Completion of Week 3

Well done: you have now completed over half of the learning material in Airway Matters.

This week we have discussed an often overlooked, critical phase of airway management: extubation. We then learnt about managing the obstructed airway: how to recognise it, what to do and how to buy time. At the end of the week we hope you enjoyed exploring safety aspects of a number of special airway technique: awake fibreoptic intubation, jet ventilation, and the use of LASER, as well as the use of high flow nasal oxygenation as THRIVE.

Next week we will be focussing on altered airways: patients with tracheostomies and laryngectomies. We will introduce you to Jen Taylor, a patient who underwent major head and neck surgery, and hear her experiences of having surgery and living with a tracheostomy. We will also be looking at the difficulties of managing airways on the Intensive Care Unit as well as in the pre-hospital setting. Please do move on when you are ready.

We would like to know if anything that you have learnt so far in this course has inspired you in either changing your practice or set up a new initiative in your workplace, such as multidisciplinary training, mannequin practice, change layout or equipment, etc…please write your ideas in the discussion.