Anaesthesia as a development policy issue was first addressed in 1989 at the German Anaesthesia Congress in Bremen. The aim was twofold:
- to raise awareness of the work of German anaesthesiologists in Third World countries and
- to describe the situation of anaesthesiology in the ‘Third World’ and make it a subject of support by industrialised countries.
A group of anaesthetists in the German Society for Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine and in the Professional Association of German Anaesthetists, most of whom had personal experience in developing countries, subsequently founded a permanent commission on ‘Anaesthesia and the Third World’. This commission saw its goals as raising awareness of the specific anaesthesiological needs in developing countries and creating a forum for the exchange of experiences. The first training events and preparatory courses for medical and non-medical personnel for anaesthesiological work in developing countries and in the context of humanitarian aid were held in Göttingen in 1992 and 1993.
The association ‘Anaesthesia in Developing Countries’ was founded in March 1994 under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. D. Kettler and replaced the commission. It is one of the working groups within the German Society for Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine.
In order to disseminate knowledge about adapted anaesthesiological techniques in Germany and to raise awareness of development policy issues, the association has been holding regular events as part of the German Anaesthesia Congress since 1989 (see Events). Seminars on the topic of anaesthesia under simple conditions, aimed in particular at prospective development aid workers and medical students returning to their home countries, are organised as part of the Inwent medical programme in cooperation with the Department of Tropical Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Heidelberg. Refresher courses have been and continue to be supported in Ethiopia, Malawi and Uganda with speakers from the association. Prof. Dr. Kettler and Prof. Dr. Sonntag acted as external examiners at the first specialist examination in anaesthesiology in Ethiopia in 1993. For several years, the association’s activities have been supported primarily by the German Society for Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine.
Our goals:
The aim of the association is to contribute to improving the quality of anaesthesiological care in developing countries. This is to be achieved in particular through
- Planning and implementing training programmes with the aim of supporting and expanding existing human resources by means of adapted technology and adequate local materials, thereby reducing dependence on foreign aid
- Information and public relations work
- Cooperation with national and international development and aid organisations
A workshop on issues relating to anaesthesia in developing countries is held as part of the German Anaesthesia Congress.