Book review: Zero
Peter Lindsay reviews Jeremy Hunt's new book, Zero
The home of general practice and family medicine
Foundation programme training and the primary care workforce: a time to reflect?
At the beginning of my foundation training I had very limited awareness of the diversity of the clinical workforce and was only familiar with 'traditional' doctor roles. However, I was surprised to find myself in the midst of a large, multiskilled dynamic
Supporting patients (and colleagues) who stammer
Approximately 1%–2% of the adult population experience stammering, which can have a significant impact on a person's quality of life. Here, members of the NHS Stammering Network (for staff) describe how best to optimise consultations with this patient group.
Our moment of change to ‘Build Back Fairer’
In 2020, Sir Michael Marmot and his team at the Institute of Health Equity published ‘Build Back Fairer’ to examine how the Covid pandemic affected health inequalities in England. Nada Khan discuss a grim but inspiring document.
Episode 079: Communication of blood test results to patients is often complex and confusing
Dr Jess Watson tells us about a qualitative study that explored how blood tests are communicated to patients.
Could new changes to the fit note be an opportunity for primary care?
The Department for Work and Pensions has recently announced legislative change that will allow a wider range of healthcare professionals to authorise fit notes. Is this an opportunity for general practice to improve patient access to occupational health support?
Book review: The Nutrition Proposition
There is an enormous body of information on diet and nutrition, but how do you know what dietary information to recommend to patients? Terry Kemple reviews The Nutrition Proposition by James McCormack and Marcie Gray, where "most questions about nutrition and diet
In sickness and in health? A transient experience of the sick role
The waves of nausea as I lay in the hotel bed were incessant. Away on a long-planned holiday to New York with my partner, the morning sickness had hit at week 6 of my pregnancy ...
To what extent is a total diet replacement programme effective in sustained weight loss and remission in people with Type 2 diabetes?
TDR programmes consist of a low calorie (around 800 kcal/day) formula diet alongside a stepped food reintroduction as well as regular behavioural support. Yusuf Ben-Tarifite examines the evidence for TDR in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.
NHS secondary care waiting lists – the impact on patients and on general practice
The NHS is facing a backlog that will take years to clear and GPs are likely to be the main point of contact for patients who are suffering as a result. Nada Khan examines the issues.
Telling a good story
You and I may observe the same event but give different accounts based on our own understanding of what we’ve seen, influenced by how we felt, our past experiences and values. Ben Hoban discusses storytelling as a clinical phenomenon.
War in Ukraine and health worker density
Richard Armitage investigates the impact of the war in Ukraine on the country’s health worker density.
Book review: Our Mothers Ourselves: Six Women From Across The World Tell Their Mothers’ Stories
Six authors of differing careers, backgrounds, and geography write about their mothers’ lives in six chapters - Our Mothers Ourselves, reviewed by Hannah Milton
Book review: The Tales of a Suffolk GP
A book "of interest to students, GPs, AiTs, patients, and even medical historians" — Professor Amanda Howe reviews The Tales of a Suffolk GP by Andrew Yager
General practitioners as ‘eco-warriors’
Although the GPs may well be aware that the ‘climate emergency’ is also a ‘health emergency, many of us do not make the connection with clinical practice when it comes to taking action. We often fail to realise that the majority of
Training, but not trying, to be kind
How can we encourage the development of kindness toward ourselves and others? Is it something we can train, and should it perhaps be a part of the GP curriculum? Touching on their own personal experience of being on the receiving end of
The problem with order
Bhupinder Goraya muses on the concepts of order and randomness in relation to health and primary healthcare. We’ve worked 'bloody hard' to make a random mechanical universe work, in doing so we have ordered our leisure.
BJGP letter: Are World Health Organization cut-off values appropriate for the diagnosis of anaemia?
Anaemia is a serious public health concern globally, yet WHO's cut-off values for Hgb were established in 1968 using predominantly White populations in Europe and North America. Is it time to update to population specific cut-offs?
Bandaging our own wounds: how do we support each other when a colleague dies by suicide?
How do we support each other when a colleague dies by suicide? A reflection by Louise Stone.
BJGP Letter: The evolution of GP identity
Laura Heath discusses ‘trade-offs’ that we should reflect on in modern primary care. Are we clinical providers or clinical supervisors? Data sharers or data stewards? Secondary care helpers, or expert generalists? If our voice is not heard the ‘trade off’ will be
Episode 078: Non-speculum clinician-taken sampling is comparable to self-sampling in cervical screening
Dr Anita Lim joins the podcast to tell us about a further study on non-speculum clinician-taken sampling for cervical screening.
Where I end and you begin: Additional roles in British general practice
Nada Khan explores the roles of and our perceptions about primary care multidiciplinary teams, in light of the recent BBC Panorama investigation
Medical education and war in Ukraine
The Ukrainian system of medical education is considered to be both one of the highest quality and relative affordability in the world. Richard Armitage reports how things are affected by the war in Ukraine.
War and antimicrobial resistance: coexisting threats in Ukraine
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant and well-recognised threat to human health in Ukraine. Richard Armitage discusses how this is further complicated by the war.
Book review: Get Off The Couch Before It’s Too Late: All The Whys and Wherefores of Exercise
"... it is never too late to start accruing benefit [from exercise]" — Karen O’Reilly, GP, reviews Get Off The Couch Before It's Too Late: All The Whys and Wherefores of Exercise by Hugh Bethell
Abuse against healthcare staff: what’s happening, so what and what now?
General practices and staff have been facing violent behaviour or aggression from members of the public -a global phenomenon now an UK issue. Vasumathy Sivarajasingam asks, what's happening, so what, and what now?
Learning to live with cognitive bias
You are probably familiar with the idea of cognitive bias: a trick of the mind that stops you seeing what’s in front of you or thinking clearly, something that’s a recognised cause of diagnostic error. Ben Hoban introduces the psychological menagerie...
Seven ages of the family physician and the problem of ‘premature abdication’
'One man in his time plays many parts' — What is the role of the older, experienced GP? In retiring, this ‘premature abdication’ represents an enormous loss to the NHS. Here, Maxwell Cooper and colleagues outline a vision for a future general
Episode 077: How significant is abdominal pain when diagnosing intra-abdominal cancers?
Dr Sarah Price comes on the podcast to tell us about research exploring the role of abdominal pain with and without other clinical features and intra-abdominal cancer risk.
Palliative care needs and war in Ukraine
For as long as the war in Ukraine continues, the country’s existing substantial unmet need for palliative care and pain relief will increasingly intensify, and ever greater numbers of people with life-limiting conditions will experience intolerable yet preventable suffering at the most
How to balance science and compassion in menopause care – two books reviewed
Rebecca Mawson reviews 2 books different in tone but equally sound on the subject of the menopause.
Fining patients who miss GP appointments – will this strategy work?
Recent media coverage has focussed on whether patients should be fined for missing appointments. Would a £10 fine change patient behaviour and put an end to this story once and for all? Nada Khan investigates!
The Cynefin framework and general practice consultations: a sense-making framework
The Cynefin framework is believed to encourage the perception of existing structures with new eyes, aiding decision making and simplifying complex concepts. Can this framework help to make sense of challenging GP consultations that may leave GPs feeling inadequate or ineffective?
The toll of attacks on health care during conflict
As of day 70 of the Ukraine–Russia war there have been 186 attacks on health care. Drawing comparisons to Russia's involvement in the Syrian Civil War, Hareen De Silva BEM describes the devastating and long-term tolls these attacks have on civilians.
Episode 076: People with colorectal cancer can show clinical features and abnormal bloods as early as 9-10 months before diagnosis
Dr Yin Zhou comes on the podcast to tell us about population-level data signalling pre-diagnostic clinical features of colorectal cancer.
The realities of hypertension management in Ukraine
General public concern over the adequate control of blood pressure is notably high within Ukraine, possibly due to the concerning prevalence of hypertensive disease, public awareness of its associated risk factors, and successful health promotion by primary care and public health professionals.
The strange and curious guide to trauma (Book review)
Hannah Milton reviews a book aimed at 8–12-year-old children which explains how traumatic experiences can affect the brain and lead to altered feelings and behaviours in the future.
To talk or to tweet? The power of individual conversations versus the media
As we’ve emerged from various lockdowns, large parts of the media have intensified a negative rhetoric against GPs. Annabelle Machin argues that there is still a powerful hope from... talking to each other!
Increasing capacity to teach medical students in general practice in the UK: there’s a will, is there a way?
Capacity for undergraduate GP placements is a serious challenge and one that is predicted to become harder in the near future. Here, Simon Thornton, part of the national working group set up to investigate the issue of teaching capacity in general practice
Heroes with bifocals
Ben Hoban reflects on general practice as a 'Hero's journey,' but argues that this must be reconciled with the patient narrative. Don your narrative bifocals!