Consultant or other autonomously practising anaesthetist support should be contactable at all times and have a response time for attendance on site of not more than half an hour to attend the delivery suite and maternity operating theatre. The supervising anaesthetist should not therefore be responsible for two or more geographically separate obstetric units.
Disparities in clinical academia stem from the intersection of ethnicity and gender, in addition to other contributing factors, including lack of mentorship, systemic biases, and the ‘minority tax’. For ethnic minorities, the negative correlation between clinical time and scholarly productivity diverts time away from career advancement, hindering their professional growth compared to peers.
Embracing research diversity improves care equity, reduces differential attainment for anaesthetists, and bridges gaps in academic leadership. It promotes equity-minded environments and builds a workforce that reflects the population it serves. This article examines these disparities and efforts to improve diversity in anaesthesia research.
The lead obstetric anaesthetist should audit and monitor the duty anaesthetist workload to ensure that there is sufficient provision for the busyness of the unit.
The department should have a policy on providing breaks for anaesthetists working solo which might include discussing breaks as part of the theatre team brief and providing a ‘floating’ anaesthetist to help with breaks in the theatre suite. If breaks are unavailable, then this should be formally recorded and included in the organisation’s risk register.
