NHS, please help me to bring the energy not to cry but sing, Courage where there is fear, Hope in the face of all the sugar, fags and beer. Giles Dawnay gets lyrical.
The idea was simple: a short walk in the park to clear our heads, engage in light-hearted conversation, and bond with colleagues. Over the years, this practice has not only endured but flourished...
Mike Thirlwall fears that patients and family doctors may be steadily drifting apart and something very precious may be lost for ever.
"In this thoughtful monograph, Peter Tyrer argues for a via media between the perspectives of those who consider drug therapy to be an essential element of psychiatric practice, and those who are concerned that the massive increase in psychotropic prescribing that we
Aldabra Stifiuc-Andronic and colleagues reflect on the health implications of the cosmetics industry and public awareness of cosmetic ingredients.
"Reducing the carbon footprint of primary care has the potential to improve the health of our patients and communities, while decreasing workload and saving resources ..." – Michael Naughton and colleagues outline what GPs, partners, and local primary care leaders can do to
12 months ago Richard Armitage used NHS Digital primary care appointment data to reveal the increases in GP workload from 2017 to 2023. What's happened in the last year?
We're taking a break over Christmas - have a great holiday!
"For the first time for many years I felt that I had lost control. Suddenly my comfortable Western privilege wasn’t working. I felt stranded, helpless, a powerless fragment of a distressed and angry crowd."
The science of medicine is a triumph of the intellect and has done immeasurable good. But applied to the individual in distress, it shows all its immeasurable weakness. Not all of David Spiegelhalter’s magnificent new book deals directly with this, but where
"Seasons greetings, dear readers! One of my favourite Christmas traditions is the miscellany, often found in little piles at the cashier’s desk in a bookshop. We have a suitably seasonal miscellany for you this December in a variety of genres! Some will
For my attention is elsewhere... Occupied by a mere digital abstraction... The computer between us acting as a physical metaphor... A poem by Callum Leese
There is of course no nationwide prostate cancer screening programme for asymptomatic men at present; rather, men over the age of 50 are advised that they can request a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test from their GP at any time. Paul McNamara and
In this episode, we talk about why hybrid working isn't always as efficient or accessible as it's meant to be.
Integrated neighbourhoods are a collaborative effort of health and social care providers, as well as voluntary/non-statutory organisations, which aim to improve the health and wellbeing of residents and service users. Afsana Bhuiya, Seher Kayikci and Fahad Iqbal outline what we know about
"This book is terrifying, informative, stimulating, and educating to every member of the medical and nursing profession. It is extensively researched, has a massive bibliography, and, most importantly, it is well written and well worth reading — in spite of some truly
...none of this stuff is difficult if you keep in shape and know what you’re doing ... Bosco felt like she had been running her whole life, one way or another, and you might just as well have asked her to stop
"There has been recent media coverage around appropriate hormone replacement therapy (HRT) dosing, and subsequent focus in medical journals. The debate has become polarised and women's health is being impacted. I want to provide an explanation so we can all do our
Re-reading my review, I can tell that I was very careful even then not to present this approach as a 'cure' for Long Covid, but as a promising approach to manage symptoms better while waiting for a cure ... However, I have
In this episode, we talk about working in the Deep End network in Northern Ireland.
For years, the UK has inaccurately perpetuated the notion that British farming is among the most sustainable globally. Shireen Kassam, Christelle Blunden and Matthew Lee argue why this is not so, and the impact this may have on public and planetary health.
"If you only ever read one book about emotions, make it this one." –
"The body does not generate the mind but is a process of self-localisation of the mind itself ..." – Armando Henrique Norman explores the usefulness of idealism as a valid philosophical principle to guide family physicians in their daily practice.
a book which has had the same impact on the language of healthcare as George Orwell’s 1984 has had on the language of politics. Illich did not invent terms such as iatrogenesis and medicalisation, but he was the first to synthesize them
Identifying the mind as a source of the body's pain can help a patient make great strides towards taking control of their health and reducing the impact chronic illness has on their day to day lives. Paul McNamara and Ella Butterworth explore
In this episode, we talk about access to general practice through the lens of the Candidacy Framework.
Yonder: a diverse selection of primary care relevant research stories from beyond the mainstream biomedical literature
"This is not a book to read once, skim, or leave on a shelf. It's both an introduction and a practical guide to taking action. It explains where we are today and what we need to do next. The best time to
Clearly in some GP Practices no robust thought has been given to having a Mental Health Practitioner (MHP), or their role and scope of practice. Those GPs who have requested and take 'ownership' of the MHP, are best placed to integrate them
Despite regular reports about ‘improving the diet of the population’, little has changed. Eight years ago less than a third of people ate five portions of fruit and vegetables per day, and that figure hasn’t budged since. Chris Newman suggests that GPs
One of the first questions my GP supervisor asked was “What did you notice on the way here?” ... Her question appeared simple at first but revealed, what I thought to be, the greatest skill in being a GP; the art of
In this episode, we talk to Dr Sarah Sullivan about the PRisk tool for predicting psychosis in primary care.
What (if anything) happens when we die? This is a question that human beings have been pondering since time immemorial. Paul McNamara and Craig MacKay reflect on a family story of near death experience.
We all need to help each other to understand how neurodiversity makes people feel and this is the ideal book to do that. Written in the first person, the protagonist describes routine activities and life events affecting her as a single mum
Arthur W. Frank now turns his attention to Shakespeare’s King Lear, acknowledged to be one of the greatest books in the English language, and combines perceptive psychological insights with their application to the experience of serious illness.
My first go at introducing stories into my own teaching was through the work of Rita Charon. But when I tried to introduce some of these concepts to my teaching, I was less successful. Family therapist and GP John Launer offers an
In this episode, we discuss GP perspectives on diagnostic testing in children.
Clare Ellison and Ursula Philpot introduce The Children and Young Peoples Eating Disorder Decision Tree tool, which aims to assist time-poor clinicians with patients presenting with restricted oral intake, crucially differentiating between patients with body dysmorphia and those without.
“Language is so important – and this is a thread throughout the book. Philippa describes the relief of her son being given a diagnosis of schizophrenia – this highlights what we all understand – that a label or diagnosis can be so
there is a lot of conflicting information about menopause, its treatments, and how GPs will or won’t support women through this stage. With menopause ‘influencers’ and messaging from some specialists inconsistent with guidelines, sifting through the different options and safety profiles can