Obsgynaecritcare

The emergency pager goes off - code blue medical on the gynaecology surgical ward. As you enter the ward a frantic grim faced nurse waves you into the side room where you discover an elderly woman who is obviously cyanosed, not really conscious and struggling vigorously to breath. She has a hudson mask on her face and there is an obvious tracheostomy tube protruding from her neck. One of the nurses tell you she had a laparotomy for ovarian cancer earlier that day and that she has a long term tracheostomy after having had a throat cancer resected 5 years ago..... Hi Everyone, This week I am joined by another anaesthetist, Dr James Anderson to discuss the perioperative management of tracheostomies. Before seeing the light and jumping the drapes to become an anaesthetist James spent a year working as an ENT registrar and now he has an interest in teaching both perioperative and crisis management of patients with tracheostomies. He helps run tracheostomy crisis management courses at Fiona Stanley Hospital and h