It’s true that water and electricity are problematic areas – but we’ve always had to manage resources in surgery. That’s for your management of the h… - Olaitan Soyannwo

When I see surgery on the news, there’s always a lot of noise around the surgeon – like a recent case in the U.S., separating conjoined twins. But did you hear a word about the anaesthetist? I heard the word team, ‘the surgeon and his team’. I never heard the word ‘anaesthesiologist’.

I sat there quietly in Geneva, listening, and thought – do these people really know what they’re talking about? I worked in a hospital all my life, and in return I got a son who suffered oxygen deprivation. And now I’m looking after him, and living with it. That’s what prompted me to speak.

I just told them that oxygen deprivation can be devastating. Not just immediately, but even worse in the long term. I don’t have a support system in my country. So I have to bear everything about my son’s care within my family.