One night about a year into the current “reorganisation” (aka upheaval) of the health service, my GP rang at 9.50 pm to give me the results of a blood test. […]
NHS
Alex Langford: Doctors should try to be politicians
In psychiatry we’re taught to consider our patients in “biopsychosocial” terms. This is useful, but the term has become a bit of cliché. If I mention it when teaching medical […]
Alex Scott-Samuel: Simon Stevens—cheerleader-in-chief for NHS privatisation
Simon Stevens’ Wikipedia entry describes him as “a health manager and politician.” This is appropriate not only because he was once a Labour councillor in Brixton but also because his […]
What are the political parties offering our children in 2015?
With the 7 May general election rapidly approaching, we have reviewed the manifestos of the five main political parties, standing in all UK regions, to determine what they are offering […]
David Kerr: Dr Uber
The hot topic in the technology world at the moment is the so called “sharing economy.” A great deal of money is being made by companies, such as Uber and […]
Richard Vize: Facing the NHS funding reality
The intervention by former NHS England chief executive Sir David Nicholson in the election debate on the NHS exposes the chasm between manifesto rhetoric and funding reality. Nicholson pointed out […]
Clare Gerada: Can we trust pre-election promises on the NHS?
Only a few weeks to go until the most unpredictable election in years and polls show that the NHS tops the list of voters concerns. Not surprisingly, politicians, of all […]
David Payne: What would you ask a future UK health secretary?
If you were in the same room as health secretary Jeremy Hunt, Labour shadow health secretary Andy Burnham, Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb, and UKIP’s Louise Bours, what would […]
Samir Dawlatly: What if En Aitchess was my patient?
“Enfield Aitchess?” I called to the waiting room. A 65 year old man shuffled towards me and shook my hand. He seemed slightly out of breath. “My name is Dr Dawlatly, […]
Samir Dawlatly: How general do we want general practice to be?
As a medical student I got a parking ticket and three points on my driving license. The mistake I had made was parking in the wrong place on an unmarked […]