two years
as a councillor.
Dr Lindy Roberts will take office as the
ANZCA President from the annual general
meeting to be held at the Perth ASM in
May 2012.
Professor Kate Leslie
President
Dr Lindy Roberts
Vice-President
TE09 Guidelines on Quality Assurance
in Anaesthesia
A document development group will
be established to review the TE09 and,
develop it into a professional standard
and accompanied by a background paper.
The Quality and Safety Committee will
put forward to council the document
development group’s composition for
approval.
PS16 Statement on the Standards of
Practice of a Specialist Anaesthetist
and TE06 Guidelines on the Duties of
an Anaesthetist
A document development group will
be established to amalgamate both
documents into one professional
standard and prepare an accompanying
background paper. The following
79
Faculty of Pain Medicine
Dean’s message
It is a time of major change at Faculty of
Pain Medicine Board, with the retirements
of five board members, three of whom
have served the maximum 12 years of
board service allowable under the Faculty
regulations.
Dr Carolyn Arnold (2006-12) and Dr Guy
Bashford (2009-2012) are retiring board
members not standing for re-election. They
have both been significant contributors
as chairs of Training Unit Accreditation
Committee and Continuous Professional
Development Committee respectively, as
well as being major contributors to several
Faculty committees and initiatives. The
demands on board members can at times be
onerous and the significant contributions
of Drs Arnold and Bashford are very much
appreciated.
In 1994, discussions began between
leading thinkers of five participating
medical colleges. These discussions
ultimately resulted in the formation of
the Faculty of Pain Medicine in 1998. An
interim board was formed and later, in the
year 2000, the first annual general meeting
of the Faculty was held and the first board
elected. Three members of that initial
visionary group have continued to serve
on the Faculty’s board until May this year.
Associate Professor Leigh Atkinson (dean
2002-04), Dr Penny Briscoe (dean 2008-10)
and Dr David Jones (dean 2010-12) have
been instrumental in the foundation and
refinement of not only the Regulations and
processes of the Faculty, but the spirit and
culture that has delivered our identity and
success. They have nurtured their “baby”
through to its teenage years and now, like
all good parents, must stand aside, watch
and worry as the Faculty forges its own
ongoing, destiny.
On behalf of the Faculty, I thank all five
retiring board members for their invaluable
contributions and wish them all the best
the future.
80
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The imminent challenge to the incoming
board this year is to ensure a smooth
changing of the guard. The foundations
we have inherited are solid and the future
looks bright.
Associate Professor Milton Cohen
(Faculty dean 2004-06), another foundation
board member, continues in his role as
Director of Professional Affairs and provides
an ongoing valuable source of corporate
knowledge of Faculty affairs at this
important time of transition.
We welcome onto the board, Dr Melissa
Viney and Dr Michael Vagg from Geelong
and Dr Andrew Zacest, Dr Dilip Kapur
and Dr Meredith Craigie from Adelaide.
Professor Stephan Schug and Dr Kieran
Davis will continue as co-opted members
on the board from Western Australia and
North Island of New Zealand respectively.
The new members of the board bring new
energy and vision and a feeling of optimism
for the consolidation of achievements to
date and to ensure growth and leadership in
the Faculty.
Over the first four months of this year,
the Faculty has engaged in a wide-ranging
review and strategic planning initiative.
Input was sought from external stakeholder
groups as well as regional committees of
the Faculty and from within ANZCA and the
Faculty board. Two facilitated sessions were
held in conjunction with the February and
May board meetings, to review feedback and
agree our goals for the future, to understand
the challenges we face and plan the actions
and activities required to achieve our goals.
The second session was attended by all
retiring and new board members and was
useful to ensure a seamless transition of
ideas and aspirations for the future.
I am pleased to report that the Faculty of
Pain Medicine in Australia and New Zealand
is strong and growing. Our relationship
with ANZCA is strong and ANZCA’s support
remains invaluable. Our own professional,
courteous and effective Faculty staff are
led with distinction by Ms Helen Morris. My
sincere thanks, personally and on behalf of
the board for your ongoing support.
The focus for the Faculty continues
to be on building a strong and effective
support network for our Fellows and to
maintain the highest standards of training
and examination towards the award
of our fellowship. We have an ongoing
responsibility to promote the specialty of
pain medicine to increase our fellowship
numbers to enable us to better meet
community needs.
The important work towards recognition
as a medical specialty in New Zealand
remains a top priority. Progress remains
steady and positive.
We are working with the Royal
Australian College of General Practitioners
to produce and deliver an innovative online
education program to be launched later this
year, jointly at the Faculty’s spring meeting
in Coolum and the GP12 (RACGP) meeting
on the Gold Coast. Sixteen Faculty Fellows
and invited experts have contributed to
the content of this educational initiative.
These efforts to promote knowledge and
understanding of pain medicine and
management can be extended to wider
audiences in the coming years.
We aim to build our knowledge and
curriculum for the future. We have a vision
to produce strong and reliable research. Cooperation across our fellowship to produce
collaborative, or pooled data, presents an
opportunity to contribute meaningfully as a
Faculty to global scientific research. We are
working steadily towards the establishment
of national outcome data collaborations and
registries. Pooling, accurately recording
and analysing the effect and effectiveness
of different treatment approaches will
give us real and useful clinical direction
to genuinely raise the level of treatment
and care available to our patients in the
community.
An understanding of the future
challenges for the Faculty begins and ends
in the community. The problem of persistent
pain continues to be misunderstood and
access to information and treatment is
alarmingly inadequate. The resultant
suffering of people in persistent pain
remains unacceptable. We must continue
to advocate strongly and co-operatively
with our partner organisations, ANZCA,
Painaustralia, the Australian Pain
Society, New Zealand Pain Society and
consumer and industry groups, to keep the
management of pain, in all its forms, on the
political agenda.
In my first address as Dean of the Faculty,
I admit to feeling humbled and slightly
overwhelmed. I am honoured to follow
as dean, in the footsteps of people whose
counsel I have cherished and whose work
and achievements I respect and admire. I
can only aspire to continue the quality of
leadership to which this Faculty has become
accustomed.
Associate Professor Brendan Moore
Dean, Faculty of Pain Medicine
Dr David Jones’
farewell
As ANZCA celebrates its 20th birthday, the
Faculty of Pain Medicine reached its teens.
I have been privileged to be there since its
conception and gestation via an ANZCA Joint
Advisory Committee on Pain Management
(JACPM, 1994-1998) then continue to serve
on the Faculty Board as inaugural censor
(subsequently assessor) since the Faculty’s
birth late in 1999 and through to being the
sixth Dean. Now it is necessary for me to step
aside.
I would like to acknowledge many fine
people who have also been dedicated to seeing
the Faculty grow from a good idea, then
evolve and thrive into the peak training and
assessment organisation that it is today.
In particular I pay tribute to Associate
Professor Leigh Atkinson and Dr Penny
Briscoe, both former deans who also now
leave the board having completed maximum
12-year terms, and former dean Associate
Professor Milton Cohen, who continues his
valuable input as the Faculty’s first director of
professional affairs.
From the founding dean, Professor
Michael Cousins, together with all other
board members, these people have made a
major contribution to this early genesis of
the Faculty. In addition I acknowledge the
strengthening relationship with ANZCA as
the host College, which has made the venture
possible. I would not like to belittle in any
way all the other contributing specialists, but
at the same time note that anaesthetists are
present during the genesis of many long-term
pain conditions, and have a very significant
contributory role in working towards
reduction of chronicity.
A new board with five new members has
been empanelled led by Associate Professor
Brendan Moore. This happens at an exciting
time – especially to continue developing
a realigned curriculum flowing from the
blueprinting project, and also the time of
settling the strategy directions for the next five
years.
The priority directions include maturing of
the project for outcome data collection and its
evaluation, and development of future leaders
and increased advocacy.
Since pain traverses most areas of health
practice, it is important to have all health
professionals better educated, as well as the
public in general. To that end, the Faculty
is continuing to build new relationships.
Primary care and gynaecology are two
major fields where much persistent pain is
encountered, and through the efforts of a
former dean of Faculty, a new section on pain
within Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
connects to another large source of clinical
cases.
It is significant that the Faculty’s Visiting
Speaker, Professor Henrik Kehlet, a world
authority on persistent post-surgical pain,
delivered his plenary on the transition from
acute to chronic pain at the recent ANZCA
ASM. The Faculty is multidisciplinary, and
these examples illustrate the cross-specialty
collaboration that is necessary to get all on the
same page regarding persistent pain.
In partnership with the pain societies and
Painaustralia, the task of improving access to
services looms larger than most. Growing a
skilled workforce is inextricably linked to this
in that increased places for training are
also needed.
There is growing unrest in Australia
and New Zealand over what is appropriate
regarding opioid prescribing, with much of
what reaches the headlines lacking balance by
only highlighting what is bad. Rarely, if ever,
is there a mention of positive outcomes, which
I can assert from experience do exist. Having
the wisdom to know the difference comes to
mind.
Much of what has been presented at
scientific meetings recently (for example, fMRI
studies, graded motor imagery, placebo and
nocebo research) tell me that the organ of pain
is … the brain!
If I had to select a single theme about
helping pain sufferers to cope and improve
their lot, I would choose the relationship we
must form with them as being paramount.
We do not cure long-term pain, we frequently
control some of it, but always we need to strive
to provide comfort. That comfort requires a
huge range of tools, including active listening,
believing and acknowledging the person has
a problem – although not an unsurmountable
one – reducing the perceived threat from a
pain condition, reassurance, and providing
realistic expectations from health interactions
for pain.
Stressors, such as the effects of not being
believed, or uncertainty about the meaning of
a particular pain regarding the patient’s future
and even life expectancy, are consistent with
recent research on creating nocebo effects.
Dealing with these factors usually
takes more than one interaction (that is,
a relationship), and I ask whether we as
specialists should be treating doctors (who
do it) or consultant doctors (who tell other
people what to do)? There may be some
important style differences that alter outcomes
– something for Faculty members to consider
when it comes to evaluating outcomes data.
None of those arts of medicine methods
exonerate us from having top-notch
knowledge about all the scientific aspects of
our specialty. But the art of communicating
that meaningfully to the patient needs
much thought and practice. It should be no
surprise then that experienced practitioners
are questioning within Faculty circles the
duration we allocate for training. How much
is enough?
Briefly I would like to mention something
about the environment in which we operate.
It is increasingly more politically correct, and
a normal expectation, to provide information
and gain informed consent. It certainly
feels right to inform patients well – and is
even expected by the law. But each month
I encounter an example of another health
professional undermining some aspect of
what I thought was a job well done, usually
an act by someone thinking they are doing
their job well. For example, in a dispensing
location reading to a patient each the side
and adverse effects of a medication from
the drug catalogue, or printing it from the
computer and giving it to the patient. On the
surface it may seem like the right thing to do,
notwithstanding we (patient plus prescriber)
might have discussed the most likely side
and adverse effects before they departed the
consultation. Patients return with reports like
“it freaked me out”. It may increase their fear
of taking anything.
Research proves that active medications
include placebo responses (a real response)
1
contributing to their beneficial effects .
Similarly pairing of dire/negative messages
with effective agents undermines their
efficacy (nocebo effect). And that happens
for even the safest of medicines we use.
What can you as readers contribute on how
we can remain ethical, comply with legal
requirements but also not undermine the
efficacy of our tools? The science is there
already.
I have learned innumerable lessons from
those around me – practitioners of all types,
patients and even a few politicians. I thank
all those who have shared their wisdom,
guidance, stories, secrets and tricks of
practice, and those who entrusted me with
stewardship of the Faculty and its board over
my time as dean.
To conclude, as I wish the Faculty and its
Fellows an even brighter future, I would like to
leave you with a modified version of the plea
(from Niebuhr): “Give us Grace to accept with
serenity what we cannot change, Courage
to change what must be changed, and the
Wisdom to distinguish between them”.
Dr David Jones
Immediate past Dean, FPM
Reference:
Tracey I. Getting the pain you expect: mechanisms of
placebo, nocebo and reappraisal effects in humans.
Nature Medicine (2010): 16;1277-1283.
81
Faculty of Pain Medicine
News
2012 Examination
Examination dates
November 23-25, 2012 (Friday to Sunday)
The Auckland Regional Pain Service,
Auckland NZ
Closing Date for Registration:
Friday October 5, 2012
Pre-Examination Short Course
The 2012 Pre-Examamination Short
Course will be held from September 14-16,
2012 at ANZCA/FPM Brisbane Regional
Office, West End Corporate Park, River
Tower, 20 Pidgeon Close, West End,
Queensland.
Closing date for registration:
Friday September 9, 2012.
Admission to
Fellowship of the
Faculty of Pain
Medicine
By examination:
Dr Simon Aaron Cohen, FRACP
(New South Wales)
Dr Cornelis Abraham De Neef,
FACRRM (Victoria)
Dr Louise Kathleen Brennan,
FANZCA (Victoria)
Dr Brett Chandler, FANZCA (Victoria)
FPM Board
meeting report
Training Unit
Accreditation
Following successful reviews, Concord
Repatriation General Hospital, The Royal
Children’s Hospital and Flinders Medical
Centre has been re-accredited for training.
After its initial review, Gold Coast
Interdisciplinary Persistent Pain Centre
has become an accredited training unit,
bringing the number of accredited pain
units to 28.
Dr Timothy Brake has been confirmed
as the Supervisor of Training at the
Kowloon East Cluster Pain Management
Centre.
May 2012
Report following the Faculty of Pain
Medicine Board meetings held on
May 10 and May 13.
The Faculty of Pain Medicine Board met
on May 10 in Perth and the new board
met on May 13 to appoint office bearers
and committee chairs. The chairs will
confirm committee membership within
the coming weeks.
At the new board meeting, Professor Ted
Shipton (NZ) was elected FPM ViceDean, Professor Stephan Schug and Dr
Kieran Davis were co-opted for a second
term representing Western Australia
and the North Island New Zealand
respectively. Associate Professor David
A Scott, FANZCA, FFPMANZCA (Vic) was
confirmed as the co-opted ANZCA Council
representative to the board. The board
now comprises:
Associate Professor Brendan Moore
Dean
Professor Edward Shipton
Vice-Dean, Chair, Education Committee
Dr Meredith Craigie
Chair, Examination Committee
Dr Kieran Davis
Co-opted member North Island
of New Zealand
Dr Ray Garrick
Royal Australasian College of Physicians
representative
Dr Roderick Kenneth Grant, FANZCA
(Queensland)
Dr Chris Hayes
Chair, Research Committee
Dr Jason Suk Hyun Kwon, FANZCA
(Queensland)
Dr Dilip Kapur
Treasurer
Dr James Chor Hoaw Yu, FANZCA
(New South Wales)
Dr Frank New
Assessor
Dr Mohammed Saleem Khan,
FAFRM(RACP) (Victoria)
Dr Gopinathan Raju, MA (Malaysia)
Honorary Fellowship:
Professor Henrik Kehlet, PhD
(Denmark)
Professor Stephan Schug
Co-opted member, Western Australia
Dr Michael Vagg
Chair, Continuing Professional
Development Committee
Dr Melissa Viney
Chair, Training Unit Accreditation
Committee
Dr Andrew Zacest
Royal Australasian College
of Surgeons representative
Associate Professor David A Scott
Co-opted member of ANZCA Council
82
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The board congratulated Dr Frank
Moloney (NSW) and Dr Michelle Mulligan
on their re-election to ANZCA Council,
and to Dr Vanessa Beavis (NZ) and Dr
Gabriel Snyder (New Fellow councillor) on
their election to ANZCA Council.
Dr David Jones, Professor Leigh Atkinson,
Dr Penny Briscoe, Dr Carolyn Arnold and
Dr Guy Bashford were farewelled at the
FPM Annual Dinner on Friday May 11.
The Faculty Board will next meet in
Melbourne on August 13.
FPM strategic planning 2013-17
The board, including new board
members, held a second strategicplanning workshop in conjunction with
the May 10 board meeting to continue
developing a five-year strategy. A
summary of responses from consultation
with key stakeholders helped identify
strategic goals for FPM to 2017.
Arising from the workshop, the Faculty’s
driving aim for 2013-17 is “Building
strength”. Key pillars of the strategy
will be:
• Build the fellowship and the Faculty.
• Build curriculum and knowledge.
• Build advocacy and access.
Fellowship
Two new Fellows were admitted in March,
six in April and two in May, including the
award of honorary fellowship to Professor
Henrik Kehlet at the College Ceremony
in Perth. This takes the total number
of admissions to 328.
Associate fellowship
The board resolved to rescind FPM
Regulation 3.5: Admission to Associate
Fellowship by Training and Examination.
The board agreed that a single
registerable qualification, FFPMANZCA,
will be awarded to persons who meet
all Faculty training and assessment
criteria. A prior specialist qualification
“acceptable to the board” is one of the
criteria. International medical graduate
specialists applying for FPM training will
be assessed on a case-by-case basis to
determine the quantum of recognition
of prior learning to be credited towards
the Faculty’s training time requirements.
Regulation 3.1.1.6 will be amended to
remove reference to a requirement for
an Australian or New Zealand specialist
qualification acceptable to the board.
International medical graduate
specialists (IMGS)
The board approved the formation of
an FPM IMGS Working Group to review
ANZCA Regulation 23 with a view to
adopting this regulation and to follow
closely ANZCA’s IMGS assessment
processes adapted to pain medicine as
the subject matter. The FPM working
group will include representation from
the ANZCA IMGS Committee and ANZCA’s
manager IMGS and accreditation. The
board resolved that FPM IMGS assessment
fees will align with ANZCA’s.
Relationships
ANZCA
The following Fellows were nominated
to represent the Faculty on ANZCA
committees:
Dr Meredith Craigie
Examinations Committee/Chair,
Examinations
Primary Examination Sub-Committee/
Chair, Examinations
Final Examination
Sub-Committee/Chair, Examinations
Professor Ted Shipton
Education and Training
Committee/Chair, Education
Committee
Dr Chris Hayes
Research Committee/Chair, Research
Dr Penny Briscoe
Fellowship Affairs Committee/
ASM officer
Dr Frank New
IMGS Committee/Assessor
Dr Jane Trinca
Quality and Safety Committee
Associate Professor Roger Goucke
Overseas Aid Committee
Dr Melissa Viney
Training Accreditation Committee
Professor Stephan Schug
ANZCA Trials Group Executive
Dr Penny Briscoe/
Professor Ted Shipton
ANZCA Terms of Reference
Working Group
Representation on ANZCA regional
committees is to be confirmed following
consultation with regional chairs.
Royal Australian College of General
Practitioners (RACGP)
A steering group meeting for the joint
FPM/RACGP GP online-learning project
was held on April 27 in Sydney. Following
development of the online content
involving a number of Fellows, the project
has now entered the review process and
remains on track for a launch of a module
at the FPM Spring Meeting in Coolum on
September 29. The full active-learning
module will be launched at the GP12
meeting on October 26.
Australian Pain Society/New Zealand
Pain Society/FPM/ANZCA boards
breakfast meeting
Faculty representatives attended an
informal combined boards breakfast
meeting during the Australian Pain
Society Annual Scientific Meeting, which
brought together key representatives of
the Australian Pain Society, New Zealand
Pain Society, Painaustralia, FPM and
ANZCA. Another meeting of the group will
be convened later in the year to discuss
opportunities for closer collaboration to
achieve the next steps to implement the
National Pain Strategy.
Education
FPM curriculum revision
During April and May, research was
done into educational approaches used
by fields relevant to pain medicine. The
findings of the research and a second
version of the proposed curriculum
framework were presented to members of
the Curriculum Revision Sub-committee
in a workshop in Perth on May 14. Two
current trainees have joined the subcommittee and were present at the
workshop. The latest version of the
proposed framework includes two streams
of learning and assessment: Stream A –
Understanding of theory and Stream B
– Clinical skills development. Additional
workshops are planned throughout
the year. Implementation of the new
curriculum is planned for 2015.
(continued next page)
83
Faculty of Pain Medicine
FPM Board
meeting report
continued
Retrospective credit of prior training
The board approved the establishment
of a working party to develop criteria
upon which to base decisions regarding
the awarding of retrospective credit for
prior training and experience in a manner
that is reliable, available to relevant
stakeholders, and based on the current
understanding of the requirements of a
specialist pain medicine physician. There
will be collaboration with the planned
IMGS Working Group.
Training unit accreditation
The Gold Coast Interdisciplinary
Persistent Pain Centre has been
accredited for pain medicine training.
Concord Repatriation General Hospital,
Royal Children’s Hospital and Flinders
Medical Centre have been re-accredited.
The board approved the revised Faculty
professional document PM2 (2012)
Guidelines for Units Offering Training
in Multidisciplinary Pain Medicine. The
revised document includes criteria for
Tier 2 accreditation for units deemed by
the Faculty Training Unit Accreditation
Committee to have significant strengths
in some areas of pain medicine practice,
but not the breadth of practice required to
satisfactorily meet the requirements of a
comprehensive (Tier 1) training facility (as
stipulated in PM2).
Continuing professional development
2012 ASM and Refresher Course
Day – Perth
The Faculty’s Refresher Course Day and
ASM programs were a great success.
The refresher course attracted more
than 130 delegates and strong support
from healthcare industry sponsors
and exhibitors. The program provided
insights into the importance of outcome
measurement in pain management. The
day was completed with a dinner at the
Old Brewery overlooking the magnificent
Swan River. The meetings attracted
widespread media coverage and the ASM
E-newsletter was well received. Thanks
go to all who contributed in bringing this
event to fruition.
84
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The Best Free Paper Award was awarded
to Dr Sarika Kumar for her paper
titled “Total and free ropivacaine drug
levels during continuous Transversus
Abdominis Plane (TAP) block for
postoperative analgesia after abdominal
surgery: A pilot study”.
The Dean’s Prize was not awarded.
2014 ASM and Refresher Course
Day – Singapore
Following the change of venue from
Sydney to Singapore, the Faculty has
appointed a Co-FPM Scientific Convenor,
Dr Kian Hian Tan (Singapore), to work
with Dr Lewis Holford. The Faculty is
investigating potential venues for the
Refresher Course Day in Singapore and
opportunities for collaboration with the
Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
pain medicine section.
Professional
Electronic Persistent Pain Outcomes
Centre (ePPOC)
The project to develop a national
benchmarking system for chronic
pain has now been provisionally titled
‘Electronic Persistent Pain Outcome
Centre’ (ePPOC). Development is planned
in three stages; a funded planning stage;
an initial pilot; larger roll out. Stage one
is aimed at developing a sustainable
business model for ePPOC. Once an
approved business plan is developed
and a funding module is secured, a pilot
roll out involving six to eight centres
is anticipated. This will enable initial
implementation and system development.
Once the benchmarking system is refined,
a larger roll out will be launched.
Submissions
The Faculty’s submission to the
Australian Medical Council for ongoing
accreditation was submitted March 2012
and can be viewed on the FPM website at
www.fpm.anzca.edu.au/communications/
accreditation-submissions.
The Faculty has recently contributed
to the following submissions, which
can be viewed at www.anzca.edu.
au/communications/submissions/
government-submissions-2012
• Health Workforce Principal Committee
– Development of national criteria
under the National Registration and
Accreditation Scheme (NRAS)
– April 2012
• Medical Board of Australia –
Consultation on the board funding
external doctors’ health programs
– April 2012
• Department of Health and Ageing –
Evidence requirements for assessment
of applications for the prostheses list:
A discussion paper – February 2012
• Deputy Director General, Governance,
Workforce and Corporate – Request for
information to support NSW medical
specialist modelling – March 2012
Finance
At the end of April, the Faculty remained
in a positive position against budget.
2012 calendar
Dates for future board meetings:
August 13 (Melbourne)
October 29 (Melbourne)
SpRiNg
meetiNg
2012
RiSiNg
tideS
FACultY oF pAiN mediCiNe
AuStRAliAN ANd New ZeAlANd
College oF ANAeSthetiStS
FRom A Ripple to A wAve
– the RiSiNg tideS iN pAiN mediCiNe
SeptembeR 28-30, 2012
pAlmeR Coolum ReSoRt,
SuNShiNe CoASt, QueeNSlANd
On behalf of the Faculty of Pain Medicine and the organising
committee of the 2012 Spring Meeting, we would like to invite you
to this exciting three day event at the beautiful Palmer Coolum Resort
in the Noosa Shire of the Queensland Sunshine Coast.
The meeting will focus on new and interesting developments in
medications, education and initiatives of our own Faculty. We will take
a closer look at these “rising tides” of Pain Medicine as these new
ideas develop from ripples to waves in our area of medicine.
Please join as at this beautiful beach location with an international
standard golf course and exquisite resort facilities.
Associate professor leigh Atkinson, Convenor
Associate professor brendan moore,
Convenor and Dean, Faculty of Pain Medicine
For further information, please contact:
Conference Secretariat Kirsty O’Connor, Faculty of Pain Medicine
630 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC 3004
T: +61 3 8517 5318 F: +61 3 9510 6786 E: [email protected]
85
Library update
New titles
Books can be requested via
the ANZCA Library catalogue
www.anzca.edu.au/resources/
library/book-catalogue.html
AAGBI core topics
in anaesthesia 2012
/ Johnston, Ian [ed];
Harrop-Griffiths,
William [ed]; Gemmell,
Leslie [ed]. / Association
of Anaesthetists of Great
Britain and Ireland.
-- Oxford, UK: WileyBlackwell, 2012.
More e-books
available to Fellows
and trainees
The ANZCA Library now provides
access to over 25 online textbooks
through Cambridge University Press,
as detailed below:
• Anaesthetic and Perioperative
Complications.
• Evidence-based Anaesthesia and
Intensive Care.
• Basic Science for Anaesthetists, 2nd
Edition.
• The Anaesthesia Science Viva Book,
2nd Edition.
• Anesthesia in Cosmetic Surgery.
• Core Topics in Airway Management,
2nd Edition.
• The Clinical Anaesthesia Viva Book,
2nd Edition.
• MCQs for the Primary FRCA.
• Core Topics in Neuroanaesthesia
and Neurointensive Care.
86
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
Alfred Hospital faces and places.
Volume IV / Alfred Hospital; Alfred
Healthcare Group Heritage Committee.
-- Prahran, Victoria: The Alfred, 2010.
Kindly donated by the Alfred Hospital
Heritage Committee
Australasian
anaesthesia 2011:
Invited papers and
selected continuing
education lectures /
Riley, Richard [ed]. -Melbourne: Australian
and New Zealand
College
of Anaesthetists, 2012.
Also available online
through the ANZCA
website
• Anesthetic Pharmacology: Basic
Principles and Clinical Practice,
2nd Edition.
• Core Topics in Endocrinology in
Anaesthesia and Critical Care.
• Controversies in Obstetric Anesthesia
and Analgesia.
• Physics, Pharmacology and Physiology
for Anaesthetists: Key Concepts for
the FRCA.
• Ultrasound-Guided Regional
Anesthesia: A Practical Approach
to Peripheral Nerve Blocks and
Perineural Catheters.
• SBAs for the Final FRCA.
• Anesthesia Oral Board Review:
Knocking Out the Boards.
• Anesthetic Management of the
Obese Surgical Patient.
• Case Studies in Neuroanesthesia
and Neurocritical Care.
• Clinical Ethics in Anesthesiology:
A Case-Based Textbook.
• Positioning Patients for Surgery.
Basic and clinical
pharmacology /
Katzung, Bertram G [ed];
Masters, Susan B. [ed];
Trevor, Anthony J. [ed].
-- 12th ed -- New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2012.
Essentials of pain
medicine / Benzon,
Honorio T [ed]; Raja,
Srinivasa N. [ed];
Fishman, Scott M. [ed];
Liu, Spencer [ed]; Cohen,
Steven P. [ed]. -- 3rd ed
-- New York: Elsevier
Saunders, 2011.
• Pharmacology for Anaesthesia
and Intensive Care, 3rd Edition.
• Core Clinical Competencies in
Anesthesiology: A Case-based
Approach.
• SAQs for the Final FRCA.
• Morbid Obesity: Peri-operative
Management, 2nd Edition.
• Anesthesia for the High-Risk Patient,
2nd Edition.
These e-books and many more can be
accessed through the ANZCA Library
online textbooks list or library catalogue:
www.anzca.edu.au/resources/library/
online-textbooks
New ECRI publications
Health Devices, Vol. 40, No. 9,
September 2011
• Best vital signs monitors.
Health Devices, Vol. 40, No. 12,
December 2011
• Evaluation of 10 intensive care
ventilators.
Hadzic’s peripheral
nerve blocks
and anatomy for
ultrasound-guided
regional anesthesia
/ Hadzic, Admir [ed].
-- 2nd ed -- New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2012.
Also available online
through ANZCA Library
online textbooks list
Monitoring the
nervous system for
anesthesiologists
and other health care
professionals / Koht,
Antoun [ed]; Sloan,
Tod B. [ed]; Toleikis,
J. Richard [ed]. -- New
York: Springer, 2012.
History of anaesthesia VII: proceedings
(7th : 2009 Oct. 1-3 : Crete): proceedings of
the 7th International symposium on the
history of anaesthesia / Askitopoulou, Helen
[ed]. -- Herakleion: Crete University Press, 2012.
Neuroscientific
foundations of
anesthesiology /
Mashour, George A.
[ed]; Lydic, Ralph [ed].
-- 1st ed -- Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2011.
• Ventilator alarms and safety alerts.
Health Devices, Vol. 41, No. 4, April 2012.
• Making connections: integrating
medical devices with electronic medical
records
Health Devices, Vol. 41, No. 5, May 2012.
• Interfacing monitoring systems with
ventilators.
• Advanced ventilation features.
Operating Room Risk Management
updates.
• Basic Patient Monitoring during
Anesthesia.
• Pre-Use Checklist for Anesthesia Units.
• Social Media in Healthcare.
Liakopoulos OJ, Kuhn EW, Slottosch
I, Wassmer G, Wahlers T. Preoperative
statin therapy for patients undergoing
cardiac surgery. Cochrane Database of
Systematic Reviews 2012, Issue 4. Art. No.:
CD008493.
Evidence-based
practice corner
Hines S, Steels E, Chang A, Gibbons
K. Aromatherapy for treatment of
postoperative nausea and vomiting.
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
2012, Issue 4. Art. No.: CD007598.
Derry S, Moore RA. Single dose oral
celecoxib for acute postoperative pain in
adults. Cochrane Database of Systematic
Reviews 2012, Issue 3. Art. No.: CD004233.
Jones L, Othman M, Dowswell T, Alfirevic
Z, Gates S, Newburn M, Jordan S,
Lavender T, Neilson JP. Pain management
for women in labour: an overview of
systematic reviews. Cochrane Database
of Systematic Reviews 2012, Issue 3. Art.
No.: CD009234.
Ophthalmic
anaesthesia / Kumar,
Chandra M [ed]; Dodds,
Chris [ed]; Gayer, Steven
[ed]. -- Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2012.
Stoelting’s anesthesia and co-existing
disease / Hines, Robert L. [ed]; Marschall,
Katherine E. [ed]. -- 6th ed -- Philadelphia,
PA: Churchill Livingstone, 2012.
Available online through ANZCA Library Online
Textbooks list
Keay L, Lindsley K, Tielsch J, Katz J,
Schein O. Routine preoperative medical
testing for cataract surgery. Cochrane
Database of Systematic Reviews 2012,
Issue 3. Art. No.: CD007293.
Rutherford JS, Flin R, Mitchell, L. Nontechnical skills of anaesthetic assistants
in the perioperative period: a literature
review. British Journal of Anaesthesia,
first published online May 11, 2012
doi:10.1093/bja/aes125
Calvache JA, Delgado-Noguera MF,
Lesaffre E, Stolker RJ. Anaesthesia for
evacuation of incomplete miscarriage.
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
2012, Issue 4. Art. No.: CD008681.
Contact the ANZCA Library
www.anzca.edu.au/resources/library
Phone: +61 3 8517 5305
Fax: +61 3 8517 5381
Email: [email protected]
87
Obituary
Dr Ronald E Thiel
1934 – 2012
Ron Thiel was born and raised in
Toowoomba, Queensland. He attended
Toowoomba Grammar School from 194252 where he excelled both academically
and on the sporting field. In his senior
year, he was school captain, captain of
school cadets, captain of the athletic
team, president of school dramatic society
and runner-up dux.
He commenced medical studies at the
Queensland University School of Medicine
in 1953. He was offered one of five state
scholarships during his first year, but
declined, perhaps because a scholarship
required a seven-year commitment to the
state health department after graduation.
He later took up an army scholarship to
assist with his education expenses.
After graduation he was posted to
Singleton and other bases for his
requisite two years.
88
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
On returning to Brisbane, Ron
worked as an anaesthetic registrar at
Greenslopes Repatriation Hospital and
the Royal Brisbane Hospital. He obtained
his anaesthetic fellowship in 1966. (He
was Fellow no. 303, which amused him
considering his army background). He
was awarded the prestigious Australian
Society of Anaesthetists Gilbert Troup
prize for his paper “The Myotonic
Response to Suxamethonium”, which
was published in the British Journal of
Anaesthesia in October 1967.
Ron and his family moved to Cairns
where he was the sole specialist
anaesthetist for six years. Ron was the
mainstay of anaesthetic practice, both
public and private, during this period,
with some GP anaesthetists to support
him. Because of his enthusiasm and
teaching ability, he was instrumental in
encouraging many residents to undertake
post-graduate anaesthetic training.
Ron was a perfectionist and this
inevitably led to professional altercations
(especially with surgeons), and accounts
of these confrontations are now folklore.
He developed a large dental surgery
anaesthetic practice and was one of
foremost practitioners in this field.
In the early 1970s, Ron developed what
was probably the first day-surgery unit
in Queensland approved for Medicare
rebates. For many years this facility at
Solander Medical Centre provided a
low-cost alternative to inpatient stays,
prior to the establishment of hospital
day surgery units.
As the Cairns Anaesthetic Group
expanded, Ron moderated his workload
and in 1987 undertook a “tree change” to
Malanda on the Atherton Tablelands. He
commuted to Cairns several times a week
and worked sessions at Atherton Base
Hospital, again undertaking teaching
duties with nursing and medical staff.
Ron retired from anaesthetic practice
in 1998 and relocated to Brisbane, then
to Kooralbyn Valley and finally to the
Sunshine Coast. His retirement was
marred by the onset of Alzheimer’s
disease that, with his usual tenacity and
stubbornness, he fought for 12 years, far
outlasting his initial prognosis.
Ron had a very active life outside
anaesthetics, with the emphasis on
sailing and water sports. He will be
remembered for his wicked sense of
humour, a ready grin and sometimesquestionable jokes!
Ron is survived by his devoted wife
Gaye, his children William, Carey and
Gillian and their families.
Dr Robert J Shield
Future meetings
Australia and New Zealand
July 7
Brisbane, Qld
36th Annual Queensland
ANZCA/ASA Combined Continuing
Medical Education Conference
Theme: “Medic-legal issues,
paediatrics and obstetrics”
Venue: Brisbane Convention and
Exhibition Centre, Brisbane, Queensland
Website: www.qld.anzca.edu.au/events
July 27-28
Byron Bay, NSW
Perioperative Medicine and Acute Pain
Special Interest Group Meeting
Theme: “When worlds collide:
Perioperative medicine – The new
specialty on the block?”
Venue: Byron at Byron, Byron Bay
Website: www.anzca.edu.au/events/
sig-events
July 28
Melbourne, Vic
33rd Annual ANZCA/ASA
Combined CME Meeting
Theme: “The ultra meeting”
Venue: Sofitel Melbourne on Collins,
Melbourne, Victoria
Website: www.vic.anzca.edu.au/events
August 10-12
Palm Cove, Qld
November 3
Adelaide, SA
ANZCA Trials Group Annual
Strategic Research Workshop
Combined ANZCA/ASA South
Australian & Northern Territory ASM
Venue: Sea Temple Resort,
Palm Cove, Queensland
Website: www.anzca.edu.au/fellows/
Research/anzca-trials-group-events.html
Theme: “Anaesthesia and the
failing organ”
Venue: The Sanctuary, Adelaide Zoo
Email: [email protected]
September 21-23
November 3-4
Sanctuary Cove,
Qld
The Combined Education, Management,
Simulation and Welfare Special
Interest Group Conference
Shoal Bay, NSW
NSW Spring CME
Venue: Shoal Bay Resort
Website: www.nsw.anzca.edu.au/events
Theme: “Workforce: Future force”
Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove,
Queensland
Website: www.anzca.edu.au/events/
sig-events
September 28-30
Coolum, Qld
2012 Faculty of Pain Medicine
Spring Meeting
Theme: “From a ripple to a wave
– the rising tides in pain medicine”
Venue: Palmer Resort Coolum, Sunshine
Coast, Queensland
Website: www.fpm.anzca.edu.au/
events/2012-spring-meeting
The meetings in this listing are ANZCA
or ANZCA-affiliated meetings.
Non-ANZCA meetings are listed in the
events calendar on the ANZCA website:
www.anzca.edu.au/events
Please check with conference organisers
to confirm dates before arranging travel.
89
Future meetings
Australia and New Zealand
continued
November 14-17
Auckland, NZ
13th ICCVA/NZ Anaesthesia
ASM 2012
Theme: “What becomes of the
broken-hearted? Outcomes
and how to change them”
Venue: Skycity Convention Centre,
Auckland New Zealand
Website: www.iccva2012.com
January 29-30
Sydney, NSW
Anatomy for Anaesthetists
Venue: University of Sydney, Sydney,
New South Wales
Website: www.nsw.anzca.edu.au/events
July 19-21
Queenstown, NZ
Geoffrey Kaye Symposium
Neuroanaesthesia SIG Conference
Venue: ANZCA and University
of Melbourne
Website: www.anzca.edu.au/
resources/geoffrey-kaye-museum/
geoffrey-kaye-symposium.html
Venue: Millennium Hotel Queenstown,
New Zealand
Email: [email protected]
May 4-8
November 24
Melbourne, Vic
Melbourne, Vic
ANZCA ASM 2013
Theme: “Superstition, dogma & science”
Venue: Melbourne Convention
and Exhibition Centre, Melbourne,
Victoria
Website: www.anzca2013.com
2013
June 30 – July 5
Port Douglas, Qld
Cardiothoracic, Vascular and Perfusion
SIG Meeting
January 22-25
Sydney, NSW
ISHA 2013
Theme: “History matters”
Venue: University of Sydney, Sydney,
New South Wales
Website: www.isha2013.com
Venue: Sea Temple Resort & Spa,
Port Douglas, Queensland
Email: [email protected]
The meetings in this listing are ANZCA
or ANZCA-affiliated meetings.
Non-ANZCA meetings are listed in the
events calendar on the ANZCA website:
www.anzca.edu.au/events
Please check with conference organisers
to confirm dates before arranging travel.
90
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
$200.00 +
$28.46 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
Savvy professionals
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
can reap tax rewards
$239.00 +
Nobody likes paying tax. But how tax
savvy you are has an effect on how
$145.78 +
much money is in your pocket at the
end of the year. Leon Getler reports.
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
Savvy professionals can reap tax rewards Crossing the South Island the hard way
Rug up and explore with a wintry European adventure
+$
x%
Australian tax laws allow you to deduct costs
of doing business from your gross income.
What you are left with is your net business
profit. This is the amount that gets taxed.
Knowing how to maximise your deductible
business expenses lowers your taxable
profit. At the same time, there might be side
benefits from your expenditure: a good car to
drive, a combination business trip-vacation
and superannuation.
Anaesthetists have a range of deductions
to lower their taxable profit. Medical
practitioners earn high incomes so a tax
strategy is critical. A tax deduction is any
expense incurred in producing assessable
income. In other words, if the cost was paid
in the practice of your profession you can
claim a tax deduction.
In New Zealand, anaesthetists in private
practice will now enjoy a lower tax rate than
their Australian counterparts. New Zealand’s
company tax rate dropped to 28 per cent last
year, putting it below the Australian company
tax rate. The deductions are the same
for Australia but they need to be careful.
The Supreme Court last year found two
Christchurch surgeons used family trusts
to pay themselves “artificially low salaries”
and deliberately avoid tax.
The deductions are what attract the most
interest. Anaesthetists running a practice
can claim medical supplies, medicines,
equipment and material. They can also
claim professional indemnity insurance.
Another source for deductions comes with
professional subscriptions, accreditations,
literature, education and memberships.
Anaesthetists also can claim travel, not
including travel to and from work. Travel
deductions can cover conferences and study
trips, even if they include a holiday.
Tony Greco, a senior tax advisor with
Australia’s Institute of Public Accountants
says: “Some people are able to claims trips
abroad further research, as long as they
don’t do too much of the other stuff.”
This means the trip would need to be
documented. There needs to be paperwork
for every activity around research. If, for
example, 60 per cent of the trip was spent
on further research and the rest of the
time on vacation, there would be a 60 per
cent deduction. The airfare might be fully
deductible but accommodation and other
expenses would be apportioned. “It takes
some co-ordinating and apportioning but
that’s not to say you can’t go on a holiday,’’
Greco says. “That’s not to say you can’t mix
a bit of pleasure with business.”
(continued next page)
91
In Australia, superannuation presents a
big tax opportunity. If you are self-employed
and earn less than 10 per cent of your total
income as an employee, you can claim
your after-tax super contributions as a tax
deduction. This not only boosts your super,
but also your tax position. If you are under
age 50, you can claim a deduction of this
type of up to $A25,000 per financial year.
A contribution of up to $A25,000 would
be taxed at 15 per cent. Until now, if you
were aged 50 or over, you could claim up
to $A50,000 and have that taxed at
15 per cent.
However, Australia’s recent Federal
Budget changed that. Under the budget,
people aged 50 years and older will be
allowed a maximum $A25,000 contribution
for their super fund. That will be taxed at 15
per cent. The government has halved the
previous caps for people aged over 50.
So what happens if the contribution
is above $A25,000? It will be taxed at
46.5 per cent. For example, you might
make a contribution of $A30,000. That
means $A25,000 of that will be taxed
at 15 per cent but the extra $A5000 will
be taxed at 46.5 per cent. The move will
disproportionately affect people who are
now entering their 50s.
These changes kick in from July 1. In
other words, 2011-12 is the last financial
year before the standard cap for concession
contributions by members over 50 is halved
from $A50,000 to the indexed $A25,000
that applies to other fund members. They
need to act now – it could give them a lot
of money. A $A50,000 deduction for a
concessional contribution could be worth
as much $A15,750. At the same time, it’s
increasing the amount the person has set
aside for their retirement.
Tony Greco says anaesthetists seeking
to minimise their tax with a $A50,000
contribution into their superannuation should
act well before the end of June.
“They only have until the end of June to
get that in order,’’ he says. “Bear in mind
that June 30 is a Saturday and a lot of
people think that electronic transfers work
on a Saturday, but you can’t do it,’’ Greco
says. “It has to physically hit the super fund
accounts on a business day before June 30.
I wouldn’t leave it too late. I wouldn’t leave
it until the Friday.”
One of the big changes for small business
that came in with the new Australian
Minerals Resource Rent Tax is how much
someone can claim for small assets.
92
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
$200.00 +
$28.46 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
“It is best to keep record of every
expense no matter how
trivial it might
$145.78
+
seem. With an orderly record keeping
system, you are more$895.00
likely to find +
tax savings you never knew existed.”
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
$798.15 +
$239.00 +
$145.78 +
$895.00 +
$45.68 +
Until now, small business entities with
a turnover of less than $A2 million were
eligible for a range of tax benefits, including
simplified depreciation, capital gains tax
concessions and exemptions and simplified
depreciation rules allowing an immediate
tax deduction for assets costing less than
$A1000.
But under changes that come in this July,
cash flow will be enhanced with more tax
write offs. From 2012-13, the value of assets
that small businesses can instantly write
off will rise from $A1000 to $A6500. Small
businesses also will be able to claim an
accelerated initial deduction of $A5000 for
motor vehicles acquired from July 2012.
Greco says this means it would be
worthwhile deferring the purchase of assets
until July. “If you’re in small business
you could only spend $1000 and get an
immediate write off,’’ he says. “Now that’s
in place for the current year, but on July 1,
it bumps up to $6500.
“So if it costs less than $1000, you
go to Officeworks and buy that printer
for under $1000.
“But if it costs more than $1000, you
should wait until July 1 because the write-off
goes from $1000 to $6500 if you are a
small business. If you buy it before June 30,
you would depreciate that and write it off
over its useful life. But come July 1, you can
get a 100 per cent tax deduction straight
away.
“With a car, you will get a $5000
deduction up front. With cars, you depreciate
15 per cent in the first year and 30 per cent
thereafter. But come July 1, you knock five
grand straight off and then get 15 per cent
on the balance, which means faster cash
flow.”
It is best to keep record of every expense
no matter how trivial it might seem. With
an orderly record keeping system, you are
more likely to find tax savings you never
knew existed.
Leon Gettler is a former Fairfax senior
business journalist. He is now a freelance
business writer.
+$
Crossing
the
south
island
the hard
way
One of ANZCA’s Fellows,
Invercargill anaesthetist Dr
Joe Sherriff, holds a very
special place in the history
of New Zealand’s famous
annual Speight’s Coast to
Coast race. He won the first
event in 1983 – and in this
year’s 30th running of the
race, he won the over-60
age group class and was the
oldest finisher in the oneday event. Dr Sherriff spoke
to ANZCA’s New Zealand
Communications Manager,
Susan Ewart, about his
involvement in the race.
The Speight’s Coast to Coast multi-sport
event traverses New Zealand’s South Island
from Kumara Beach on the Tasman Sea
near Greymouth, through the Southern Alps
to Sumner Beach on the Pacific Ocean in
Christchurch – a total distance of around
243 kilometres. Now, the race may be
undertaken as either a one- or two-day
event.
The course comprises about 140
kilometres of road cycling, 30 kilometres
of very rugged off-road running and 70
kilometres of kayaking down the Waimakariri
River.
When Dr Sherriff won the two-day 1983
event, he had just completed the last year
of his anaesthesia training in Dunedin. He
then headed off to a consultant anaesthetist
post in the UK before returning to Invercargill
in 1991. Pressure of work, family and other
interests (search and rescue dog training and
being in the New Zealand orienteering team)
prevented further participation in multisport races for a while. However, in 2002,
organiser Mr Robin Judkins coerced him to
take part in the 20th Coast to Coast event.
Dr Sherriff says that somewhat to his
surprise, he finished the one-day event. He
was disappointed by his time, however, so
started training seriously and a couple of
years later beat his original 1983 time by
half an hour.
This year, Dr Sherriff again came under
pressure from Mr Judkins to participate in
the 30th running of the race. He says that
once again there was a serious training
deficiency, but that he was encouraged by
a great pre-race write up in the Christchurch
Press, complete with photos of the bike he
rode in 1983, which Dr Sherriff still uses
to commute to work.
This saw him lining up with other
competitors on the beach at Kumara on
Friday February 10 for a 6am start and a
mad three-kilometre dash up the road to the
waiting bikes. Dr Sherriff says he can’t run
very fast these days so did the road bike ride
in a slow bunch toward the back of the field.
The run that followed was full of interest
with multiple river crossings and car-sized
boulders to circumvent. It goes over the
alpine Goat Pass, well above the bush line
and down into the Mingha River valley.
Dr Sherriff says conditions for the
kayaking section on the Waimakariri River
were slow with a strong head wind and a very
low slow flow – his excuse for a slow time,
he says.
Back on the bike for the last 70
kilometres, things weren’t much better, and
it was a very tired Dr Sherriff who rolled into
Sumner some 16½ hours after starting – but
winner of his class and the oldest finisher in
the one-day race.
Dr Sherriff says none of it was possible
without the dedicated assistance of his
support crew, partner Ms Jo Wilson and
friend Mr Andy Clayton, who have helped Dr
Sherriff in all the eight Coast to Coasts he
has done in the past 11 years.
That support involves a 4.30am start
followed by a day of getting the right gear to
the right place with lots of kit to carry from
van to transition point and back again. The
bike and kayak have to be checked to see
they are in perfect working order and at the
end of each stage Ms Wilson and Mr Clayton
ensure Dr Sherriff is in the right shoes,
clothes, etc, and is fed, watered and ready
for the next few hours.
This year they found that an added
challenge was negotiating the thousands of
road cones and unfamiliar landscape in postearthquake Christchurch – which saw Ms
Wilson and Mr Clayton get to the finish only a
few seconds before Dr Sherriff himself.
Hard though the event was, Dr Sherriff
reckons it beats a 16-hour day in theatre and
he hasn’t ruled out trying to get fitter and
giving it another go. “This of course depends
on the support crew,” he says, “especially Jo
allowing me to do so.”
A specialist anaesthetist at Southland
Hospital in Invercargill, Dr Sherriff is a
member of ANZCA’s New Zealand National
Committee and is its national Quality and
Safety Officer.
The photos show Dr Sherriff kayaking
and at the transition point from kayak to
bike. Photos courtesy of Paul’s Camera
Shop, Christchurch.
93
RUG up
UP and
AND
Rug
EXPLORE WiTh
WITH a
A
ExploRE
WINTRY EuRopEan
EUROPEAN
WinTRy
ADVENTURE
advEnTuRE
There’s much
much to
to enjoy
enjoy about
about aa northern
northern hemisphere
hemisphere winter
winter
There’s
provided you
you know
know where
where to
to go,
go, writes
writes Kendall
Kendall hill.
Hill.
provided
Winter in
in Europe
Europe offers
offers far
far more
more than
than jetset
jetset ski
ski resorts
resorts
Winter
and aa white
white Christmas.
Christmas. Take
Take advantage
advantage of
of affordable
affordable
and
airfares and
and hotels
hotels and
and barely
barely there
there crowds
crowds to
to discover
discover
airfares
the treasures
treasures of
of aa cold
cold continent
continent –– but
but whatever
whatever you
you do,
do,
the
don’t pack
pack light.
light.
don’t
1. Ice
Ice dreams
dreams
1.
The Arctic’s
Arctic’s greatest
greatest architectural
architectural folly
folly was
was
The
first carved
carved from
from frozen
frozen water
water in
in the
the Lapland
Lapland
first
village of
of Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi 20
20 years
years ago.
ago. Since
Since then,
then, every
every
village
November and
and December
December the
the Ice
Ice Hotel
Hotel isis built
built afresh
afresh
November
and decorated
decorated by
by invited
invited artists
artists armed
armed with
with aa grand
grand design,
design,
and
chisel and
and aa hardy
hardy constitution.
constitution. Their
Their ephemeral
ephemeral creations
creations
aa chisel
simply melt
melt back
back into
into the
the earth
earth each
each spring.
spring. Winters
Winters can
can be
be
simply
bleakly bitter
bitter and
and perennially
perennially dark
dark in
in northern
northern Scandinavia
Scandinavia but
but
bleakly
there are
are consolations
consolations to
to bedding
bedding down
down in
in aa minus-five-degree
minus-five-degree
there
art installation
installation –– chief
chief among
among them
them the
the strong
strong probability
probability of
of
art
witnessing the
the Northern
Northern Lights.
Lights. There
There are
are also
also the
the uncommon
uncommon
witnessing
pleasures of
of sleeping
sleeping on
on reindeer
reindeer furs,
furs, steaming
steaming cups
cups of
of hot
hot
pleasures
lingonberry juice
juice and
and morning
morning saunas.
saunas.
lingonberry
The hotel
hotel opens
opens for
for business
business in
in mid-December
mid-December and
and closes
closes
The
by the
the end
end of
of April;
April; guests
guests normally
normally combine
combine aa night
night in
in
by
the Ice
Ice Hotel
Hotel with
with aa heated
heated stay
stay in
in nearby
nearby Kiruna.
Kiruna.
the
Ice Hotel;
Hotel; from
from 1600
1600 SEK
SEK aa person
person aa night
night
Ice
(about $230);
$230); icehotel.com.
icehotel.com.
(about
2. AA more
more serene
serene
2.
Serenissima
Serenissima
In spring,
spring, summer
summer and
and autumn
autumn it’s
it’s hard
hard to
to appreciate
appreciate the
the
In
dazzling, cinematic
cinematic beauty
beauty of
of Venice
Venice through
through the
the constant
constant
dazzling,
throng of
of fellow
fellow tourists.
tourists. So
So go
go in
in winter
winter instead,
instead, when
when mists
mists
throng
roll in
in from
from the
the Adriatic
Adriatic to
to shroud
shroud the
the Gothic
Gothic canalscapes
canalscapes with
with
roll
yet another
another layer
layer of
of wonder
wonder and
and timelessness.
timelessness. (It’s
(It’s even
even more
more
yet
sublime with
with aa light
light icing
icing of
of snow.)
snow.) Rain
Rain isis relatively
relatively scarce
scarce in
in
sublime
December and
and January
January and
and the
the mercury
mercury ebbs
ebbs to
to single
single figures
figures
December
perfect for
for ice
ice skating
skating in
in the
the Campo
Campo San
San Polo
Polo or
or exploring
exploring the
the
–– perfect
Palazzo Ducale,
Ducale, the
the Campanile
Campanile and
and the
the wealth
wealth of
of heavenly
heavenly
Palazzo
landmarks that
that are
are hell
hell to
to visit
visit in
in peak
peak season.
season. For
For those
those
landmarks
not averse
averse to
to hordes
hordes and
and exorbitant
exorbitant hotel
hotel rates,
rates, the
the famed
famed
not
Carnevale will
will run
run from
from January
January 26
26 to
to February
February 13
13 in
in
Carnevale
2013 with
with aa host
host of
of masked
masked balls,
balls, cultural
cultural events
events and
and
2013
free guided
guided tours
tours of
of such
such cultural
cultural institutions
institutions as
as
free
the Peggy
Peggy Guggenheim
Guggenheim Collection.
Collection.
the
See carnevale.venezia.it
carnevale.venezia.it for
for full
full
See
details. en.turismovenezia.it
en.turismovenezia.it
details.
94 ANZCA
ANZCA Bulletin
BulletinJune
June2012
2012
94
3. AA classic
classic white
white
3.
Christmas
Christmas
Christmas markets
markets (Christkindlmarkts)
(Christkindlmarkts) are
are found
found across
across
Christmas
German-speaking Europe
Europe but
but for
for the
the complete
complete fairytale
fairytale
German-speaking
experience, head
head to
to Vienna.
Vienna. The
The Austrian
Austrian capital
capital blazes
blazes
experience,
with bud
bud lights
lights and
and monumental
monumental public
public spaces,
spaces, such
such as
as the
the
with
Rathausplatz and
and Schonbrunn
Schonbrunn Palace,
Palace, transform
transform into
into festive
festive
Rathausplatz
markets fragrant
fragrant with
with spiced
spiced apple
apple punch
punch and
and pine
pine trees,
trees,
markets
gluhwein and
and gingerbread,
gingerbread, and
and laden
laden with
with Christmas
Christmas decorations
decorations
gluhwein
and gifts.
gifts. Most
Most markets
markets hang
hang out
out their
their shingles
shingles from
from
and
mid-November and
and continue
continue trading
trading until
until December
December 23,
23,
mid-November
ahead of
of the
the traditional
traditional Christmas
Christmas Eve
Eve or
or Heiliger
Heiliger
ahead
Abend celebration
celebration of
of tree-trimming,
tree-trimming, carol-singing
carol-singing
Abend
and present-giving.
present-giving. Wien.info
Wien.info
and
4. Snow
Snow time
time
4.
Avid skiers
skiers will
will already
already have
have their
their favourite
favourite
Avid
alpine escapes
escapes earmarked,
earmarked, and
and be
be aware
aware that
that the
the
alpine
minimum booking
booking period
period at
at many
many European
European resorts
resorts can
can
minimum
be up
up to
to 10
10 days
days (compared
(compared with
with one
one week
week in
in the
the US).
US).
be
The cheapest
cheapest time
time to
to visit
visit isis pre-Christmas,
pre-Christmas, when
when crowds
crowds
The
are thin
thin on
on the
the ground
ground but
but the
the powder
powder can
can be
be too.
too. One
One sure
sure
are
way to
to take
take the
the hassle
hassle out
out of
of alpine
alpine highs
highs ifif you’re
you’re travelling
travelling via
via
way
London: every
every weekend
weekend during
during the
the ski
ski season,
season, Eurostar
Eurostar operates
operates
London:
special Ski
Ski Train
Train direct
direct from
from London
London St
St Pancras
Pancras to
to French
French ski
ski
aa special
resorts such
such as
as Courchevel,
Courchevel, Méribel
Méribel and
and Val
Val d’Isère.
d’Isère. The
The Friday
Friday
resorts
night service
service will
will have
have you
you on
on the
the slopes
slopes by
by Saturday,
Saturday, and
and
night
there’s also
also aa Saturday
Saturday morning
morning departure
departure that
that arrives
arrives in
in time
time
there’s
for the
the evening’s
evening’s après-ski.
après-ski. Raileurope.com.au
Raileurope.com.au
for
5. Xocolate
Xocolate
5.
The Spanish
Spanish antidote
antidote to
to winter
winter isis simple
simple and
and
The
delicious –– mugs
mugs of
of steaming
steaming hot
hot chocolate
chocolate that
that
delicious
have been
been enjoyed
enjoyed by
by the
the elite
elite since
since Cortes
Cortes first
first
have
brought this
this Aztec
Aztec delicacy
delicacy from
from the
the New
New World
World in
in the
the
brought
16th century.
century. There’s
There’s no
no more
more atmospheric
atmospheric place
place to
to indulge
indulge
16th
than in
in Barcelona’s
Barcelona’s Carrer
Carrer de
de Petritxol,
Petritxol, aka
aka Chocolate
Chocolate Street
Street
than
Gothic laneway
laneway lined
lined with
with restored
restored mosaics
mosaics and
and art
art galleries
galleries
–– aa Gothic
where the
the aromas
aromas of
of churros
churros and
and xocolate
xocolate perfume
perfume winter
winter days.
days.
where
Catalans are
are so
so mad
mad about
about the
the stuff
stuff they
they even
even make
make aa chocolate
chocolate
Catalans
sausage –– the
the best
best isis from
from the
the superb
superb smallgoods
smallgoods store
store La
La
sausage
Botifarreria de
de Santa
Santa Maria
Maria (labotifarreria.com).
(labotifarreria.com).
Botifarreria
In Madrid,
Madrid, join
join the
the huddled,
huddled, happy
happy masses
masses at
at Chocolateria
Chocolateria San
San
In
Ginés, open
open till
till 7am
7am daily
daily (Pasadizo
(Pasadizo de
de San
San Ginés,
Ginés, in
in the
the city
city
Ginés,
centre near
near Puerta
Puerta del
del Sol).
Sol). Spain.info
Spain.info
centre
95
95
6. Auction
stations
Forget Louis Vuitton and Isabel Marant – for
a Parisian purchase to really cherish, head to the
city’s most famous auction house, Drouot. Furniture
designer Nicolas Blandin knows the labyrinthine salons and
idiosyncracies of this 9th arondissement landmark better than
most and can advise visitors on the smartest buys, whether it
is Second Empire objets d’art, Mapplethorpe photography or
Congolese fetish art. Major sales – the contents of a chateau,
for example – tend to be major social events and Blandin is an
engaging interlocutor between outsiders and the inner circle.
Serious buyers should set aside at least two days, one to
preview the sales (there are 21 salons to sift through) and
another for the live auction. Blandin knows the city’s flea
markets intimately too. His promise to prospective buyers
is to explain the art market and flea markets to them
and ensure they buy “at the right price and
feel comfortable”. Contact him at nicolas.
[email protected]; nicolasblandindesign.blogspot.com.
7. In with a show
Even in the winter doldrums, London’s cultural
calendar never wanes. The English capital offers
something for almost everyone in its winter exhibitions,
which range from an exhibition of British ballgowns
at the V&A Museum (until January 6, vam.ac.uk) to the
Science Museum’s centenary show honouring Alan Turing,
the computer pioneer and Enigma codebreaker (until June
20, 2013, sciencemuseum.co.uk). Tate Britain is exhibiting
more than 150 works by the ever popular Pre-Raphaelites (until
January 13) while Tate Modern looks at the brief, bizarre reign
of the Vienna Actionists (until April 13, tate.org.uk). Over at
the National Gallery, Seduced by Art: Photography Past and
Present, explores the influence of Old Masters’ painting on
photography (until January 20, nationalgallery.org.uk).
96
ANZCA Bulletin June 2012
The Alfred Intensive Care
Upcoming Events Program
The profits from courses are 100% allocated to research, education, projects
and equipment for The Alfred ICU.
Major Events in 2012
Inaugural Renal Support in the Critically Ill Conference
Our international guest speaker John Kellum will be joined by rinaldo
Bellomo, Carlos scheinkestel and Ian Baldwin for a full day of
presentations for all medical and nursing practitioners in intensive care
with an interest in critical care nephrology and renal replacement therapy
(rrT). A satellite hands-on practical session for nursing and interested
medical staff will run concurrent to the afternoon session. This session
will focus on the equipment, skills, troubleshooting and practical issues
required for setting up and running rrT within the ICU.
17 July 2012 registration $330 – 700
Basic Assessment & Support in Intensive Care
Two day introduction course for medical staff new to intensive care
and care of the critically ill.
6 & 7 August, 7 & 8 november 2012 registration $650
Bronchoscopy for Critical Care
All you need to know about fibre optic intubation, massive pulmonary
haemorrhage, bronchial lavage, foreign body removal and safe
bronchoscopy in critically ill patients. Interactive and simulation
based course.
7 september 2012 the Friday prior to Echocardiography
registration $800 - $990 Early bird $700 - $850 by 29 June 2012
4th Alfred International Symposium on ECMO & VAD
Support in Critical Care
The 2 day symposium will examine the latest device developments in the
field of ECLs support and include contributions from leading International
speakers marco ranieri (Italy) daniel Brodie, John Kellum & steven Conrad
(UsA) and speakers from across Australia. This meeting is being held in
conjunction with the Extracorporeal Life support Organisation (ELsO).
An optional hands on session with live models is available for physicians
wanting to develop competency in percutaneous ECmO cannulation.
nurses workshop day will be held at The Alfred on Friday 20 July & is free
for all nurses attending this symposium.
Two day symposium 18 & 19 July 2012 registration $850 – $1600
symposium plus Cannulation 18 & 19 plus 20 July 2012 registration $3100
The Alfred Critical Care Echocardiography Course
Two day course covering problem orientated approach to
echocardiography in critically ill patients. Emphasis on echo guided
management of the critically ill. Content tailored to suit participant’s echo
experience with a favourable faculty : participant ratio providing ample
hands on experience.
10 & 11 september 2012 registration $1750
ICU & Perfusion Adult ECMO Course
Two day course for doctors, nurses & perfusionists seeking to provide
ECmO support to patients with severe forms of cardiac and respiratory
failure. Optional third day for cannulation training.
3rd Alfred ICU Nutrition in the Critically Ill Symposium
2 day Course 17 &18 October 2012 registration $800
Course and 1 day Cannulation 16 or19 October 2012 registration $2300
Two days of keynote lectures, up-to-date reviews, recent research and case
presentations. For doctors, nurses and dietitians who deal with the sickest
patients in our hospitals. International guest speaker: Pierre singer - Israel
9 & 10 november 2012. registration $600 - $750 Early bird $500 - $650
by 14 september 2012
Advanced Life Support (ALS) Provider Course
Two day Australian resuscitation Council accredited adult life support
provider training in advanced cardiac arrest and medical emergency
management for doctors, nurses and paramedics.
27 & 28 August, 11 & 12 October, 3 & 4 december 2012
registration $770 - $1550
The HEaRT Course – Haemodynamic Evaluation
and Related Therapies
This two day course is designed for doctors and nurses working in
all critical care areas including intensive care, theatres, coronary care
& emergency & aims to improve understanding of the physiology,
measurement, monitoring & support of the cardiovascular system. With
practical sessions in small groups, there are only limited places available.
23 & 24 August 2012 registration $670 - $1100 Early bird $600 – 990
by 21 June 2012
For further information or to register online www.alfredicu.org.au/courses
Contact: Cathy Oswald Ph: +61 3 9076 5397 E: [email protected]
ALS or BASIC Contact: Kate Pearce
Ph: +61 3 9076 5404 E: [email protected] Prices are subject to change
AdvErTIsEmEnT
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