Health
World Anaesthesia Day: Anaesthetists urge government to equip theatres, ICUs
Janet Ogundepo
The Nigerian Society of Anaesthetists has called on the Federal and state governments to ensure that operating theatres and intensive care units across the country meet minimum safety standards, warning that inadequate monitoring equipment in some health facilities remains a concern for safe anaesthesia.
The society made the call in a statement issued on Thursday to mark World Anaesthesia Day 2026, celebrated on Friday, October 16, with the theme, “Before, During and Beyond Surgery.”
The statement, signed by the President of the NSA, Prof Alhassan Datti Mohammed, and its Public Relations Officer, Dr Agwu Nnanna, also called for adequate support for training and equipping operating theatres and intensive care units.
“NSA therefore calls for adequate support for training and equipping of our operating theatres and ICUs to meet minimum safety standards,” the statement read in part.
The society said anaesthetists played a critical role in ensuring that patients were fit for surgery, remained safe and pain-free during procedures, and recovered safely afterwards.
It noted that their responsibilities extended beyond administering anaesthesia to include patient safety in the Post Anaesthesia Care Unit and Intensive Care Unit.
“Anaesthetists are the guardians of patient safety. Our work goes far beyond putting patients to sleep. We ensure that patients are fit for surgery before, keep them alive and pain-free DURING, and ensure they recover safely beyond surgery in Post Anaesthesia Care Unit (PACU) or Intensive Care Unit (ICU),” the society noted.
In a message to members ahead of the celebration, Mohammed said the speciality had evolved from administering anaesthesia to becoming central to patient safety.
He said the theme highlighted the role of anaesthetists as perioperative physicians whose responsibilities began with preoperative evaluation and preparation and continued through surgery and recovery.
“Our vigilance begins with preoperative evaluation and optimisation, continues with safe anaesthesia during surgery, and extends to postoperative pain management, ICU care, and resuscitation beyond the operating room,” he said.
The NSA president urged anaesthetists to promote patient-centred perioperative care and insist on minimum safety standards in hospitals.
He stressed that patients should not undergo surgery without safe anaesthesia.
The society also called on the Federal and state governments to provide adequate support for training and equipping operating theatres and intensive care units to meet minimum safety standards.
It further urged the governments to improve the remuneration and welfare of anaesthetists to retain the workforce, while pledging to sustain continuous training, advocacy and collaboration to reduce anaesthesia-related maternal and surgical mortality.
Mohammed also called on public and private healthcare institutions to mark World Anaesthesia Day through public enlightenment campaigns, school visits and media engagements to raise awareness of the role of anaesthetists.
World Anaesthesia Day marks the birth of modern anaesthesia. The NSA said it was joining the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists to highlight the often-unseen contribution of anaesthetists to Nigeria’s healthcare system.
The society commended its members for continuing to protect patients, often under difficult working conditions.
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