Last year a colleague phoned a patient named in a BMJ practice article. The patient had consented to her story being published (it was about to go live), but had wrongly thought her account was destined for publication in an obscure medical journal that would gather dust on library shelves. My colleague was concerned that […]
Elizabeth Loder: Inventing disease and pushing pills
The recent 2013 Selling Sickness conference in Washington, DC was chock full of fascinating speakers. In an earlier blog I discussed my participation in a panel discussion at the conference, and Rachel Hendrick has also blogged about the meeting. It was difficult to choose from the topics on offer during the two day gathering, and […]
David Zigmond: “Fixing the NHS is straightforward.” Really?
In an article in the Daily Telegraph, Gerry Robinson tells us that “fixing the NHS is straightforward.” He writes with optimistic alacrity of pragmatic, logistical, data-fuelled managerial devices to sharpen purview and performance. He cites management in McDonalds and Phones4U as good role models for healthcare. He conveys this as if it is bold and […]
Desmond O’Neill: A sad day for human rights in Ireland
It is perhaps stating the obvious that the best mode for exercising human rights is while still alive: as the Vikings stated rather bluntly in their eddaic saga Hávamál, “there is nothing the dead can do” (1). So it was with some sadness that I read, and re-read, the submission of the Irish Commission of […]
Pritpal S Tamber: We don’t know what the NHS is for
Last week the people of Leeds successfully halted the NHS’ plans to reform children’s heart services, which included moving surgery to a neighbouring city. It was a great victory for the citizenry. According to the High Court, the campaign group, Save Our Surgery (SOS), raised legitimate concerns about the decision making process by which the […]
Tony Delamothe: TED 2013
The 29th annual TED Conference in Long Beach, California, started as I remember several previous TEDs began: with two men with newly published books to sell proposing a future that was going to be either terrible or terrific. (The Economist ran this debate with the same protagonists on 12 January.) Since this was futurology, based […]
Sam Fosker: The Francis report—applications for the leaders of tomorrow
The main focus of the recent Francis report has been on the implications it has on the clinical and economic management of the NHS, but there are many lessons that can be applied to all levels of hospital hierarchy. Patient centred care is championed across healthcare, and nowhere as much as in complex care wards […]
Richard Lehman’s journal review—11 March 2013
JAMA 6 Mar 2013 Vol 309 887 The Greek for belt is zoster, while the Latin for girdle is cingulum. Add Greek for creeping (or snake) and you get herpes zoster, or break down Latin for girdle and you get “shingles.” Either way, you wish it not to happen, and wonder why it has. Concurrent […]
Anant Bhan and Bhavna Dhingra: We need a comprehensive approach to women’s health in India
It has been a winter of discontent regarding the status of women in India, sparked by national outrage following the gruesome gang rape of a young trainee physiotherapist in Delhi. The spontaneous public protests have highlighted the need for reform to promote a gender-equitable society. Today, as we observe International Women’s Day, we also need […]
Bridget Ugorji on how PATHS skills training is helping to save lives
Bridget Ugorji is a midwife at Hadejia General Hospital in Jigawa Northern Nigeria. On International Women’s Day, she shares her experiences of how the life saving skills training she received from Partnership for Transforming Health Systems is helping save the lives of women and newborns. I am privileged to see a life join this earth […]