2020 has been a grim year for patients and doctors alike. As we approach 2021, weary but hoping now to put our efforts into a mass vaccination program, John Travers, a GP registrar in Dublin, gives us his personal reflection on the
2020 - what a year! I will be glad to be rid of it. Over the next few days BJGP Life will be looking forwards, not just to a better 2021 but also to a better world.
Helping patients transition to a plant-based diet may not only prevent an estimated 11 million annual deaths, but largely decrease the damage to the environment caused by meat and dairy farming. Here, Shireen Kassam and colleagues provide a list of advice on
Why do we continue to examine GP trainees at 10 minutes when the RCGP itself has called for longer GP consultations? Greg Irving and colleagues question the status quo.
Gavin Francis ia a GP and the best selling author of "Adventures in Human Being". Fiona Baskett reviews his latest book - just what we need to escape from the grim world of 2020.
On Boxing Day Serena Strickland reviews a book about the management of eating disorders.
This Christmas let us join Professor Deborah Swinglehurst and her husband, Nicholas Edwards, as they present a Schubert lied that they have arranged for guitar and voice.
The BJGP gets in the mood for Christmas! We wish for a happy and peaceful Christmas to all our readers.
Jonathan Wells has had a busy and stressful year. He tells us how thinking differently about his time off has helped him to manage the stress of work.
It’s Christmas Eve and a disheartened Dr Scrooge has been considering resignation. But might his guardian angel, Clarence, be able to change his mind?
We always knew that there was something a little bit magical about Roger Neighbour. Natasha Houghton and her colleagues explain all.
It's Christmas eve, and a dispirited Dr Scrooge is thinking of packing it all in. But might an unexpected visit change his perspective?
Smoke bombs in cars, Channel 4 film crews, and depositing rocks in car parks — this is the bizarre story of James Douglas's research into the development of PPE.
Prof Trish Greenhalgh and Gilly Mroz discuss findings from their study looking at how the media have portrayed remote consulting in different phases of the pandemic.
Nicholas Surridge brings us a case report about a remarkable case of vinyl-assisted Christmas psychotherapy.
Can pottering in the greenhouse mitigate against the toxic impact of work related stress upon our brains? Jane Roberts examines the evidence.
BJGP Life is now able to reveal how the RCGP foiled a ghastly plot and saved the world in time for Christmas.
David Misselbrook previews a bumper week for BJGP readers.
As doctors we know we are invincible and immortal, and if we're not we'd better hide it. John Spicer reviews Clare Gerada's important new book which looks underneath the white coat to examine what happens to human beings who happen to be
2020 has been a distressing year for UK doctors for many reasons. John Frey reminds us that it's no better across the pond.
Is the NHS a service that understands the female health burden and attempts to alleviate it? Judith Dawson investigates the evidence.
Finding all the problems of 2020 getting you down? David Jeffrey teaches us how to cope, using "Jugaad".
A recent patient survey exploring concerns relating to COVID-19 by Helen Burn and colleagues provides some illuminating findings, with 27% of responders stating that they would not accept a vaccination for COVID-19, and one in two responders experiencing mental and physical health
Professor Trish Greenhalgh and Dr Gilly Mroz talk about a new paper that examines the media depiction of remote consulting during the pandemic.
Many of us worry about the world our children and grandchildren will grow up in. Dan Jones reviews a book that tells us that action is better than mere worry.
What do you do to help switch off after a busy clinical day? Read? Paint? Brick-lay? GP and post-CCT Fellow, Sophie Ingham, reveals her surprising discovery of D.I.Y as a therapeutic tool during the COVID-19 pandemic.
'Assessing the danger had simply involved walking up to a mannequin’s bedside on an ILS course and stating, “I have looked around the patient and cannot see anything dangerous”.' However, Charles Slater, then a medical student, found that in real life things
We doctors are pretty smart, yes? Chris Tiley identifies three critical areas of understanding that we need to get straight.
Not another article about Shipman? But 20 years on David Zigmond's reflections on the man who contaminated our medical world for ever suggest worthwhile new insights. Read on...
Missing the gymn or pool? Or just Covid enui? James Douglas challenges us to try wild swimming!
Dr Tom Margham talks to us about quality improvement approaches to tackle DNAs - it's more about the system than the patient.
Our rationality is our core defining human characteristic - right? Maybe not! Christopher Dowrick reviews an important book on the central role of our emotions.
There is a growing research interest in doctor's "gut feeling" about diagnosis in consultations. But Covid has radically changed our consultations. Can our gut feelings catch up?
Marion Brown and Stevie Lewis urgently remind us to make sure we are not mistaking antidepressant adverse effects and/or withdrawal issues for medically unexplained symptoms, functional neurological disorders or chronic fatigue syndrome.
Tiers before bedtime! Samar Razaq reflects on the government's struggle to communicate its policy on COVID restrictions.
The UK Government's dependence on the private sector when outsourcing COVID-related contracts has resulted in a number of costly disasters. Here, Judith Dawson reveals the lack of accountability and obligation the private healthcare sector have towards both their patients and consultants, and
To adapt to the demands of COVID “digital-first” models of care (i.e. telephone, video, online) have been implemented to minimise face-to-face contact between patients and providers. Ana Luísa Neves and collegues ask a simple question - are we listening to what patients want?
Sati Heer-Stavert reviews a somewhat graphic Graphic Novel and draws some surprising conclusions....
Physician Associates play an increasing role within of primary care teams. Ria Agarwal describes her own steep learning curve and tells us how PAs need to be supported.
How can primary care be improved upon to aid patients and the burden on secondary care during the COVID-19 pandemic? Luis Ayerbe and colleagues discuss how clinical interventions, delivered in the community, from the moment of diagnosis, could reduce the need for