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
Isn't it great to know that with evidenced based practice we will always get it right? Charles Todd reminds us of a few home truths.
Should bereavement leave be a dependant on Employers' goodwill? Bert Leysen and Johan Wens survey the current situation in Europe and suggest a better way.
Dr Sarah Bailey takes us through important new evidence around the implications of thrombocytosis in our patients.
Anna Gordon reminds us that refugees are people like us, but in desperate need of our humanity.
7000 extra GPs are needed within the next five years to avoid a UK medical workforce crisis, but only a minority of medical students are willing to take on the general practitioner role. Philipp Schorscher examines why, and what we can do
Competing patient, family medicine and psychiatric perspectives complicate the management of distress and mental illness general practice and call for resolution. K. S. Jacob suggests some ways forward.
Safety netting is essentrial in primary care but there is no one accepted definition. Peter Lindsay fixes this for us!
How do remote consultations work for Foundation trainees in general practice, who suddenly find themselves working in an unfamiliar environment? Emilie Dobler, an FY2, describes the methods of training used during their GP rotation to best prepare them for a future where
There is an increased risk of frontline healthcare workers developing mental health problems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Could Meditation Help? William Van Gordon examines the evidence.
COVID has taught us just how much care can be delivered over the telephone and video link. But what of patient safety, particularly for the frail elderly and patients with dementia in care homes? John Havard describes a useful new tool that
Martin Edwards and Anjna Harrar review this polemical but important book. It is devastatingly critical of the government, its advisors and Public Health England in its analysis of the early months of the COVID-19 crisis in Britain.
Some GPs seem invincible, gliding through their entire careers with a minimum of alarms. How do they do it? Retired GP, Ed Warren, muses on attitudes worth cultivating during a career as a GP.
Are you constantly short of time? Charlotte Sidebotham encourages us to discover the slow movement.
A New Indian Express editorial read “Can one person change the world? Ask Andrew Wakefield”. Peter Lindsay reviews "The Doctor who fooled the world" by Brian Deer Scribe, and reflects on the damage caused by Wakefield's career.
We talks about attitudes and understanding of COVID testing; point-of-care testing; recent research in this area; and the use of CRP and how it fits into clinical care.
During the current Covid-19 pandemic, operating procedures to deal with face-to-face consultations in primary care in the United Kingdom were clear in the need of separating services for patients with symptoms of Covid-19, and for shielded patients needing care. Pablo Millares Martin
Covid-19 has had a major impact on the provision of all health care services. Have Primary Care Networks had a role to play in helping GP practices to adapt? Sarah Parkinson and Judith Smith talked to leaders from four PCNs across England
Migrants are widely recognised to have complex and diverse health needs, but recent reform within the NHS includes the introduction of healthcare charges for many of them. These may create pressure on GP services, increase the disease burden and widen health inequalities,
We see the refugee crisis remotely, on our TV screens. Dr Peter von Kaehne decided to do something to help. We need to hear his story.
Dr Bethany Bareham talks about managing older people’s perceptions of alcohol-related risk.
Many clinical situations force patients into disempowered vulnerability. Judith Dawson reflects on the etiquette of dressing and undressing within the consultation.