Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation
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Many of the advances in health care in Australasia that are crucial to the safety and well-being of patients in acute care and life-threatening situations owe their origins to pioneering research undertaken by ANZCA Fellows. Despite this, research funding in Australia in the areas of anaesthesia, pain medicine and intensive care is the lowest of all medical specialties.
ANZCA established the Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation in 2007 to support research. Its mission is to:
- Increase the safety and comfort of patients undergoing anaesthesia and sedation.
- Improve outcomes for critically ill patients following surgery or trauma.
- Improve the treatment of acute pain, cancer pain and persistent non-cancer pain, focusing attention on "pain relief as a basic human right".
Objectives
- Further refinement and implementation of highly promising new methods for treating acute pain (for example, after surgery, trauma) to enable more rapid recovery.
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Research into new techniques and drugs in sedation and anaesthesia for rapid and high quality recovery for patients.
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Brain monitoring during anaesthesia to give new insights into the way anaesthesia and the brain work, and which could also prevent awareness under anaesthesia – one of the major fears of patients having surgery.
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Further development of anaesthesia simulators and other sophisticated medical simulators, which hold great promise of major advances in the management of critical incidents in operating theatres, emergency rooms and many other settings.
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Initiating new strategies to attack the massive problem of persistent pain in non-cancer patients.
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Improving methods of prevention and treatment of post-operative problems such as headache, vomiting, fatigue and memory loss.
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Increasing quality and safety in perioperative medicine.
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Developing useful therapies to stop or to treat acute circulatory failure perioperatively.
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Implementing new strategies to fight perioperative infections; a major cause of death in critically ill patients.
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Launching a major attack on cancer pain in adults and children (nine out of 10 terminally ill children suffer substantially from pain in their last month of life).
Foundation board
The Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation is governed by a community-based board of directors under the patronage of Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce, AC, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia.
For further information about the Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation please email:ANZCA_Foundation@anzca.edu.au
| ANZCA title | Name | External title |
| Chair (acting) |
Professor Kate Leslie | ANZCA President |
| Mr Neil Batt, AO | Executive Director, Australian Centre for Health Research |
|
| Mr Michael Gorton |
Honorary College Solicitor Partner, Russell Kennedy Lawyers |
|
| Ms Yvonne Kenny, AM | Opera diva | |
| Dr Roderick Deane | Chairman, Pacific Road Group | |
| Dr Leona Wilson, ONZM |
Past ANZCA President Specialist Anaesthetist, Wellington Hospital |
|
| Mr John Astbury | Director, Woolworths Fellow AICD |
|
| Mr Geoffrey Linton | Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia | |
| Ex officio | Professor Kate Leslie | ANZCA President |
| Ex officio | Professor Alan Merry, ONZM |
Chair, ANZCA Research Committee |
| Ex officio | Associate Professor David Scott | Deputy Chair, ANZCA Research Committee |
| General Manager, Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation | Robert Packer |
ANZCA |
ANZCA Collection
The ANZCA Collection includes a range of beautiful products designed for the College and available for purchase by Fellows. Profits from the sale of the merchandise support the College's medical research and education programs managed by ANZCA's Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation. Click here to see the collection.
Fellows
