Decisions about healthcare inevitably involve choices around the allocation of finite resources. Democracy, if it is meaningful, is public reasoning. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), established by Frank Dobson in 1999, though imperfect, represents a worthy attempt to conduct a reasoned assessment of what a decent health service should provide. When […]
In February NHS England (NHSE) published revised guidance on the management of conflicts of interest (COI). NHSE created a “Task and Finish Group” to consult with stakeholders and produce the guidance. The guidance aims to prevent misappropriation or misspending of NHS funds, and protect individuals from allegations of malpractice. [1] Stimuli for the work included […]
Last week I was at a conference discussing joy at work. This was the same week as the State of Child Health Report was released by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH). Joyful it is not. The report charts the lie of the land when it comes to the UK paediatric workforce. […]
In any general election, there are the “political football” issues. A hackneyed yet apt description of what happens to the NHS in every campaign that I can remember. I think, however, given the importance of healthcare to everyone, it’s time to ignore the pundits and face the facts on the NHS. So, whether your political […]
A trainee’s day falls into one of two categories: emergency or elective work. Both follow a similar pattern: arrive, handover, see patients (ward round and review new referrals), clinic/endoscopy/theatre, handover, go home. As a rule of thumb, elective work is more predictable and controlled. Despite this, the “nags” of the working day remain the same […]
Medical students rotate through clinical placements in their final three years of study. The timetables at medical schools are tailored to ensure that medical students experience different hospital environments, from large tertiary and regional referral centres to district general hospitals. In addition to different hospital environments, medical students rotate around different medical, surgical, and specialty […]
GPs have considerable insight into the care that their patients receive as we are commonly the ones to instigate the acute admission. We also take over the ongoing care of our patients following hospital discharge and are therefore privy to the stories that patients tell of their hospital admissions. Hospital care of patients As one […]
When was the last time you had a proper lunch at work? I bet you are reading this munching a sandwich at your desk, or squeezing in a bit of reading in the 30 seconds you have between appointments. The reality of the modern NHS, or indeed, a busy private practice is that it’s often […]
The practice of ordering routine blood tests for patients attending hospital regardless of clinical need is wasteful and potentially damaging, argue three doctors […]
The NHS is legally committed to reducing its carbon consumption by 80% by 2050, but the route to that destination is far from clear. The leaders in trying to find a practical route are Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust, and I went to visit them in Brighton. The trust covers Brighton and Hove, West Sussex, and […]