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• Dr Stuart Connal, Specialty Registrar in Anaesthesia, North Central London Deanery

Perioperative Journal Watch is written by TRIPOM (trainees with an interest in perioperative medicine – tripom.org) and is a brief distillation of recent important papers and articles on perioperative medicine from across the spectrum of medical publications.

‘Who still uses succinylcholine?’ would be the first thought that comes to your mind on reading the title. But I am sure some of the experienced anaesthetists still have a soft corner and an emotional bond towards this wonderful short-and swift-acting champion.

I take this opportunity to share my experience with succinylcholine, which happened when I was new to the UK and trying to find my feet.

A 16-year-old boy presented to A&E with torsion testis and was posted for urgent surgical repair in the CEPOD theatre. Within the limited time available, I had taken a brief history and nothing was significant in it. He had never been exposed to anaesthesia in the past, and his parents had undergone general anaesthesia in the past but had no issues. He had food two hours before coming to the hospital.

In previous updates I have written about the changes to our governance which have reshaped our Council and Board of Trustees

Last year the Privy Council approved amendments to the College’s Charter and Ordinances, which enabled us to comply more completely with Charity Commission regulations, manage the College more transparently, and improve our efficiency. As part of our ongoing programme of improvements last summer the College’s governance team circulated a board skills audit to our elected Council members, Trustees and Executive Team. The audit's aim was to identify the skills, experience and knowledge that would most benefit the College over the coming years.

Trustees have responsibilities for the College’s finance and assets, delivery of our charitable objects, developing and implementing College strategy and ensuring legal and regulatory compliance. These are huge responsibilities and having expertise from outside our members’ clinical experience is extremely valuable. Lay trustees are a vital part of the Board of Trustees and directorate boards.

It's been a pleasure working with the Anaesthetists in Training Committee and the Bulletin editorial team, but we will soon be handing over the reins to new representatives as we've moved on to start consultant jobs.

So, for our last training issue of the Bulletin, we thought it would be fitting to write about our personal experiences at the end of training and starting our new roles, along with some insight into how to get through the process smoothly.

Following our 2023 elections, we're delighted to have Dr Jon Chambers, Dr Paul Southall and Dr Sophie Jackman join our Council as consultant and anaesthetist in training members.

Dr Sarah Ramsay and Dr Matt Tuck have been re-elected for a second term as consultant and anaesthetist in training members respectively.

Dr David Urwin will be joining Council as a co-opted anaesthetist in training member, covering one of our trainee members who is on maternity leave.

We asked Jon, Paul, Sophie and David why they decided to stand for election – and more.

Since retirement, Dr Chadwick has been busy completing a Masters in Medical Humanities and History. In this article, he shows us how classic essays and a trip to an art gallery can enhance our skills in patient observation.

As medical students we were all taught the importance of ‘the golden minute of silence’ and of silently observing the patient and their surroundings. When conducting a weekly preoperative clinic, I always chose the room furthest from the waiting area so that I could watch the patient and accompanying partner walk the 25 metres into the clinical room.

Whether you are producing a report, a poster, or even revising your hospital’s anaesthetic charts, colour choice is important.

Choosing colours

A colour wheel is a simple tool to help choose colours and shades (Figure 1). Analogous colours are adjacent to one another, and generally combine well. Likewise, complementary colours (those opposite one another) work. Triadic schemes are based on three equally spaced colours, while quadratic schemes use four. Colour combinations found in nature are also considered pleasing.

Dear Editor

Arterial cannulation is a frequent practice that comes with its own set of risks and complications. We would like to report an incident that occurred in an obstetric HDU involving bleeding from an arterial catheter that could have led to severe complications.

A radial arterial cannula was inserted due to development of postpartum haemorrhage, cardiovascular instability and the need for massive blood transfusion. While the patient was monitored in HDU, an emergency call went out alerting the team about an arterial bleed possibly due to the patient’s positioning. The midwife present in the room applied manual pressure to the bleeding site with gauze. The anaesthetist on call asked what happened while taking over the manual pressure and explained to the patient that the insertion site needed to be inspected.

Perhaps you’d like to re-read a past issue? Our full selection of back digital issues has you covered and will keep you up-to-date and informed on what’s happening in our specialty. We hope you continue enjoying your membership magazine.