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As I sit down to write this article, I am very much aware that today is the anniversary of the death of my mother. A strong-minded, intelligent and, above all, proud woman, her greatest fear as she became increasingly physically frail was a loss of dignity, something she had witnessed in the slow demise of her own mother.

From middle age onwards, she wrote me detailed letters describing what she would and would not tolerate as she got older, and instructing me, the only doctor in the family, to do everything possible to help her to die peacefully when the intolerable became manifest. Sadly, the law forbade such measures and, despite receiving excellent care in her failing years, she suffered much of the indignity that she most feared before passing.

They're the fresh faces of anaesthesia and the future of our specialty.

We introduce you to some of our newest anaesthetists in training. We hope all of them and the rest of our trainees have very long, rewarding, and fulfilling careers as anaesthetists.

The NHS is facing a significant change due to changing demographics and needs of the population and workforce gaps, leading to a rise in international recruitment.

This has led to Health Education England setting out the national vision for the use of simulation to deliver high-quality patient care. Simulation enhances patient safety through a rehearsal of performance, multidisciplinary teamwork, decision-making, and communication skills. Simulation can be a powerful tool for change management, both as an educational tool and as a lens to the system design and processes.

In the operating theatre environment, the perpetual demands, emotional toll, and the need for precision contribute to the potential vulnerability of anaesthetic staff to burnout.

What is burnout?

Burnout, as recognised by the World Health Organization in the International Classification of Diseases, is a syndrome characterised by ‘symptoms’ in three domains:

• feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion
• increased mental distance from the job or feelings of negativity and cynicism related to the job
• reduced professional efficacy.

Burnout is not classified as a ‘health condition’. Instead, it is an occupational phenomenon and due to chronic, unmanaged, workplace stress. People who are burned out are also at high risk of developing mental health conditions, for example depression and generalised anxiety disorder.

Anaesthetic room walls are often covered with various posters and warnings reminding staff about recent incidents or safety hazards. Signs prompt us where to find dantrolene or intralipid, or how to confirm tube placement. 

When the RCoA changed its branding in 2016, professional designers were called in and consulted on the changes. When creating clinical informatics however, it is often left to clinicians; but a complex series of decisions that combine aesthetics, psychology, and ergonomics are required to make presentation effective.

In this, the first of a series of articles, we will explore some of the issues relevant to presenting information, beginning with iconography.

Interested in standing for a place on College Council? Self-nominations are currently open for three consultant positions and two positions for anaesthetists in training.

We asked Chris Taylor, Consultant Council member, and Catherine Bernard, Anaesthetist in Training Council member, why they decided to stand in last year’s election, and more.

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.

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.