In 1995 Stephen Lock, once editor of The BMJ and effectively the first person in Britain to be seriously concerned about research misconduct, called for an end of amateurism in […]
Columnists
Jeffrey Aronson: When I use a word . . . Treating convulsions in 1618—unicorn’s horn
Last week I discussed how the Pharmacopoeia Londinensis of 1618 described the use of human skull for treating convulsions. This week I describe an even more unusual method of treatment, […]
Richard Smith: Preventing a cholera epidemic among the Rohingya
An outbreak of cholera commonly occurs in humanitarian disasters as with war in Yemen, where some 2000 people have died of cholera, or after the earthquake in Haiti. Usually vaccination […]
Richard Smith: Visiting the camps of the Rohingya
I stand on a hill in the middle of the largest of the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh beside a hospital run by Médecins Sans Frontières and see the huts of […]
Jeffrey Aronson: When I use a word . . . Treating convulsions in 1618—human skull
Before 2018 ends, I want to celebrate again the grandfather of UK pharmacopoeias, the Pharmacopoeia Londinensis, whose first edition was published in 1618 in two separate versions (Box 1). Its […]
Martin McKee: Taking stock of Brexit—what comes next?
The consequences of a “no deal” Brexit are so catastrophic that it is almost inconceivable that a serious politician would allow it to happen […]
Matt Morgan and Peter Brindley: Some Christmas words of cheer for today’s trainees
In the seasonal spirit of giving, Matt Morgan and Peter Brindley share what they’ve learnt from their time in medicine […]
Jeffrey Aronson: When I use a word . . . Naming the digits—the thumb
In the last two weeks I have discussed various aspects of our digits, including finger counting and fingerprints. This week I shall start looking at the names we give to […]
Matt Morgan: What can Bridget Jones do for medicine?
As we enter Christmas party season, solving the mystery of an unconscious patient will be repeated across emergency departments around the country on countless occasions. The Holy Trinity of legal […]
Mary E Black: “Manels” and what to do about them
Mary E Black on how to avoid manels […]