CSC Poster Prize Winner
Our congratulations to the following poster and survey prize winners from the Combined Scientific Congress Trainee poster prize session. All were recognised at the CSC Gala Dinner.
Combined ASA/NZSA Best Poster Prize
Dr Xianglin Yeaw & Prof Steve Shafer
Winner: Dr Xianglin Yeaw
Xianglin Yeaw undertook subspecialty fellowship training at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear and the Royal Women’s Hospital Melbourne, where she still continues to work and in Eastern Health (Victoria). She has academic interests in perioperative medicine and quality improvement.
Xianglin’s winning presentation for the Best Poster prize was a project to standardise regional anaesthesia trolleys across multiple campuses to reduce medication errors when performing blocks, and to improve efficiency amongst staff. Based on electronic surveys, and anchored using ANZCA PG51 (A) Medication Safety guidelines, 93% of anaesthetists reported being satisfied with the newly arranged block trolleys. 72% agreed that standardisation improved their work efficiency. Opinions were mixed on whether our interventions had reduced their error at work.
Dr Christine Wood & Prof Steve Shafer
Runner up: Dr Christine Wood
Christine Wood is an Advanced Trainee at Christchurch Hospital. She has a strong interest in wellbeing and trainee welfare, obstetric anaesthesia and perioperative medicine.
Christine’s Best Poster presentation was a 6-month retrospective audit of maternal outcomes and staff perspectives after a change in labour epidural analgesia pre-mix from ropivacaine 0.2% with fentanyl to bupivacaine 0.0625% with fentanyl.
There was no significant difference in modes of delivery between the groups. While most women received excellent analgesia from their epidurals, there was a statistically significant increase in the number of women who received no analgesia using the low-concentration bupivacaine pre-mix. Obstetric anaesthetists preferred using the previous ropivacaine pre-mix, reporting the low-concentration bupivacaine pre-mix increased their workload. Based on results of the audit, the Anaesthesia Department changed their protocols to reinstate the ropivacaine mixture.
Combined ASA/NZSA Trainee Member Audit/Survey Prize
Dr Robyn Scott
Winner: Dr Robyn Scott
Robyn Scott is a second year anaesthesia trainee at Te Whatu Ora-Waitaha Canterbury, New Zealand. A love for golf led to Robyn completing a BSc (physiology) in the United States while on combined golf/academic scholarships. She has worked as a respiratory physiologist, completing her post-graduate diploma in respiratory science. The physiology-heavy specialty of Anaesthesia was a natural fit following the completion of her MBChB and over the course of her training, Robyn developed a growing interest in the topic of well-being. “I firmly subscribe to the notion that our workplace and training programme should cultivate a culture that promotes positive well-being and align with New Zealand’s health model, Te Whare Tapa Whā, which embodies the four pillars of wellbeing: taha tinana – physical, taha hinengaro – mental, taha wairua – spiritual and taha whanau – family.”
Robyn’s winning Audit/Survey Prize presentation focused on her interests in well-being, with the Physician Well-Being Index screening tool revealing that almost 20% of Canterbury Waitaha senior medical officers and 25% of anaesthesia trainees reached the threshold for distress. When weighted to increase the sensitivity for suicidal ideation, 60% of trainees reached the threshold for distress. Personal well-being was constrained by many organisational factors, but the importance of collegiality was affirmed. These results are important to inform initiatives to improve well-being in her department.
Dr Alexandra Frankpitt & Prof Steve Shafer
Commendation: Alexandrea Frankpitt
Alexandrea Frankpitt undertook her survey project whilst working as a trainee at Te Whatu Ora- Waitaha, Canterbury, where she is now a specialist Amaesthetist. Alex’s clinical interests include vascular and hepatobiliary anaesthesia. Her non-clinical interests include medical education and quality improvement in the perioperative journey.
Her commended presentation, with the support of Drs Jon Jarratt and Mehreen Farrowwas was an audit of postoperative blood pressure management following carotid endarterectomy (CEA) at Christchurch Hospital. Uncontrolled hypertension or hypotension is common following CEA, and increases the risk of complications, but local practice was variable, and no local guidelines for PACU management existed. Her project found quality gaps in her institution’s care with respect to documentation of postoperative BP targets, and escalation and management of postoperative hypertension and hypotension. The audit has since informed a quality improvement initiative including a practice guideline and education package.
