Society for Pediatric Anesthesia - Global Committee

09/29/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Please welcome former SPA Global Scholar Dr. Olurotimi Aaron in sharing his words about the SPA Global Scholar Program and her achievements.
I am from Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex Ile-Ife, Nigeria and completed the SPA Global Scholars program on October 1-31, 2019 with Seattle Children’s Hospital.
My one-month Observership training as a Global Scholar was a truly enriching and transformative experience. I had the opportunity to observe preoperative assessments, intraoperative care and patient monitoring, pain management practices, and anaesthesia for diagnostic procedures in the radiological unit, as well as clinical rounds at the PICU. A major highlight was delivering a presentation at Seattle Children’s Hospital and a poster presentation at the ASA Conference, which provided platforms for academic engagement and professional growth. This experience also allowed me to connect with and learn from paediatric anaesthetists from across the world, including leading experts and authors, while building meaningful collaborations with fellow global scholars.

I am a Consultant Anaesthetist and Senior Lecturer at Obafemi Awolowo University and its Teaching Hospitals Complex, Nigeria, with over 18 years of medical experience and a decade as an attending anaesthetist. I hold advanced training in paediatric anaesthesia, including a WFSA fellowship in Nairobi and an Observership at Seattle Children’s Hospital, USA. I have led paediatric anaesthesia services at my centre, contributed to clinical protocols, and mentored trainees. My expertise spans paediatric, obstetric, orthopaedic, neurosurgical, and intensive care anaesthesia. I have complemented the above with active roles in education, professional societies, and international collaborations

Since completing my Paediatric Anaesthesia and Observership, I have advanced my career in paediatric anaesthesia and medical education with notable contributions:
Clinical Practice & Innovation: Introduced key changes in paediatric anaesthesia care at OAUTHC, improving the quality and safety of perioperative management.
Teaching & Training: Actively involved in the training of medical students and anaesthesia residents at OAUTHC, contributing to the development of the next generation of clinicians.
Speaking Engagements: Delivered a presentation at the Association of Paediatric Surgeons of Nigeria, addressing The Role of Anaesthesia in Quality Improvement in Children’s Surgical Care.
Capacity Building: Served as a facilitator for SAFEPaed and SAFEpaed Cleft training sessions, strengthening paediatric anaesthesia capacity in resource-limited settings.
Faculty Role: Acted as external faculty for the Paediatric Anaesthesia Training in Africa (PASoN) program.
Academic Achievement: Obtained a master’s degree in Basic Medical Sciences, further enhancing my academic and research foundation.
Leadership & Service: Currently serving as Head of Department (from 1 August 2024 to present), while also contributing internationally as a member of the WFSA Paediatric Anaesthesia Committee.

09/01/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Dr. Avani Richardson is a pediatric anesthesiologist practicing at the Medical College of Wisconsin, where she also completed her residency and fellowship. Her global health engagements include short term global trips with various organizations including Alliance for Smiles, Yantalo Peru Foundation, LEAP Global, CURE, and Cinterandes. At the SPA in 2020, Dr. Richardson spoke about a medically challenging case in Zimbabwe. While attending college at the University of Illinois Champaign Urbana, she travelled to Beijing, China to learn about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) & Public Health. This is where she met her now husband and they have two children and an adorable labradoodle together.

08/22/2025

Joint Communication from the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia and the American Society of Anesthesiologists Regarding Severe Neurological Complications and Death after General Anesthesia in Venezuelan Children

As a reminder from last month’s statement:

It is imperative that pediatric anesthesiologists report any suspected cases for further investigation. After consultation with ASA leadership, members are strongly encouraged to report any concerning cases to the Anesthesia Incident Reporting System (AIRS) hosted by the Anesthesia Quality Institute (AQI).

08/04/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Please welcome former SPA Global Scholar Dr. Tihut Teshome in sharing her words about the SPA Global Scholar Program and her achievements.

I was a SPA Global Scholar on October 21 ,2022. I work for CURE Children's Hospital of Ethiopia. In the US, my host institution was Texas Children's Hospital. My experience during my observership was fantastic! As it was my first time in the US, it was kind of an overwhelming experience. The hospital was huge which gives holistic therapy. At Texas Children's Hospital, patients get safe surgery and anesthesia while having an inspiring work culture. As an anesthesiologist who practices in a Sub-Saharan African country, this made me realize that we need to work hard on safety, quality and take responsibility to create awareness at a higher level for the nation. It also gave me a chance to see some of the drugs that I only read in the books and gave me so many lessons.
I was born and raised in a small town, which is 40 Km away from the capital city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. My parents are government employees, in which case my mom was a nurse who was hard working and a role model to me. She served in the government sector for more than three decades. As a child, I had the privilege to express myself without fear and had full support from my family. They emphasized my self-esteem and independence. As a student, I was one of the top scorers in a class dominated by boys. I earned an award from the Ethiopian president for the top female score in the region on the national exit examination. I joined medical school at Jimma University and did my residency in anesthesiology and critical care in one of the biggest teaching hospitals in Ethiopia called Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital. During residency, I was a chief resident and learned anesthesia despite the lack of so many consumables, equipment and drugs. This was frustrating but it made me realize saving lives in a compromised set up is very stressful and demanding. I am grateful that it opened the door for some external visitors that were supporting us in terms of equipment and teaching us so many skills. After my residency graduation, I started my job as an anesthesiologist in a teaching hospital in Addis Ababa where I served as department head for two years. During those times I really enjoyed teaching residents, shaping the department and working in collaboration with other departments. My passion of caring for children drove me to do my fellowship in pediatric anesthesia in Nairobi, Kenya. I was fully sponsored by WFSA for one year. I began my fellowship in 2019 but had to discontinue because of COVID 19 and resumed in 2021. Once I completed my fellowship, I joined one of the only pediatric hospitals in Ethiopia called " CURE Children's Hospital”, a charity hospital where free service is being delivered to pediatric patients with orthopedic deformity and plastic surgery.
I am the first pediatric anesthesiologist in the country which gave me a chance to join CURE Children's Hospital among so many applicants. I also encouraged my previous residents to join this fellowship so that we can work on establishing a pediatric anesthesia fellowship in the country. I also work with organizations like Life Box, Smile Train and Operation Smile participating on different trainings that involve safety and continuous teaching like SAFE OR course in Africa, cleft trainings, SAFE pediatrics trainings. I was also invited to the Pediatrics Surgical Society to give a speech on pediatric anesthesia updates where I was honored as the first pediatric anesthesiologist in the country. I have volunteered as the lead anesthesiologist on an inaugural cleft surgical program that took place outside Addis Ababa. I have a certificate on "intraoperative neuromonitoring " after one year of online courses and completed an additional observership to the US on anesthesia neuromonitoring for scoliosis correction surgery. Now at the CURE hospital, I am working as pediatric anesthesiologist, resident coordinator and lead anesthesiologist for scoliosis correction surgical programs. As an ASA Global Scholar for two consecutive years on 2023 and 2024, I did a poster presentation. I was also interviewed on a surgical podcast to give a speech on my professional journey and life experience. Most gratefully, I am a mom of two adorable sons and married to my high school sweetheart who is ENT surgeon.

07/28/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Please welcome former SPA Global Scholar Dr. Tirunesh Busha Gemechu in sharing her words about the SPA Global Scholar Program and her achievements.
I was granted SPA Global Scholar in 2022 when I was a pediatric anesthesia fellow in Nairobi but did not make it to the USA because of visa issues. Thankfully, the scholarship offer was kept for the next year and I was able to come to SPA 2023. I work for Cure Children’s Hospital of Ethiopia, a faith based, charitable non-profit organization that treats children with disability. While in the US, I was at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) for 10 days and in University of Virginia Hospital (UVA) for another week. As part of my observership, I had the chance to witness world-class patient care in action. I observed rare and highly specialized procedures, including anesthesia for intrauterine fetal surgery—something I would never have had the chance to experience otherwise. The mentorship I received was invaluable, especially in learning how to approach and manage complex cases with confidence and precision. I also had the opportunity to attend grand rounds, case presentations, and academic discussions alongside residents and fellows, which gave me a broader view of the educational and collaborative environment in these institutions. This experience has had a lasting impact on my professional development and continues to shape how I approach both clinical practice and lifelong learning in anesthesiology. Attending the SPA/ASA conference was an incredibly enriching and inspiring experience. I had the unique opportunity to meet some of the leading figures in anesthesia—individuals whose work I studied during my residency and fellowship. Meeting them in person was both humbling and motivating. The conference also brought together scholars from around the world, many of whom I continue to stay connected with professionally. The presentations covered important and timely topics in pediatric anesthesia, offering deep insights and practical knowledge that I continue to apply in my practice.
A little bit about me, I am pediatric anesthesiologist working for a pediatric Hospital in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. I went to medical school in Jimma University Medical College. After graduating as general medical practitioner, I went to one of the public hospitals in rural part of the country to work as a GP for 3 years. That helped me to be eligible to apply for residency program. I had my residency training in Jimma University and after served as anesthesiology, critical care and pain medicine specialist in another public referral hospital in the capital city for 3 years before getting scholarship to join pediatric anesthesia fellowship in University of Nairobi, Kenya. It has been 2 years since I finished my fellowship and came back home. Currently, alongside my anesthesia work, I take part in group research’s, I also lead few of the anesthesia related studies in my hospital. Additionally, am working on local capacity building; training residents and anesthesia care professionals in American Heart Association -PALS and BLS courses, SAFE pediatric anesthesia, SAFE Cleft anesthesia, SAFE OR, and intensive care trainings. We mentor anesthesiology residents from various Universities. I am one of the partner Hospital safety auditor/reviewer for Smile Train.

07/17/2025

Last month the 3 current SPA-sponsored University of Nairobi Pediatric Anesthesiology fellows and 2 faculty members facilitated the SAFE Paeds Cleft Training held in Nairobi. This workshop was held for the first time in Kenya and recruited anesthesiologists and anesthetists from around Kenya to participate.

Sponsored by SmileTrain and the Society for Paediatric Anaesthesiologists of Kenya (SPAK).

07/14/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Dr. David Liston is a pediatric anesthesiologist at Seattle Children’s Hospital. His interest in global health started in college during a clinical research trip to Nigeria as part of Dr. Robert Glew’s biochemistry lab at the University of New Mexico. He was inspired by Dr. Glew’s mentorship and passion for global health. After completing medical school at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Liston pursued an MPH with a focus in global health from Yale School of Public Health. He then returned to medicine, completing residencies in both Pediatrics and Anesthesiology at the University of Texas Southwestern. His final move was to the Pacific Northwest for a fellowship in pediatric anesthesiology at the University of Washington, where he has remained as faculty.

Dr. Liston currently serves as the vice chair of SPA Global. In this role he’s had the privilege to co-host and mentor ASA global scholars (and colleagues) from Rwanda, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Nepal with the generous support of his chair and department. He enjoys teaching and creating global health educational materials; most recently a pediatric sedation module for the Pediatric Anesthesia Training in Africa (PATA) initiative. He is also a member of the steering group for the University of Washington - Global Anesthesia INitiative (UW-GAIN), where he co-leads the advocacy subcommittee. His current challenge is learning the art of fundraising for global health initiatives. When not busy with academic teaching and clinical duties, his family life revolves around his supportive wife and three teenage children (spanning middle school, high school, and college).

07/07/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

We’re excited to feature Dr. Utsav Acharya, an academic anesthesiologist from Nepal whose work in pediatric anesthesia and resident education is making a lasting impact in Nepal and beyond.
Dr. Acharya is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anaesthesiology at Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuwan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu. He earned his MBBS from Dhaka University, Bangladesh and went on to complete his residency in MD Anesthesiology from B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal. He further subspecialized with a WFSA-SPA-BARTC Pediatric Anesthesia Fellowship in Bangkok, Thailand for which he was awarded a scholarship. He was of the scholars of the ASA Global Scholars program in 2023.
Dr. Acharya is heavily involved in residency education as he mentors resident physicians throughout their training and also co-guides thesis for two residents each year. He recently coordinated Nepal's first ever SAFE Pediatrics course as a WFSA trainer for the SAFE Pediatrics Course in February 2025. He is also involved with the Pediatric Anesthesia Training in Africa (PATA) program where he helps prepare educational module for fellows. Additionally, he also serves as an instructor in regional anesthesia (URAN) and airway management (BASIC). His areas of interest are pediatric sedation and pediatric regional anesthesia.
Dr. Acharya serves as an Executive Member of the Society of Anesthesiologists of Nepal (SAN) (2025–27) and he was an instrumental in organizing the SANCON-ASPA 2025 conference.
When not saving lives or not educating the next generation of anesthesiologists, Dr. Acharya likes to watch movies or spend time with his 5-year old boy reminding that behind a dedicated individual is a person grounded in family and life’s simple joys.
We cherish Dr. Utsav Acharya for his leadership and commitment towards pediatric anesthesiology and education. Thank you for being the inspiration you are.

05/25/2025

On Global Surgery Day, over 50 civil society organisations come together to highlight urgent priorities in global surgical care.

We are aligned, unified and ready to work with governments to fully integrate emergency, critical, and operative care into health systems worldwide.

Read the statement: https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/archive/global-surgery-day-2025/

An email has been sent to you. Simply follow the link provided in the email to reset your password. If you can't find the email please check your junk or spam folder and add no-reply@rcseng.ac.uk to your address book.

05/19/2025

Welcome to Meet-a-Member Monday. Today we meet SPA Global member, Dr. Denise Chan.

Denise Chan is a pediatric anesthesiologist currently practicing in Chicago. She began volunteering for short term medical missions as a resident. In 2013, after several years in practice, she pursued a Global Anesthesia Fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital, during which she joined Human Resources for Health in Rwanda. In 2014, she joined the faculty at Stanford University and was the co-director of Stanford’s Global Anesthesia division and fellowship program. She continues to mentor residents and budding pediatric anesthesiologists around the world.

05/12/2025

Monday Member Spotlight!

Dr Tiffany L Brainerd is a pediatric and adult anesthesiologist who is active in wilderness medicine. Following medical school at The University of Texas and residency at the University of Arizona, Dr Brainerd completed a fellowship in pediatric anesthesiology at Boston Children's Hospital and subsequently joined the faculty of Harvard Medical School. She holds a Diploma in Mountain Medicine (DiMM) as well as a Fellowship with the Academy of Wilderness Medicine (FAWM) and serves on committees for the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA), the Wilderness Medical Society (WMS), and Colorado Search and Rescue (CSAR). She is a member of the Board of Directors for the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE). Dr Brainerd has cared for patients in nine countries, on four continents, in various austere environments, and has considerable experience in mass casualty, emergency deployment responses, backcountry search & rescue medical direction, and event medicine. Like many outdoor enthusiasts, she enjoys rock climbing, ice climbing, backcountry skiing, mountain running, and mountaineering. Dr Brainerd has been privileged to reach the summit of many notable peaks including Mt Aconcagua, the highest point in the Western and Southern Hemispheres at 22,837 ft.

05/06/2025

Consultants at Bugando Medical Centre in Mwanza, Tanzania, including former University of Nairobi pediatric anesthesiology fellow Dr. Anna Mweshumbi, are leading a pediatric anesthesia simulation training course.