Giving up the universe to provide patients with the world
Growing up, Adam Hastings was interested in physics and how the universe came to be. It was a logical choice then that after high school he enrolled in a Bachelor of Science majoring in physics. Little did he know it was an ill-considered biology subject that would lead him onto his real passion.
Adam didn鈥檛 do as well in physics as he鈥檇 hoped 鈥� finding it wasn鈥檛 the field he saw himself thriving in 鈥� not just academically, but socially.
What he did do well in was biology and he went on to do honours in protein biochemistry.
鈥淒uring my honours year I found myself standing in the cold room at three in the morning talking to flasks of bacterial culture, and that鈥檚 when I knew I should study medicine.鈥�
A career in medicine, specialising in anaesthesia
It has taken fifteen years of study for Adam to become an anaesthetist 鈥� eight years of university study and seven years of on the job training.
鈥淚 did my specialist anaesthetic training and sub-specialty training in cardiac anaesthesia and developed a simultaneous interest in neuroanaesthesia, coupled with working in retrieval medicine.
鈥淭he reason I chose both the cardiac and neurology fields is that both involve the most interaction between the surgeon and the anaesthetist.
鈥淚 am with the patient from the moment we start the process until the moment they鈥檙e in recovery. It鈥檚 a job that鈥檚 intellectually and spiritually rewarding, as well as physically demanding.
鈥淏rain surgery can be quite anxiety inducing. If something goes wrong during an operation, things happen very quickly. The best part is coming through those scary moments as a team, and saving someone鈥檚 life.鈥�
From student to teacher
Adam is now the Program Director for the University of Sydney specialist postgraduate courses in .聽In these courses, there are two streams: one focusing on the diagnostic field (suitable for medical graduates interested in neurology and health and science graduates) and the other focusing on the intra-operative field (for medical graduates interested in anaesthetics and health and science graduates).
鈥淭he courses are very niche, but there鈥檚 increasingly a huge demand for qualified anaesthetists.
鈥淲hat students learn is how to be part of a team and to build up strong communication skills so that in the operating theatre, everyone knows what's going on.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen a lot of growth in the students, people who have matured and I鈥檒l be very pleased to see the first cohort graduate next week.鈥�
Providing patients with the world
Even though he didn鈥檛 get to explore the universe, Adam has been able to provide his patients with the world.
鈥淚 keep a crystal globe on my desk at home, which was given to me by the wife of a patient who鈥檇 had a stroke. His case was very complex and we spent a lot of time and care to get him back to a level where he could function in the community.
鈥淭he woman said she gave me the globe because I had given her back her husband, her world. It serves as a reminder to me that the kind of care anaesthetists provide is priceless.鈥�