15 November 2018 Volume :6 Issue :59

Physician Wellness at the Core of UKZN World Anaesthesia Day Celebrations

Highlights at the World Anaesthesia Day celebrations at UKZN.

UKZN’s Discipline of Anaesthesiology celebrated Anaesthesiology and Critical Care World Anaesthesia Day (WAD) 2018- highlighting physician wellness.

The day is celebrated internationally and marks the anniversary of the first ether anaesthetic demonstrated in 1846 by William TG Morton in Boston in the United States.

Members of the Discipline at UKZN encouraged hospitals in the Durban and Pietermaritzburg areas to use the day as an opportunity to reach out to patients and clinicians to celebrate the important work being done in the field.

Posters were made and distributed to participating public hospitals.

‘As a department, our focus this year was on physician wellness,’ said Dr Chloe van den Bosch, a specialist anaesthesiologist based at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH) in Durban. ‘Globally burnout among doctors is an epidemic as many of them are at breaking point. UKZN World Anaesthesia Day 2018 provided a platform to highlight the importance of physician wellness as healthy physicians make for healthy and safe patients.’

Themed Livewell, the 2018 campaign inspired participating hospitals to do something to promote physician wellness. Anaesthetic doctors and nurses embraced the campaign through a variety of activities.

UKZN’s involvement was initiated by van den Bosch and colleagues Dr Janine Carim and Dr Stefne Verwey, who were given full support by HOD, Dr Dean Gopalan, as well as guidance from departmental secretaries Ms Camy Singh and Ms Londiwe Cebekhulu.

Words: Lihle Sosibo 

Photographs: Supplied

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