Consultation into regulation of Anaesthesia Associates critical to delivering enhanced patient care

Responding to the launch of the Department of Health and Social Care's consultation on the regulation of healthcare professionals Professor Ravi Mahajan, President of the Royal College of Anaesthetists said:

“The Royal College of Anaesthetists welcomes the Department of Health and Social Care's consultation on the regulation of healthcare professionals. We have called for the statutory regulation of Anaesthesia Associates for many years and were pleased when the General Medical Council was appointed as the regulator. We believe this consultation is an important step towards ensuring they continue to provide high quality, safe care as part of a multi-professional team, led by a consultant anaesthetist.

“As we work to reduce the elective surgery backlog, we must reimagine the anaesthetic team and Anaesthesia Associates will become even more vital. Whilst they cannot replace their medical colleagues, they can and do complement, and support, their work in service provision. By becoming integrated within the medical team, Anaesthesia Associates, will help reduce pressure on clinicians, thereby helping to tackle fatigue and burnout in the workforce and, most importantly, ensuring patients continue to receive safe, timely care.  

“We will be speaking to our stakeholders and responding to the consultation on the proposed approach to introducing statutory regulation. We encourage others who will be affected by the changes to do the same.”