Author: Professor Joyce Yeung, Director, RCoA Centre for Research & Improvement; NIHR National Specialty Lead for Anaesthesia, Perioperative Medicine, and Pain Management; Professor of Anaesthesia and Critical Care Medicine, University of Warwick
Anaesthesia and perioperative research in the UK have undergone notable transformation over the past two decades. Once described as facing a ‘severe crisis’ due to diminishing academic output and an increasingly stretched workforce, the specialty has since seen encouraging signs of revival.
Nationally coordinated initiatives and structural changes have helped rebuild a foundation for academic activity. Still, progress hasn’t been without its challenges, and many barriers remain.