The BJGP is the world-leading primary care journal. At BJGP Life we add multi-media comment and opinion for the primary care community.
The shocking infant murders by nurse Lucy Letby represent a mercifully rare (we think) class of event. These remain extremely difficult to understand, predict or prevent, much as we must try. David Zigmond reflects on the role of commercially corporatised healthcare culture
Why hasn’t the approach of Centene and Babylon worked? And what’s the history behind corporate acquisition of GP surgeries? Nada Khan investigates.
If we look at continuity without considering the wider context of general practice, we may find ourselves being swept out to sea as we gaze longingly back at the beach. Ben Hoban helps us to reflect on the really useful elements of
In this episode, we talk to Dr Fran Toye and Dr Sharon Dixon about women's health needs in practice.
Vasumathy Sivarajasingam explores domestic abuse PUNs and DENs as a relevant appraisal topic linked to mandatory safeguarding, with links to learning materials, legislation and further articles.
Carter Singh argues that accusing striking doctors of causing harm is disingenuous when there are many critical harms that strikes are attempting to address.
The argument is that, for decades, ‘business friendly’ governments have been allowing private interests to extract vast fortunes from the NHS and that over time the service has been increasingly reformed to make it ready for corporate takeover. This would make our
With the potential dismantling of the GP partnership model and the drive for a multiprofessional workforce in primary care, is this the right time to look at shared leadership as a facilitator of positive change?
In this episode, we talk to Dr Jess Watson about the Why Test study looking at blood testing practice in primary care.
"The function of a diagnosis is more than to guide treatment planning. It often provides emotional relief for patients, even if the diagnosis is dire. As Susan put it, “I keep hoping that some doctor will tell me exactly what this ‘skin
Around 2000 years ago St Paul taught that love for others was the most important virtue, much greater than knowledge or wealth. Here, Fraser Barratt and Scott A Murray MBE have adapted his memorable words to help inform and guide busy doctors
The title, ‘What is a doctor?’, neatly articulates a contemporary query. As the multidisciplinary team (MDT) becomes increasingly complex with additional moving parts, the role of the doctor becomes ever more difficult to describe. The memory of the ‘family doctor’ is fading.
"Reflecting with a new appreciation of how cycling infrastructure can be done, it’s clear our system needs an overhaul." - Callum Leese writes on the importance of advocating for the development of cycling infrastructure in the UK ...
In clinic last week, a patient called me by my first name – this was the first time I have experienced this in primary care, and for some reason I found it quite jarring. ...there seems to be very little evidence on
"Withdrawal symptoms are not a sign that a patient needs the drug, but a sign that they need to reduce the drug more slowly" – Stevie Lewis and Mark Horowitz outline how to safely aid patients to withdraw from antidepressants
In this episode, we talk to Dr Liz Sturgiss about brief conversations we can have in practice to help reduce alcohol harm.
Pablo Millares Martin considers whether the problem list has become a problem (or remains a useful clinical tool).
The ever changing face of health services has been reflected in incessant change in language. Here is a (tongue in cheek) glossary for those who have not kept up (Caution: contains satire).
Bassem Saab and Beatrice Khater use a series of movies used to teach and discuss professionalism with family medicine residents in Lebanon. Here they focus on relationships with the pharmaceutical industry.
A number of storylines within the Star Trek franchise refer to a combat simulation in which a stranded starship, the Kobayashi Maru, must be rescued, but in which any attempt to do so inevitably results in failure. Ben Hoban can relate...
Merope Mills’ description of the death of Martha, her 13 year old daughter, is a raw and harrowing account of the mistakes doctors made that led to Martha’s deterioration and ultimately her death. Nada Khan evaluates the concept of a Martha’s rule,
As part of a Student Selected Component focussing on frailty in primary care, supervised by Paul McNamara, Scott Wylie had the chance to learn directly from GPs and attending local frailty services. As part of the project, he also carried out an
In this episode, we talk to Dr Victoria Welsh and Dr Claire Burton about MSK consults during and after Covid.
What can patients who recall their experience of death during a cardiac arrest tell us about consciousness? Armando Henrique Norman explores
"Henry Marsh is a retired veteran neurosurgeon, recently diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He perceives, with reluctant realism, the coming end of his own life and responds with this remarkable and very readable collage of a book." - David
I had progressed from A-Levels into becoming a GP... without pausing for breath - or allowing time for the aspect of my professional practice I enjoyed the most; teaching. But not clinical or consultation skills; instead, anatomy.
Doctors.net.uk recently reported that some colleges, including the Royal College of Surgeons, the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the Royal College of Physicians did more than break even on exam costs. Nada Khan investigates.
Losing my father earlier this year changed me. It changed me as a person, it changed me as a mother and it changed me as a doctor.
In this episode, we talk about how to manage patients' gut feelings in practice.
It has been stated that the Labour party would ‘bring back the family doctor.’ Emilie Couchman discusses the issue with colleagues and invites politicians to stop playing to the gallery and start talking those who have to make those policies work.
As our NHS shows increasing signs of its own sickness, many are calling for more funds, staffing, and technology. These may be necessary but are certainly not sufficient. What else of importance are we missing?
In relying on a limited and necessarily technical professional vocabulary, we often deny ourselves precisely those tools which would help us understand and treat our patients’ difficulties, and indeed our own, muses Ben Hoban
"I was very impressed by all those professionals working hard to make a difference for other people. I recognised myself in so many of the patient experiences described." – Elke Hausmann provides an overview of the 'Long COVID: what needs to happen
Some of us will welcome this opportunity to shine a light onto the events that took place in the early stages of the pandemic. But what is the right way to look at our response to COVID, and what’s happening in other
The BJGP podcast is taking a two week summer break, but we're back on 5 September.
Why do people consult medial opinion? Alex Burrell looks at a classic paper on the the 5 triggers to seeking medical advice.
It seems unlikely that these things can be reduced to a few simple bullet points, and yet, it’s hard to resist the allure of the headlines, with their subtext that the universe obeys a hidden code, and that if we only pay
This beautifully-produced, sensitive memoir and art history begins with a quote from Euripides, capturing the yearning of anyone who has been bereaved, “Come back! Even as a shadow, even as a dream”.
"Jane Monckton Smith argues that people rarely murder their partners or ex-partners on a whim. Rather, almost invariably, the killing is the culmination of a clearly defined eight-stage timeline. By breaking down the domestic homicide timeline into these eight distinct phases, Monckton
A wise piece of advice helped enormously. “You don’t have to solve every problem in a single consultation,” advised my father.
