Royal College of Anaesthetists

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Royal College of Anaesthetists
AbbreviationRCoA
FormationFaculty 1948;75 years ago (1948)
College 1992;31 years ago (1992)
Type Medical royal college
Focus Anaesthesia, critical care, pain medicine
HeadquartersChurchill House
35 Red Lion Square
London WC1R 4SG
United Kingdom
Coordinates 51°18′39″N0°04′16″W / 51.31097°N 0.07106°W / 51.31097; -0.07106
Region
United Kingdom
Membership (2019)
23,000
President
Fiona Donald
CEO
Jonathan Brüün
Patron
The Princess Royal
Affiliations Academy of Medical Royal Colleges
Staff (2019)
118
Website www.rcoa.ac.uk OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Churchill House, location of the Royal College of Anaesthetists The Royal College Of Anaesthetists, 35 Red Lion Square (geograph 1848505).jpg
Churchill House, location of the Royal College of Anaesthetists

The Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) is the professional body responsible for the specialty of anaesthesia throughout the United Kingdom. It sets standards in anaesthesia, critical care, pain management, and for the training of anaesthetists, physicians' assistants (anaesthesia), and practising critical care physicians. It also holds examinations for anaesthetists in training, publishes the British Journal of Anaesthesia , and informs and educates the public about anaesthesia. Its headquarters are in Churchill House, London.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Role

The College's activities are varied, but include the setting of standards of clinical care, establishing the standards for the training of anaesthetists and those practising critical care and acute and chronic pain management, setting and running examinations, and the continued medical education of all practising anaesthetists.[ citation needed ]

Publications

The College publishes guidance for its members and the GPAS standards. The College produces the Bulletin magazine, a quarterly member magazine.[ citation needed ]

History

The Royal College of Anaesthetists was awarded its royal charter in 1992, making it one of the youngest Royal Colleges of medicine. Prior to this time, it had existed as the College of Anaesthetists since 1988, when it split from the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Prior to 1988, it was known as the Faculty of Anaesthetists of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, which was formed in 1948. The roots of the college can be traced back to the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (AAGBI), which was set up in 1932 by Henry Featherstone and others, and continues today. The AAGBI derived from the Section of Anaesthetics of the Royal Society of Medicine because that was not allowed to engage in 'political' or 'trade union' activities nor as an examining body.[ citation needed ]

Coat of arms and motto

The coat of arms of the College shares some symbols and features with that of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. It also incorporates coca leaves to symbolise local anaesthesia, and opium poppy heads to symbolise sleep (the poppy head is symbolic of the Greek God Hypnos). The figures on either side of the shield (known as "supporters") are two pioneers of anaesthesia, John Snow and Joseph Thomas Clover. The College's motto is "Divinum sedare dolorem" (it is divine to alleviate pain). [1]

Examinations

Organisation

The College is made up from an elected Council of practising anaesthetists who elect a President and two Vice-Presidents from among their members. Particular areas of work are considered by Committees who report to the Council. As of September 2021, the President is Dr Fiona Donald and the Vice-Presidents are Dr Russell Perkins and Dr Helgi Johannsson. The patron of the Royal College of Anaesthetists is The Princess Royal.[ citation needed ]

Deans and presidents

Deans and presidents of the Faculty, College and Royal College are listed below with terms of office in brackets.

Deans

Presidents

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anesthesiology</span> Medical specialty concerned with anesthesia and perioperative care

Anesthesiology, anaesthesiology, or anaesthesia is the medical specialty concerned with the total perioperative care of patients before, during and after surgery. It encompasses anesthesia, intensive care medicine, critical emergency medicine, and pain medicine. A physician specialized in anesthesiology is called an anesthesiologist, anaesthesiologist, or anaesthetist, depending on the country. In some countries the terms are synonymous, while in other countries they refer to different positions and anesthetist is only used for non-physicians, such as nurse anesthetists.

The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA) is responsible for examining and qualifying anaesthetists in Australia and New Zealand. The College maintains standards of practice in anaesthesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland</span> Professional association for anaesthetists in the United Kingdom and Ireland

The Association of Anaesthetists, in full the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland (AAGBI), is a professional association for anaesthetists in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Thomas Cecil Gray CBE KCSG was a pioneering English anaesthetist.

The Primary FRCA is a postgraduate examination in anaesthesia, more fully called the Primary Examination of the Diploma of Fellowship of the British Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA).

In the United Kingdom, operating department practitioners (ODPs) are allied healthcare professionals who are involved in the planning and delivery of perioperative care. As the name suggests, they are primarily employed in surgical operating departments, but they may also work directly within a variety of acute clinical settings, including pre-hospital emergency care, emergency departments, intensive care units (ICUs), endoscopy suites, interventional radiology, cardiac catheter suites, obstetric theatres and reproductive medicine.

The Final FRCA is a postgraduate examination in anaesthesia, more fully called the Final Examination of the Diploma of Fellowship of the Royal College of Anaesthetists.

<i>British Journal of Anaesthesia</i> Academic journal

The British Journal of Anaesthesia is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal published by Elsevier on behalf of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the College of Anaesthesiologists of Ireland, and the Hong Kong College of Anaesthesiologists, for all of which it serves as their official journal.

Eric Anson was New Zealand's first specialist anaesthetist. He was the first President of the New Zealand Society of Anaesthetists (NZSA) and a member of the NZ Committee of the Faculty of Anaesthetists.

Gordon Jackson Rees was a British anesthesiologist, recognized as a pioneer in pediatric anesthesia.

The College of Anaesthesiologists of Ireland is the professional association and educational institution responsible for the medical specialty of anaesthesiology throughout Ireland. It sets standards in anaesthesiology, critical care, and pain medicine, and for the training of anaesthesiologists, critical care physicians and pain medicine physicians. It also holds examinations for anaesthesiologists in training, jointly publishes the British Journal of Anaesthesia and BJA Education, and informs and educates the public about anaesthesiology. Its headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland.

Aileen Kirkpatrick Adams is a British retired consultant anaesthetist.

Anna Batchelor is a British consultant physician, best known for her work in intensive care medical education. She was the first female Dean of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine between 2013 and 2016 and President of the Intensive Care Society from 2005 to 2007.

Liam Brennan is a consultant anaesthetist, deputy medical director of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and chair of the Centre for Perioperative Care. He was formerly president of the Royal College of Anaesthetists from 2015 to 2018. He specialises in anaesthesia in children and those with difficult airways and in plastic surgery. As vice chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, he has a significant role in quality improvement and Brexit issues. Brennan has in addition been editor of the British Journal of Anaesthesia.

Judith Hulf is a British anaesthetist. She was the president of the Royal College of Anaesthetists from 2006 to 2009.

Sir Donald Campbell was a Scottish anaesthetist and the dean of the Royal College of Anaesthetists from 1982–85.

Harold Sigismund Sington FRSE (1878–1956) was a 20th-century British physician and anaesthetist.

The World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists (WFSA) is an international federation of independent national professional associations of anaesthesiologists. The WFSA's Secretariat is based in London, UK.

Ravi Prakash Mahajan of the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, was president of the Royal College of Anaesthetists in 2018–21.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Gillies (anaesthetist)</span> Scottish anaesthetist

John Gillies, was a Scottish anaesthetist, who worked at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE). For gallantry as a serving soldier in WWI he was awarded the Military Cross. He founded the department of anaesthetics in the RIE and became its first director. The Gillies anaesthetic machine which he devised was the first British closed circuit anaesthetic device and was in use until the 1960s. With his colleague HWC ('Griff') Griffiths he pioneered the technique of high spinal anaesthesia to produce hypotension and 'bloodless' operating fields. Gillies anaesthetised King George VI in Buckingham Palace and was made Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) for this service. He was president of the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland from 1947 to 1950.

References

  1. "The College Crest". The Royal College of Anaesthetists. 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  2. "THE HISTORY OF ANAESTHESIA SOCIETY PROCEEDINGS — Vol 45: 25th Anniversary" (PDF). History of Anaesthesia Society. 2012.
  3. "Biography : Dr J-P van Besouw : President of the Royal College of Anaesthetists (2012–2015)" (PDF). Rcoa.ac.uk. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  4. "Dr Liam Brennan - The Royal College of Anaesthetists". Rcoa.ac.uk. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  5. Professor Ravi Mahajan. Royal College Of Anaesthetists. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  6. Royal College Of Anaesthetists. Retrieved 16 March 2019.