Working with the media

Our specialist Communications team proactively engages with the media to highlight the important work of our anaesthetists and pain specialists. This includes sharing our latest evidence-based research and patient safety initiatives.

We also actively encourage the media to contact us for expert comment and information about the health of the community.

Media releases

2024 media releases

16 October	Auckland City Hospital specialist features in patient safety campaign
16 October	Townsville doctor features in national patient safety campaign
16 October	Royal Adelaide Hospital anaesthetist features in national patient safety campaign
16 October	Westmead Hospital specialist features in national patient safety campaign
16 October	Austin Health specialist features in national patient safety campaign
16 October	Patients to benefit from new Tasmanian medical simulation project
16 October	‘You’re in safe hands’ national patient safety campaign launched
7 October	Patient care at risk under national plan to fast track overseas medical doctors
28 August	Joint ANZCA/ASA statement: IV fluid supply
31 July	New approach to pelvic pain treatment launched
23 July	Kombucha offshoot brews up fresh approach to anaesthesia training
22 May	Children to benefit from faster oxygen delivery during surgery
7 May	Gaps in hospital workplace support for specialist doctors post-pregnancy, survey finds
6 May	Two new leaders for ANZCA and FPM
5 May	Having your tonsils out could soon become a lot less painful
5 May	Faculty of Pain Medicine appoints Samoan health leader to vice dean role
5 May	Gaps in pelvic pain treatment highlighted at key medical meeting
4 May	Helping hand for patients anxious about hospital visits
3 May	Getting a good night's sleep could help prevent chronic pain
3 May	Can diet help chronic pain?
9 April	Peak pain bodies call for tougher controls for procedures
2 February	LOLIPOP trial receives $A3.8 million from UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Research
1 February	AI tool to predict patient risk for developing complications after major cancer surgery

2023 media releases

10 November	ANZCA launches karakia for patients and whānau
10 November	Health threat from vaping reaches epidemic levels among youth
16 October	ANZCA pilots new perioperative medicine diploma at New Zealand hospitals
16 October	Magic tricks helping to calm children before operations
16 October	Sickest patients to benefit from new campaign for faster recovery
7 October	Pain clinics seeing more patients faking illness because of social media, conference hears
6 October	National plan to help health workforce better manage patients’ pain launched
22 August	Delirium in older patients study awarded $4.1 million NHMRC grant
21 August	ROCKet funding boost for chronic post-surgical pain trial
20 July	Patient care project cuts serious complications and deaths after surgery
5 July	Surgery warning on use of popular weight loss drugs
9 May	Doctors urged to use words that help, not words that hurt
9 May	Museum’s oral history project draws on doctors’ COVID-19 experiences
7 May	Greatest risk to patients now in the days after surgery, medical conference hears
6 May	Anaesthetists and pain medicine specialists to meet in Sydney for keynote meeting
4 May	New clinical practice guideline a game changer for cancer treatment
3 May	Headaches and doctors’ burnout on the agenda for pain specialists’ meeting
1 May	Doctors' own experience of menopause under the microscope
15 March	SNaPP study receives $A2.9 million from the Medical Research Future Fund
1 March	Anaesthetists welcome cough medicine recall
31 January	Managing patient risk factors a key to successful surgery, say anaesthetists

2022 media releases

17 October	Children's recovery after surgery checklist a first for Australia
17 October	Campaign to ease children's fears about anaesthesia
15 October	Most Australians living with chronic pain miss out on best treatment, conference hears
14 October	Specialists call for better understanding of chronic pain resulting from COVID-19
31 May	Record grant for ANZCA CTN heart surgery infection trial
30 May	Carbon footprint of nitrous oxide should be explained to patients, anaesthetists say
23 May	PADDI wins top clinical trials award
3 May	Medical research still a men’s game and this needs to change, says top Australian clinical trials researcher, anaesthetist Professor Kate Leslie.
3 May	Fewer blood transfusions needed during surgery after patients given widely used drug, global study finds
2 May	Two new leaders for ANZCA and FPM
1 May	Women expected to tolerate pain of childbirth with 'epidural injustice' the result, conference hears
30 April	One in six children experience sleep problems after operations, says new Australian study
29 April	Migraines, opioids and spinal surgery key topics for pain meeting
28 February	Chronic pain patients lose out in $40 million cut to Australian pain services

2021 media releases

10 December	Media statement: Protected titles
2 December	Climate change is the biggest threat to health system
18 October	Australian study explores possible link between child allergies and antibiotics given during childbirth
18 October	Pain relief and having a baby: new campaign launched
29 September	Colleges collaborate to deliver new rural GP anaesthesia qualification
9 September	Anaesthetists call for mandatory vaccinations of all frontline health workers
26 August	Medical colleges welcome postponement of elective surgery
16 August	Medical colleges launch wellbeing charter for doctors
6 May	Dexamethasone treatment safe in surgery
3 May	Pain management in Australian hospitals still inadequate for some patients, anaesthetists warn
2 May	Three months after surgery many Australian patients are still taking opioid medication
1 May	COVID-19 a "call to arms" for action on obesity
30 April	Back pain image screening on rise despite calls to limit use
23 March	Doctors urged not to prescribe medicinal cannabis

2020 media releases

6 November	Golden hours after surgery the key to new model of patient care
16 October	New COVID-19 video campaign celebrates how anaesthetists are always ready
17 June	Joint FPM/NPS MedicineWise release on opioids
4 May	Two new leaders for ANZCA and FPM
17 April	Medical colleges support resumption of selective elective surgery for low-risk patients
26 March	Medical colleges express grave concerns at Federal Government move to extend private hospital elective surgery deadline
25 March	Medical colleges call for urgent freeze on all non-critical elective surgery
24 March	Anaesthetists support Prime Minister's call for level 4 COVID-19 alert
18 March	Elective surgery should focus only on patients in greatest need, anaesthetists say
13 March	ANZCA ASM cancelled
11 January	Donor hearts preserved for longer by WA team

2019 media releases

27 December	Hip and knee surgery study aims to cut hospital waiting lists
19 October	Call for exercise to be embedded into Australian cancer rehabilitation programs
18 October	Specialists call for better recognition of cancer pain
16 October	Chewing gum could be answer to debilitating post-op nausea
16 October	New Zealand gets its own surgical risk calculator
16 October	Anaesthetists warn of medication reactions during operations
13 October	People with type 2 diabetes urged to check medications before their operation
22 August	Better pain management can help New Zealand avoid an opioid crisis
22 August	Doctors need to get above the noise on social media
22 August	Catching the fraudsters in medical research
29 July	ANZCA announces new CEO
12 July	Medicinal cannabis is no silver bullet
17 June	Australia's peak pain organisations for health professionals welcome national plan for pain management
3 May	Clearer drug labels needed to avoid medication mix-ups, conference hears
2 May	Two-minute air test could replace chest x-rays, key scientific conference hears
1 May	90 per cent of hip or knee replacement patients are pre-obese or obese, says new research
30 April	Temper tantrums after a hospital stay: researchers explain why
30 April	108 year old woman is Australia's oldest hip replacement patient
29 April	The hidden cost of our digital lives revealed at key scientific conference
29 April	Light therapy reduces 'jet lag' and shortens hospital stays
28 April	Implantable medical devices -- the way of the future?
27 April	Chronic pain treatments and spinal cord stimulation key topics for international pain meeting
12 April	More action needed to limit opioid use after surgery: The Lancet
8 March	Burden of chronic pain in NZ worse than diabetes and dementia, says new report
1 March	Women and medicine in focus on 2019 International Women's Day
28 February	Pain medicine stories by the ABC and The Age joint winners of the ANZCA Media Award
15 February	Brief exposure to general anaesthesia is safe for young children: study

2018 media releases

22 December	Anaesthetists awarded key grant for pilot study into chronic pain after breast cancer surgery
12 December	NHMRC grant for breakthrough blood research
9 December	Anaesthetist awarded $4.88 million grant for cancer surgery research
4 December	Anaesthetists support Urgent Medical Treatment Bill
26 November	Top pain medicine body calls for new national pain device register
26 October	ANU's Dean of Medicine calls for more women specialists
19 October	Australian researchers search for "holy grail" of pain relief
17 October	Pain experts call on Minister Hunt to review $20 million pharmacy pain trial
16 October	Life-saving stroke treatment focus of new research
16 October	Anaesthetists push for targeted delirium and memory loss research
16 October	Botched cosmetic surgeries prompt new patient safety information
11 October	Chocolate-flavoured painkiller a breakthrough for children
12 September	Pain groups note passing of PHI reform legislation with some concern
28 August	New healthcare advice: Benzodiazepines will not help low back pain
28 August	Combined use of opioids and benzodiazepines can be fatal, FPM and ScriptWise warn
27 July	Climate smart anaesthesia under the microscope
13 June	Australia's escalating opioid use focus of pain forum
11 May	Medical emergencies occur during one in 400 Australian flights, says new study
11 May	Two new leaders for ANZCA and FPM
10 May	Australian-led global study unlocks the secret of IV fluid treatment for millions of patients
10 May	Needle phobias a real pain for many
10 May	Surgeon league tables under the microscope at scientific meeting
10 May	ANZCA joins global patient safety foundation
9 May	Specialist reveals challenges of treating Australia's most obese patients
8 May	Does anaesthesia affect my baby's brain?
8 May	Doctor stress, burnout and hospital rosters on agenda of key medical conference in Sydney
7 May	Space exploration or catching a wave: Kids taking charge of virtual reality in hospitals
6 May	Breakthrough blood test reveals colour of chronic pain
5 May	Headaches affect one in 150 women after they have been given epidurals
4 April	Prescribing slow-release opioids can be fatal, leading college warns
2 March	Anaesthesia and pain medicine stories joint winners of $5000 ANZCA Media Award
16 January	Hypnosis can help reduce anxiety in children before their operaiton
8 January	Clock ticking for over-the-counter codeine sales

For media releases issued prior to 2018, please contact us.

Media inquiries

For media inquiries please contact:

Carolyn Jones, Media Manager
Phone: +61 3 8517 5303
Mobile: +61 408 259 369
Email: [email protected]

Reon Suddaby, Senior Communications Advisor - New Zealand
Phone: +64 4 499 1213
Mobile: +64 21 228 8072
Email: [email protected]

Professional documents

Our professional documents, statements and guidelines are crucial for promoting the safety and quality of patient care for those undergoing anaesthesia for surgical and other procedures and for those receiving pain medicine treatment.

Find out more