The continuing medical education (CME) needs of anaesthetists within Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore have been largely unknown. The aim of this study was to undertake a comprehensive survey of the attitude to CME, learning preferences, attitudes and abilities relating to self-paced material, literature and information searching, preferred content and preferred approach to CME of anaesthetists within these countries. A survey tool was developed and refined for ease of use by pilot-testing. The survey was mailed to 3,156 anaesthetists throughout Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. Three options for data return were offered; postal reply, facsimile and a data entry web-page. There were 1,800 responses, which represented a response rate of 57%. The demographics of the respondents were similar to the overall demographics of Fellows of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists. A large majority of respondents (92%) stated that their involvement in CME improved patient care. However, almost half the respondents reported that they have difficulty either in participating in current CME activities (31%) or implementing new knowledge into their workplace (14%). Anaesthetists within this region appear to be motivated by the need to make better decisions based on independent standards of practice. While Australia is a world leader in flexible education, it is still emerging as a discipline. Flexible education may be used to facilitate anaesthetists' participation in CME activities and in implementation of new knowledge in their workplace.