The anaesthetist in the operating theatre
The author retired from active practice, as a consultant anaesthetist in the British National Health Service during 1980 at the age of 60. He kept a detailed diary for the last full year as a consultant. One of the Editors suggested that the diary, augmented by his considered views culled from the experiences of a professional lifetime, could form the basis of a series of essays on various aspects of the life and practice of a consultant anaesthetist during the second half of the twentieth century. This essay considers the often unrecognised influence the anaesthetist can have in ensuring that the best possible conditions for the successful surgical treatment of the patient are created in the operating theatre. Copyright © 1982, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved