Advocating for high quality patient care
The Royal College of Anaesthetists’ Policy and Public Affairs team campaigns to ensure the best quality patient care in partnership with local and national governments.
We’re determined to do even more to improve the quality of patient care, giving patients the best experience of the health service, no matter who they are or where they live.
And, we want to play an even bigger role in shaping healthcare policy and practice by campaigning for change and working collaboratively with key partners and with local and national governments.
The College champions the central role of anaesthesia in patient care in five key ways:
- by ensuring that our members’ opinions are at the heart of our work
- by securing the RCoA's influence with key stakeholders and decision makers
- by communicating our work to medical and non-medical audiences
- by campaigning on the issues that matter to our members and the sector
- by supporting patients of all ages with a range of accessible patient information resources.
Find out more
Consultations and submissions
Contributing to consultation responses raises the profile of anaesthesia and places our specialty at the heart of UK health reform.
Coalitions
We're proud to be working with a range of influential coalitions, which are invaluable in our collaborative work to advocate for local, national and international policy change.
UK State of the Nation Report 2022
This report sets out how the NHS is in dire need of more anaesthetists.
UK State of the Nation Report 2024
While anaesthetist numbers have increased, the shortfall has increased even more.
Improving retention in anaesthesia 2021
This report outlines the factors affecting retention in anaesthesia and solutions to address this challenge.