Interview
Text: Bertrand Tappy
Photo: Christophe Voisin

Eric Albrecht

Eric was able to take a one-year training course in Canada thanks to the CHUV.

Why did you choose to spend a year in Canada?

When I was appointed clinical director, I became interested in locoregional anaesthesia and above all in the method using ultrasound imagery, which was new at the time. I felt sure that this technique would have a wide range of advantages for patients at the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV). And I knew that Toronto had a large training centre that has published widely, where I could perfect my skills. Thanks to the immediate support of my departmental head, I was able to leave quickly for Canada. I spent a year at Toronto Western Hospital between 2011 and 2012 as part of a fellowship.

Can anybody do this while they’re training?

Yes, on two conditions. First, your training project in any given field must correspond to the hospital’s needs. There’s no point having several specialists in a cutting-edge field. Without taking account of the fact that the department and hospital provide financial support for a period abroad. Also, once a project has been accepted, you need to find a recognised skills centre willing to take you.

What differences did you see between Canada and Switzerland?

The main difference lies in the reversal of the pyramid of command. University hospitals have far more trained doctors than doctors in training. As a result, operations are faster and you can treat more patients every day. For example, I was able to do between 15 and 20 nerve blocks per day, whereas at the CHUV, we have the opportunity to do between two and three on average. And when you’re in the theatre, you’re on your own and not working as a team with a nurse as is the case in Switzerland. And if you add the research work, it makes for a very fast pace of life, but
also a fantastic opportunity to learn from both
a clinical and an academic standpoint.⁄



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Last name:
Albrecht


First name:
Eric


With the CHUV since:
1999


Title:
Associate physician in the anaesthesiology ward