10... 9... 8... 7... 6... That's about as far as you get, counting backwards, as you lie in an oversized paper napkin, waiting for surgery to begin — and that's all most people know about what I do. In my first year as a consultant anaesthetist, I've learned that: a) Most patients haven't a clue what happens in an operating theatre... which is okay, I suppose, given they're unconscious most of the time. b) In many ways, my job — putting you under and making sure you stay that way until the fun is over — remains the most mysterious of all (there are no TV shows about anaesthetists). c) Children's hospitals are incredible places to work. d) Being a new consultant is stressful. Is the story of one doctor's journey from accidental medical student to NHS trainee and, finally, Consultant Paediatric Anaesthesiologist at the largest children's hospital in Ireland. Razor-sharp and forthright, it's a disarming and frequently hilarious account of life in one of the most mysterious professions on medicine's frontline, where every day is a heady cocktail of severe pressure, poignancy, and profound social awkwardness.
