The coalition programme for government states: “We will create a cancer drugs fund to enable patients to access the cancer drugs their doctors think will help them, paid for using money saved by the NHS through our pledge to stop the rise in national insurance contributions from April 2011,” and “We will reform NICE and […]
Category: Guest writers
Richard Feinmann on malaria in Lira, Uganda
Working as a doctor in Northern Uganda I wonder where to start with healthcare. Since 75% of diseases in Uganda are preventable and since there are very few health workers and little money, especially in a country which is so Kampalacentric, one probably has to follow the government’s prevention line. […]
Tracey Koehlmoos: We are human: the homeless in Bangladesh
When the little woman in red arrived at the dissemination seminar of the Urban Partnerships for Poverty Reduction Programme (UPPR), I was dually impressed by her small size and that she bought her toddler with her. Although my three sons consume most of my time and effort outside of work, I’ve never been to a business meeting where someone […]
Andrew Burd on Chinese chopper attacks
There is a specific utensil found in the kitchen of all Chinese homes; a finely balanced rectangular blade with a keenly sharpened edge that is used for peeling and parring, slicing and dicing, skinning, deboning, gutting and cutting but most of all, chopping. […]
Mike Weaver on anaesthesiologists and the lethal injection
On 15th February 2010 the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) stated that anaesthetists may not participate in capital punishment if they wish to be “board certified.” To me, an American anaesthetist practising in the UK, this statement would seem surreal if it were not so necessary. For years the American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) has […]
Toby Hillman on carbon efficient healthcare
I was going to start this blog telling you how junior doctors are the lifeblood of the NHS. Then I thought about how few of us there are compared with the rest of the NHS, and how much real power we wield in the workplace. In fact, we help to keep things ticking over, and, help to […]
Kiran James Jobanputra: Escape
It is sad, it never ceases to be sad, working in hospitals. Working with the mothers, their fatigued, careworn faces, the infrequent tears, the resigned, long-suffering poise, concealing hearts that are heaving with sadness. The world feels sad some days, a palpable sadness like a cloud spreading out from the feverish body of the sick […]
Muza Gondwe: No more days left in the world calendar
“Counting Malaria Out” is not the most inspiring of themes for the third World Malaria Day that took place on the 25th of April. It is another day to add onto the growing list of internationally recognised health days which by my calculation can exceed 24 internationally observed days in one month, for example in October. Some […]
David Pencheon: I spy the future now- IT, integration, innovation, and incentives
Just before each general election, I am always intrigued to see how the Economist will cast their vote. Although I don’t always agree with their decisions on this or any other matter they address, it’s always a stimulating read. Actually the article that really caught my eye this week (1st May, 2010) was the analysis […]
Andrew Burd on elbows and burning babies
How do you test the temperature of the water before you give a young infant a bath in a basin? This is breaking news in Hong Kong. A few days ago a nurse was giving a baby a bath in a hospital ward. Before I continue I must emphasize that all that is included in […]