We serve the top half on the North Island in these areas, a population of around 1.2 million. One important feature of our workload is the high incidence of acute cases. This adds a special kind of pressure to running the floor. Heart valve disease, secondary to rheumatic fever, is relatively common in our patient population. This presents particular challenges in obstetrics.
Regional anesthesia is a house specialty.
The steady stream of acute hand cases ensures that our trainees soon develop facility with brachial plexus blocks. We are still looking for an agent that will last as long as our surgeons take to repair nerves and tendons. We have 11 ORs, one dedicated to obstetrics and one in the day-stay unit. We run over 1,400 cases every month. The Australia and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists oversee training, much as the ABA does.