The ANZCA Clinical Fundamentals define the fundamental specialty knowledge and skills of anaesthetists applicable across all areas of practice.
They are: general anaesthesia and sedation; airway management; regional and local anaesthesia; perioperative medicine; pain medicine; resuscitation, trauma and crisis management; and safety and quality in anaesthetic practice.
This guide contains resources to aid in developing knowledge and skills in these areas through training.
Guide index
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Safety & quality in anaesthetic practice
Recommended resources are listed below.
Additional safety & quality in anaesthetic practice resources can be accessed via the Safety & quality resources guide, the Drug information guide and the ANZCA and FPM CPD Program resources guide.
Key texts
Anaesthetic Crisis Handbook by
This resource is for educational purposes as well as improving patient safety. It is aimed at a New Zealand audience and a resource for hospitals and staff local to my region to be able to access the resource.
Medication Safety during Anesthesia and the Perioperative Period by
With medication errors in healthcare an internationally recognised problem, this much-needed book delivers a comprehensive approach to understanding medication safety in the perioperative period. It reviews what medication adverse events are, and how often and where these errors occur, as well as exploring human cognitive psychology and explaining why things can go wrong at any time in a complex system.
Recommended texts
Anaesthetic Emergencies Handbook (Queensland Edition) by
The author describes this book as "an Australianized version of the Oxford Handbook of Anaesthetic Emergencies except it is briefer, more relevant and practicable."
Avoiding Common Anesthesia Errors, 2e by
The full-colour Avoiding Common Anesthesia Errors, significantly updated for this second edition, combines patient safety information and evidence-based guidance for over 300 commonly encountered clinical situations. With a format that suggests conversations between an attending and a trainee, the book helps you identify potential problems and develop a treatment plan to minimize the problem.
Complications in Anesthesia, 3e by 
Emergency Anesthesia Procedures by
Anesthesia emergencies can occur suddenly in the operating room or procedural areas, even with proper procedures and preparation. The anesthesia provider needs to be able to anticipate and quickly respond to these emergencies for a successful outcome. Checklists and cognitive aids can assist in predicting and quickly responding to an emergent event. Emergency Anesthesia Procedures describes the management of many of the anesthesia emergency events that can occur during a surgical procedure, and provides checklists and clearly defined steps designed to assist the reader during the management and response to an emergency. Each chapter provides symptoms and differential diagnoses as well as needed equipment and medications needed for a variety of emergent scenarios. Each chapter then presents a management strategy using clearly defined steps with tips on techniques to address the emergency, as well as how to address potential complications and pearls for success. As such, this book functions as a cognitive aid as well as an oral board review book and should appeal to established anesthesia providers as well as anesthesia providers in training.
Implementation Manual: WHO Surgical Safety Checklist, 1e by
The aim of the resulting WHO Surgical Safety Checklist First Edition (available at www.who.int/patientsafety/challenge/safe.surgery/en/index.html) is to reinforce accepted safety practices and foster better communication and teamwork between clinical disciplines. The Checklist is not a regulatory device or a component of official policy; it is intended as a tool for use by clinicians interested in improving the safety of their operations and reducing unnecessary surgical deaths and complications.
Patient Safety and Quality Improvement in Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine by
An accessible and richly illustrated guidebook to the most important methodologies and frameworks for improving safety and quality, written specifically for clinicians in anaesthesia and perioperative medicine. The book begins with chapters on design and the use of simulation to set the stage for successful quality improvement (QI) efforts before providing an in-depth look at the individual tools, reporting and use of databases. The following chapters then discuss the use of these tools and theories in practical projects. Finally, the book considers the difficult topic of people, communication and behaviour, importantly addressing the human factors that can make or break QI efforts. The book skilfully blends expert knowledge and valuable examples from years of experience and trials from varied providers to demonstrate the successful paths to improve patient outcomes. For clinicians, nurses and trainees in anaesthesia and perioperative medicine seeking tools and strategies to lead and participate in QI projects.
Learn@ANZCA
Use the links below to access additional support resources contained on the Learn @ANZCA platform.
Note: Resources located in Learn@ANZCA require that you first register before accessing.
Stop Before You Block
Stop Before You Block (SB4YB) is an initiative that started at Nottingham University Hospital in 2010 following a series of inadvertent wrong-sided nerve blocks. Below are some resources for anaesthesia departments to use in in the operating theatre and for educational purposes, and to help individual anaesthetists to take part in the “Stop before you block” campaign, supported by ANZCA.
ANZCA professional documents
Recommended professional documents are listed below. The full suite of ANZCA professional documents can be accessed via the college page.
Other recommended guidelines & resources
ANZCA resource guides
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