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• Dr Jaimin Arya, ST6, East Midlands Deanery

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

Over the years both the College and the ME Association have been receiving a number of enquiries from patients living with ME/CFS bemoaning the lack of information on how anaesthesia might affect their condition, but also seeking reassurances that their needs in the perioperative period would be met with understanding and compassion. 

The College acknowledged that there was not much in the way of information to support these patients nor the anaesthetists looking after them, and agreed that this gap needed to be addressed given the relatively high occurrence of the condition in the UK. Current reports estimate that there are 250,000 people living with ME/CFS at any one time in the UK, but this is likely to be a gross underestimate as traditionally it is poorly diagnosed, and many Long COVID patients fulfil ME/CFS diagnostic criteria. The most recent ONS survey reports 1.7 million people in the UK living with Long COVID.

This was new territory for the College, as producing information without a comprehensive body of evidence for such a poorly understood medical condition was something we had never done before.

In this short interview, Dr Sam Black, our Patient Information Lead, explores the key things to consider when communicating risk to patients with Leila Finikarides, Researcher at the Winton Centre, and Jenny Westaway, Chair of PatientsVoices@RCoA.

Since early 2024, the Patient Information Group has been working with the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication to ensure that our information for patients on risk reflects the latest best practice and learning from the work of the Centre.

We hope you find the interview an interesting insight into our work in this area.

This article looks at why the NHS needs international medical graduates (IMGs) and why we need to do better at integrating them into the workforce to maximise their contribution.

The General Medical Council’s Workforce report 2023 emphasises that the current reliance of the NHS on IMGs will continue in the future, despite an expansion of medical school places. The GMC predicts that almost a third of all doctors will be IMGs by 2036. It declares that the ‘integration and retention….must be improved’ and describes as essential that these colleagues are ‘welcomed into supportive teams’.

The way we welcome our international colleagues not only determines the extent to which they can contribute safely to the service, but also how easy it is to recruit and retain them. Our attitude should include a willingness to learn from their previous expertise and their ability to look at our services with fresh eyes.

Find out the latest appointments approved, and with sadness we record the deaths of some of our fellows. 

The College hosts regular online ‘Let’s Talk’ events for our members. These meetings are an opportunity for you to talk with College representatives about whatever’s on your mind. 

You might have questions or feedback for us, or you might want to share your views or experiences on any number of issues affecting the specialty.

I’ve been wondering recently how far I should be embracing or resisting my own background when speaking as a patient voice.

I took on the role of Chair of PatientsVoices@RCoA in September, and I’ve found it fascinating to learn about a whole range of issues that are new to me and to contribute to discussions about them. But I’ve also been struck by how often I’ve found myself thinking that the need for good communications lies at the heart of whichever issue is under discussion. And I’ve been wondering whether that reflects the reality, or my own particular interests.

Questions around financial viability, impact on relationships with the ‘parent’ College, and loss of corporate strength are all concerns I’ve heard following FICM’s statement. 

You might be interested to know that they were also the exact ones expressed at the time the Faculty of Anaesthetists went through their own journey.¹ The journey leading to the formation of the RCoA was not without setbacks and differences of opinion. Faculty board are cognisant of that history, and so are mindful that for our part discussions leading up to our separation are based in a friendly and constructive spirit.

This credentialing journey has been one long road, but 2024 will finally see us making further inroads.

When the General Medical Council recently approved the ‘Curriculum for the Credential for the Specialist in Pain Medicine’, we were delighted that six years of hard work has come to fruition.

To date, specialist training in pain medicine has largely only been open as part of the CCT training in anaesthesia or post-CCT for a small number of consultants who opted to pursue training.