SWAPNet has gone global, with its Co-Chair, Dr Jane Elms, presenting at the World Airway Management Meeting (WAMM) in Amsterdam.
Dr Elms presented on the network's Difficult Airway Alert Working Group, with the WAMM program also incorporating the annual scientific meetings of the Difficult Airway Society (DAS), the Society for Airway Management (SAM) and the European Airway Management Society (EAMS). This combination led to a highly successful congress that included an eclectic program of lectures, workshops and social events for a worldwide and world-class meeting.
Reflecting on her experience, Dr Elms said: 'The conference was not only a wonderful experience for me as an anaesthetist with a special interest in airway management, mixing with and learning from world leaders in the field it also provided me with a unique opportunity to showcase the ground breaking work we have been doing here in Queensland with the development and roll out of our Difficult Airway Alert.'
The Queensland Difficult Airway Alert is strongly supported by the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA), and has been adopted by the Royal Hobart Hospital, New South Wales Ministry of Health, and the Mater, St Andrews and Uniting Care private hospitals in Queensland. The working group is currently negotiating its inclusion in the My Health Record.
'The more we promote its use, and the more it is adopted, the more lives we save and that is what we have strived for from the outset,' Dr Elms said. 'It was exciting presenting our Difficult Airway Alert in this international forum and there was widespread disbelief at what we have achieved here in Queensland.'
'Credit should be given to the collaboration and support the working group received from SWAPNet, The Viewer architects and Health Informatic Services.'
