In the UK, the Department of Health is the “parent,” or sponsoring department, for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). That seems reasonable. It would be surprising if the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) were given the job, and yet something like this has just happened in the new European Commission […]
The BMJ Today: The perils of not keeping your mouth shut
A few weeks ago, I had to take parenteral antibiotics for a condition that was not improving with oral antibiotics. Moreover, in my native Portugal it is still common, for example, to prescribe parenteral penicillin for bacterial tonsillitis since for some reason oral penicillin is not available there. […]
The BMJ Today: Medical device regulation – still out of joint
The introduction of new orthopaedic implants has for some time been a major focus of attention within scientific and policy circles since concerns about certain devices used in total hip replacements were brought into the spotlight. One of the conclusions of a BMJ feature by Deb Cohen in 2012 was that “After a series of […]
Dawn Richards: A Canadian arthritis patient charter
In 2014 the Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance (CAPA) undertook the creation of an Arthritis Patient Charter. The arthritis community in Canada has a history of collaboration, to which this project was no exception. In 2001 the creation of an Arthritis Patient Bill of Rights (English and French versions) was led by the Arthritis Society with […]
Billy Boland: A lesson in perseverance
It did not feel like the end when I submitted my portfolio for the NHS Leadership Academy, and sure enough it was not. I’ve been asked to make amendments, and there is also the submission of my closing statement to do, the final piece of written work on the journey. Any celebratory talk had been […]
The BMJ Today: Read this, but no emailing please
Arterial and venous thromboses are common serious postoperative complications (about 8% of surgical procedures are followed by a thrombosis). The fact that they are still so common despite years of research suggests we haven’t yet cracked what causes them and how to prevent them. Although some risk factors like malignancy and previous thromboembolism are well […]
Roy K Philip: New “Kerala model” on alcohol policy: Great public health initiative or an “alco-pops” repeat?
The Indian state of Kerala has the highest alcohol consumption per head in India (8.3 litres against the national average of 4 litres,[1] while also being credited with the highest literacy rate (including female literacy),[2] best social indicators, and best infant mortality.[3] Kerala has the historical mix of influences from the spice trade, its early […]
Richard Lehman’s journal review—8 September 2014
NEJM 4 Sep 2014 Vol 371 892 A terrific piece by Rita Redberg discusses sham controls in medical device trials. Whenever sham procedures are used in the control arms of such trials (or in surgical trials generally) they reveal a huge placebo effect. For example, renal denervation therapy produced huge sustained falls in recorded blood […]
The BMJ Today: Communication of risk – a week of reflection
This week has highlighted for those in healthcare the intricacy of communicating risk to patients and their families. In an emotive blog relating to the case of Ashya King, Tessa Richards highlights her concerns regarding communication with families around complex treatment decisions, and has implored the medical professions to reflect on their ability to do […]
The BMJ Today: A story in need of an end
A good story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. A few days ago, we published a sad story in The BMJ Analysis section about the use of beta-blockers in patients undergoing major surgery at high risk of cardiovascular disease. The story had a hopeful beginning, in the 1990s, as the medical community was […]