Defining fitness for purpose in South African anaesthesiologists using a Delphi technique to assess the CanMEDS framework

In South Africa, anaesthesiologists are a scarce commodity with an estimated 2.89 per 100 000 population. (South African Society of Anaesthesiology, personal communication). Due to an everincreasing demand, local anaesthesiologists do not necessarily remain in the public sector to evolve into their specialist roles. As in other countries, they have to function independently irrespective of their placement immediately postgraduation to address the large demand placed on the healthcare sector. The transition from trainee to specialist has been associated with adverse physician and patient outcomes, primarily due to the perception of newly qualified specialists of unpreparedness.1-5 To alleviate this additional stressor, graduates need to be fit for purpose to function safely and appropriately.