The status quo validates practices that blur the lines around assisted dying […]
Year: 2018
Stijntje Dijk: The patient’s role in medical education extends well beyond being “clinical material”
“Medical education used to be something that was done to students, rather than something they were a part of,” said Trudie Roberts, professor of medical education, during a AMEE board […]
Billy Boland: Broken legs—the holy grail of outcome measures in mental health
Outcomes in mental health are getting a lot of attention of late. A troublesome concept for us; how do we measure what we do? Measurement is central to quality improvement […]
Martin McKee: They promised us £350 million a week for the NHS—the reality will be very different
There is one thing about which almost all British politicians now agree—the NHS needs more money. And we know where it will come from. We have read it on the […]
Richard Smith: Why the NHS shouldn’t be given more funds
Increased funding risks propping up a system that has to change […]
The NHS at 70: its greatest achievements and the power of individual stories
For the 70th anniversary of the NHS in July 2018, The BMJ is asking, “What is the NHS’s greatest achievement?” Nominations to answer this question in less than 100 words […]
Matthew Roycroft: Medicine’s generation gap—let’s stop comparing
The modern trainee wants exactly what doctors have always wanted: to see patients regularly, to diagnose, to treat, and to learn from those experiences […]
James Raftery: A more fundamental review of QALYs is needed
Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) have become common in research, partly due to being used by National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). A long running effort to update […]
Integrating health and social care in England—when the sum is not greater than its parts
The government’s announcement that the Department of Health and its Secretary of State were to have “social care” added to their titles was presented as a step forward in achieving […]
Allyson Pollock: Portability of budgets and competition for GP practice lists—another back door route to US style ACOs?
The regulations extending GP practice boundaries now make it possible for GP practices and trusts to compete for primary care patients from any part of England. The relationship between patients, […]