“Can I ask your advice doctor?” The recovery nurse who I had been teaching looked puzzled. “I have been asked by some of my colleagues on the wards how to wake up patients who have not recovered from their anaesthetic after one or two days. What do you suggest?” My heart sank; all of the […]
Category: Students
Lifebox Q and A: Rwanda—unmet surgical need and a surgical safety crisis.
Just 3.5% of the 234 million major operations taking place each year are in low-resource settings, often carried out in very dangerous conditions due to lack of resources and training. Lifebox Foundation, the BMJ’s christmas charity, works in more than 70 countries to improve the quality and safety of surgical care. They spoke recently with […]
Sophie Reshamwalla: Lifebox—is that the pulse oximeter charity?
Whenever I tell people I work for Lifebox, they often say, “Oh, is that the pulse oximeter charity?” I’ve heard this so many times now that it is easy to fall into the trap of believing that’s all we do—send out pulse oximeters. Don’t get me wrong, we do send out pulse oximeters, and they […]
Julian Sheather: Medical electives—laying the ghosts of empire?
I was at Brighton Medical School recently, talking ethics to third years, and a lively and engaging bunch they were too. Among the many things we talked about were electives, particularly in resource poor countries. It is no surprise that students look forward to their electives. The travel appeals of course; the ability also to […]
Anna Allan: Acclimatisation to the NHS
My fellow FY1s and I have been flying solo for over three months now. It has been filled with “firsts.” First day of work, first night shift… first pay cheque. All exciting milestones in their own right, and each followed, perhaps naïvely, by a sense of achievement having surmounted such momentous obstacles. Time has sprinted […]
Kieran Walsh: Am I getting value for money out of my medical school tuition fees?
In the nineteenth century there were few standards in medical education. Students would often do an apprenticeship with a general practitioner and gradually gain experience in the trade. They had to pay for their education—which barred all but those from the privileged classes from becoming a doctor. For those who did persevere with their education […]
Isobel Weinberg: Doctors, Dissection, and Resurrection Men
I’m glad I learnt anatomy via the declining art of full body dissection. I’ll be dining out on the stories for years. It’s one of the first things that people ask about when they learn I’m a medical student, and they aren’t satisfied until they’ve heard details: the smell, the cadaver’s pallor, the grisly chill […]
Rhys Davies: Take two and call me in the mourning
My mother is widely regarded in many circles as something of a medical expert. What she lacks in actual knowledge is made up for by unbridled confidence. For one thing, she proudly gabbles the names of drugs and diseases after the first syllable so conversations quickly degenerate into a medical guessing game. She was also […]
Tom Yates: Panorama—Britain’s Secret Health Tourists
In my opinion a recent Panorama programme, “Britain’s Secret Health Tourists,” didn’t do justice to a complex issue. With a Department of Health consultation looming on the issue, it’s important doctors understand why. I’ve attempted to summarise the evidence on this issue elsewhere, so here I’ll stick to the key points that I think Panorama […]
Kieran Walsh: Free medical education would deliver savings in the long term
“Even in comparatively poor countries we find scientific knowledge and trained intellects regarded as sound public investments, and the popular voice applauding a liberal application of public money to secure them.” Isambard Owen, 1904 […]