When I first became a GP, general practice was organised in a way that was so easy to describe to people. We had practices serving defined local communities and we […]
NHS
Hoong-Wei Gan: Strike on, strike off: why junior doctors are fighting for their patients
Striking is not integral to any doctor’s identity. As others have pointed out over the last few months, a doctor pledges, before anything to else, to “first do no harm.” […]
Chris Ham: The proposed NHS and social care commission should report quickly and engage with staff and the public
After the government’s spending review, the NHS has just over two years at best to stabilise rapidly deteriorating finances and declining standards of patient care. At that point the harsh reality […]
Henry Murphy: Resignation to Jeremy
Another blog about the junior doctor’s contract, another march, and another strike. What is left to be said? The argument has been detailed in every way; with eloquence, with anger, […]
Saffron Cordery: The old slogans are often the best
Sometimes it’s good to revive an old slogan. The one that’s been running round my head recently is that 80s environmental campaign: think global; act local. There isn’t necessarily an instant […]
Patrice Baptiste: What is the future of the NHS?
During my foundation years I wasn’t completely sure about what specialty I wanted to pursue within medicine so I decided to take a year out of training. Although not my […]
Paul Sooby: The last of an endangered species? The view of a LAT trainee
In January 2016 NHS employers withdrew locum appointed for training (LAT) posts in England. The numbers of doctors undertaking LATs has fallen since 2014 and there were vacant posts last […]
John Fabre: The absence of a national leadership structure within the NHS
The strike by junior doctors illustrates a fundamental fact about the National Health Service: the de facto chief executive is the minister for health, and there are no advisory or […]
Ahmed Rashid on “Goldilocks Medicine”: the quest for “just right”
Week after week, NHS general practitioners receive messages about changes they should consider making to their clinical practice. These messages come from national and local guidelines, research papers, blogs, social […]
Andrew Moscrop: Should we extend NHS charges for overseas visitors and migrants?
Jeremy Hunt has been talking “tough measures.” Not junior doctors’ contracts, but migrants. Overseas visitors and migrants who get sick in Britain should be charged for using A&E and primary […]