FELLOW IN OBSTETRIC ANAESTHESIA
ROTUNDA HOSPITAL/RCSI
JULY 2025-JULY 2026


The Rotunda hospital is the oldest continuously operating maternity hospital in the world, and one of the busiest in Europe, providing care for hundreds of thousands of women for over 270 years. Currently, the Rotunda delivers approximately 9,000 babies per annum and provides care to over 10, 000 pregnant women per year, with 1 in 6 babies born in the state being a Rotunda baby. The current rate of Caesarean delivery is 40%, and over 50% of our mother choose epidural analgesia for their delivery.
The Rotunda Hospital is a tertiary referral centre for high risk obstetric cases including, but not limited to morbidly adherent placenta, EXIT procedures, foetal surgery and the peripartum provision of care for delivery of mothers with significant cardiac and non-cardiac disease. The Rotunda, with the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital (MMUH), form the National Centre for Cardiac Disease in Pregnancy.
The Rotunda also has a busy benign Gynaecology service, including urogynaecology, endometriosis surgery and a well-developed ambulatory surgery programme.


Fellowship clinical curriculum:
Fellows are allocated to attend Cardiac MDT and Maternal Medicine MDT meetings, in partnership with MMUH, during the fellowship. They are expected to lead on planning of anaesthesia and peri-partum care for these complex patients who include those with acquired or congenital heart disease, respiratory disease, metabolic syndromes, disorders of coagulation and musculoskeletal disorders.
In line with our mission to enhance our fellow's ability to provide expert care to obstetric patients, fellows will also take part in the JFICMI Basic Critical Care Echocardiography Course in the Mater Hospital, receiving 2 hours per week practical transthoracic echo teaching for a period of 6 months followed by JFICMI certification.
The Rotunda also collaborate with the MMUH Gynae-oncology service and MMUH interventional radiology service for the management of Morbidly Adherent Placenta, including the intra-operative use of intra-aortic balloon occlusive devices placed by endovascular ultrasound.


Academic opportunities:
The Rotunda Fellowship is delivered in partnership with our academic affiliates, the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland, who provides fellows with the position of RCSI Honorary Lecturer, in recognition of their contribution to delivery of the RCSI undergraduate curriculum.
During the Rotunda Obstetric Anaesthesia Fellowship, academic and management work comprise 20-40% of the workload and includes clinical research and audit, and quality assurance and improvement projects. In addition to clinical research opportunities, research in innovation is also supported. In the last 5 years, the Rotunda Dept of Anaesthesiology have published over 50 papers in peer-reviewed publications and have been nominated for or received awards in at ISOA, the World Airway Meeting, the Gertie Marx Research Competition at SOAP and the Obstetric Anaesthesia Association. Multiple members have presented at national and international anaesthesia meetings.
Fellows are actively encouraged and supported during design and implementation of quality improvement and service development projects. Recent fellow's quality improvement and subsequent quality assurance projects have included the introduction of Programmed Intermittent Epidural Bolus, and the introduction of Sip 'til Send.


Two positions will be available for the period July 2025 to July 2026. Informal enquiries should be directed to Dr Anne Doherty, Consultant Anaesthetist, Rotunda Hospital, andoherty@rotunda.ie.


Applications should include a current Curriculum Vitae with cover letter and details of 3 references, and can be submitted via the Rotunda Careers website. If you have any queries regarding the application process, please email HR@rotunda.ie


Closing date for applications is 5pm, November 15th 2024.