The guidelines provided in this book include the main elements of each answer in note form. These answer notes are composed of simple and basic knowledge in the field of anaesthesia.

They do, however, introduce the reader to methods and systems of answering, which would enable any examination candidate to encapsulate the relevant material in the brief time available in a short answer question exam. It is also worth noting that the same questions could be asked in a viva voce examination. It would be immensely helpful to any candidate to have ready-organised answers in mind, in the style of the ones in this book. Such an organised approach would impress any examiner.

Reading this book is about learning the skills of succinct, accurate and comprehensive communication. This is a fundamental skill of medical practice, which is usually learned by copying the talents of senior colleagues. This ‘apprenticeship’ method has stood the test of time for the medical profession for many centuries. It is hoped that those who read this book will find answering examination questions easier as a result. This is very worthwhile for you, the reader. If it also improves communication between doctors (and others), then it will have exceeded its primary purpose and achieved something important for our profession.