Overview
The Postgraduate Diploma in Anaesthesia and Peri-Operative Sciences (PGDip AaPOS) is a part-time programme designed to train Student Anaesthesia Associates to become qualified Anaesthesia Associates. The programme comprises five modules aligned with the Royal College of Anaesthetists’ (RCoA) Anaesthesia Associates curriculum. These are assessed using a combination of continuous assessment, and written assessments that are aligned with the General Medical Council (GMC) Anaesthesia Associate Registration Asessment (AARA), and presentations.
A cross-cutting clinical skills and simulation theme relates the modules to practice in addition to providing robust preparation for the AARA.
The five modules are:
- Fundamentals of anaesthesia and peri-operative practice.
- Physiology under stress.
- Applied pharmacology and safety.
- Safety, governance and population health.
- Workplace-based assessment
The qualification is required for employment as an Anaesthesia Associate.
Meet our students
Meet some of the very first cohort of students studying at Lancaster University aiming to qualify as an Anaesthesia Associate.
Georgia Bennett
Georgia works at Tameside Hospital, a small DGH, in Greater Manchester. Before starting the Anaesthesia Associate programme, she was an Anaesthetic Nurse and prior to that worked in Intensive Care. Her goal is to complete this training and to stay at Tameside in the Operating Department, as a qualified Anaesthesia Associate.
Geraldo Herman
Geraldo has been working in Anaesthetics as a Charge Nurse for nine years. He is based at Tameside Hospital. His firm view is that Anaesthesia Associates really are the future of Anaesthesia, and he wants to play an important role in developing the NHS’s capacity in this area.
Jack Doherty
Jack has been qualified for about 10 years as an Anaesthetic Nurse working in Royal Blackburn Hospital, part of East Lancashire Hospitals Trust. For him, starting the AA course felt like the next step for his career, keeping him in a clinical role. As an Anaesthetic Nurse he has experience across a wide spectrum of patient care, and hopes that this new AA role will allow him to have an even more positive impact in patient outcomes.
Santhosh Joseph
Santhosh is an Anaesthetic Nurse working in Royal Blackburn Hospital, part of East Lancashire Hospitals Trust. His ambition is to stay in a clinical role, progressing his career in a field he really loves. He had been looking for something like the AA role and jumped at the chance when it presented itself.
Tom Hubberstey
Tom has been a qualified ODP (Operating Department Practitioner) at Royal Blackburn Hospital, part of East Lancashire Hospitals Trust. Very much a hands-on person, Tom wanted his next step to be clinical not managerial. The Anaesthesia Associate is the perfect opportunity to further his clinical skills, be an advocate for patient safety, and to help clear the patient backlog.
Will Sharples
Will has been an ODP for thirteen years. Based at the Royal Blackburn Hospital, part of East Lancashire Hospitals Trust, he has a long history in providing excellent patient care, and chose to pursue the Anaesthesia Associate role to enhance his, and thereby the Trust’s ability to improve patient throughput and patient experience. He’s looking forward to a bigger role with more responsibility.
Entry Requirements
Entry Requirements
Entrants onto the course are either registered healthcare professionals (examples are nurses or operating department practitioners) with at least three years clinical experience and/or degree level studies, or graduates with a biomedical science or biological science 2:1 honours degree or better.
Those applying on the basis of clinical experience, or who graduated from their degree programme more than seven years ago, will need to demonstrate in their CV that they have been engaging with continuing professional development (CPD), for example, through revalidation.
Applicants are required to be appointed by an NHS Trust to a Student Anaesthesia Associate post, prior to applying to this programme.
The programme is designed for the training of Anaesthesia Associates and only those already recruited by an NHS Trust for this purpose are eligible to apply.
If you have not ben appointed to a Student Anaesthesia Associate post, please contact your local NHS Trust for details on employment opportunities.
Contact: AaPOS Team at lmspgprogrammes@lancaster.ac.uk
Course Structure
You will study a range of modules as part of your course, some examples of which are listed below.
Information contained on the website with respect to modules is correct at the time of publication, but changes may be necessary, for example as a result of student feedback, Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies' (PSRB) requirements, staff changes, and new research. Not all optional modules are available every year.
Fees and Funding
Cost per year
£6,500 funded by the NHS
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Additional costs
There may be extra costs related to your course for items such as books, stationery, printing, photocopying, binding and general subsistence on trips and visits. Following graduation, you may need to pay a subscription to a professional body for some chosen careers.
Specific additional costs for studying at Lancaster are listed below.
College fees
Lancaster is proud to be one of only a handful of UK universities to have a collegiate system. Every student belongs to a college, and all students pay a small College Membership Fee which supports the running of college events and activities.
For students starting in 2023, the fee is £40 for undergraduates and research students and £15 for students on one-year courses. Fees for students starting in 2024 have not yet been set.
Computer equipment and internet access
To support your studies, you will also require access to a computer, along with reliable internet access. You will be able to access a range of software and services from a Windows, Mac, Chromebook or Linux device. For certain degree programmes, you may need a specific device, or we may provide you with a laptop and appropriate software - details of which will be available on relevant programme pages. A dedicated IT support helpdesk is available in the event of any problems.
The University provides limited financial support to assist students who do not have the required IT equipment or broadband support in place.
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Application fees and tuition fee deposits
For most taught postgraduate applications there is a non-refundable application fee of £40. We cannot consider applications until this fee has been paid, as advised on our online secure payment system. There is no application fee for postgraduate research applications.
For some of our courses you will need to pay a deposit to accept your offer and secure your place. We will let you know in your offer letter if a deposit is required and you will be given a deadline date when this is due to be paid.
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Fees in subsequent years
If you are studying on a programme of more than one year’s duration, the tuition fees for subsequent years of your programme are likely to increase each year. Read more about fees in subsequent years.
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Medicine
- Clinical Psychology DClinPsy
- Clinical Research MSc
- Clinical Research PgCert
- Clinical Research PgDip
- Health Data Science MSc
- Health Data Science PhD
- Medical Ethics and Law PhD
- Medical Sciences MSc by Research
- Medicine PhD
- Medicine M.D.
- Social and Behavioural Sciences in Medicine PhD
- Sports and Exercise Sciences PhD
- Statistics and Epidemiology PhD
Important Information
The information on this site relates primarily to 2023/2024 entry to the University and every effort has been taken to ensure the information is correct at the time of publication.
The University will use all reasonable effort to deliver the courses as described, but the University reserves the right to make changes to advertised courses. In exceptional circumstances that are beyond the University’s reasonable control (Force Majeure Events), we may need to amend the programmes and provision advertised. In this event, the University will take reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your studies. If a course is withdrawn or if there are any fundamental changes to your course, we will give you reasonable notice and you will be entitled to request that you are considered for an alternative course or withdraw your application. You are advised to revisit our website for up-to-date course information before you submit your application.
More information on limits to the University’s liability can be found in our legal information.
Our Students’ Charter
We believe in the importance of a strong and productive partnership between our students and staff. In order to ensure your time at Lancaster is a positive experience we have worked with the Students’ Union to articulate this relationship and the standards to which the University and its students aspire. View our Charter and other policies.
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