I’ve spent the last few weeks saying goodbye to my patients, letting them know, that after eight years, I will no longer be their GP. I don’t tell every patient I see, but instead restrict myself to telling those with whose care I’ve been more intimately involved in and those whom I’m advising to come back for follow up, knowing full well that I won’t be around to provide it. It needs to be done and I want to be the one to do it, but- as any GP could tell you- it hasn’t been easy.

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According to UNESCO there are 111 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases among people ages 10 to 24 globally each year. In addition, 4.4 million women age 15 to 19 seek abortions each year. As part of their on-going programme to try to improve this situation, and with a strong focus on trying to reduce HIV transmission, UNESCO is in the process of formulating Sex and Relationship Education guidelines that they hope will make the task of helping the world’s young people to make informed decisions. A welcome and much needed contribution? Sadly, not everyone thinks so. more…

The inhabitants of the British Isles, along with much of Europe, are currently basking in glorious weather. Warm, sunny, BBQ-inspiring, smile-evoking, relaxation-inducing, glorious weather. The kind of weather that leads lesser mortals like me to even share guilty jokes about not everything about global warming being bad. more…

This Christmas I received a very special present from my husband. After 23 years I guess he knows a thing or two about how to get me excited and he knows just the man to do it.  He also knew, as we must all surely know by now, that this was an austerity Christmas. A time to reuse, recyle and act with restraint. And so, armed with a limited budget and a detailed knowledge of his artsy doc wife’s weaknesses, he found himself in one of London’s second hand bookstores. more…