At the start of the year, Portugal was experiencing a very high rate of covid-19, three authors reflect on what lessons need to be learnt to prevent another wave […]
Tiago Villanueva
Tiago Villanueva: Shortages of medicines in Europe are having a impact on primary care
The shortage of medicines in Europe is an increasing problem. Recently I attended a workshop at the European Medicines Agency which convened stakeholders from the pharmaceutical industry, European national medicines […]
Tiago Villanueva: Primary care in Brazil’s largest favela
Walking through Rio de Janeiro’s largest slum, Favela da Rocinha, in the pouring rain is probably not the wisest thing for a foreign visitor to do. But on a recent trip to […]
Tiago Villanueva: What is it like working as an “Uber-style” doctor?
The steady “Uberification” of modern life continues, and with it have come companies that provide “Uber style” medical home visits for patients. KNOK began operating in Portugal in December 2015. A […]
Tiago Villanueva: Family medicine and private health insurance in Portugal
I read with interest some recent articles about the interplay between private healthcare insurance and state provided healthcare. [1][2][3] A substantial proportion of the population has private health insurance in […]
Tiago Villanueva: Co-payments in general practice—the Portuguese experience
Since 2011, I’ve worked as a locum GP in Portugal’s national health service, where patients pay five euros for each appointment with a GP. Many people are exempt from paying, […]
The BMJ Today: China, philanthropy, statistics, Minerva, and what your patient is thinking
• In his acclaimed weekly blog, Richard Lehman highlights a cluster of articles on healthcare in China. Acute kidney injury seems to be an emerging problem in China as many traditional herbal […]
The BMJ Today: Doing the right thing, doing the wrong thing, and the Hawthorne effect
• Samir Dawlatly explains in a blog the barriers that he faces daily as a practicing GP, which often hinder him from providing high quality healthcare. He gives the example of […]
The BMJ Today: Patient centred outcomes research
• A research paper looks at the association between warfarin treatment and longitudinal outcomes after ischaemic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation in community practice, using a large registry of patients […]
The BMJ Today: The NHS in the aftermath of the UK’s general election
• Gareth Iacobucci reports that the National Health Action Party secured just over 20 000 votes across 12 constituencies in the UK general election. In three constituencies, it achieved fourth place […]