Decisions about healthcare inevitably involve choices around the allocation of finite resources. Democracy, if it is meaningful, is public reasoning. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), established […]
NHS
Sarah Walpole: Managing conflicts of interest in today’s NHS
In February NHS England (NHSE) published revised guidance on the management of conflicts of interest (COI). NHSE created a “Task and Finish Group” to consult with stakeholders and produce the […]
Emma Parish: The impact of not having enough staff is exhausting and detrimental to patient care
Last week I was at a conference discussing joy at work. This was the same week as the State of Child Health Report was released by the Royal College of […]
Saffron Cordery: Our NHS—it’s time to face the facts
In any general election, there are the “political football” issues. A hackneyed yet apt description of what happens to the NHS in every campaign that I can remember. I think, […]
Jennifer Isherwood: A trainee’s perspective on delivering frontline care
A trainee’s day falls into one of two categories: emergency or elective work. Both follow a similar pattern: arrive, handover, see patients (ward round and review new referrals), clinic/endoscopy/theatre, handover, […]
Harrison Carter: Medical students’ perspectives on delivering frontline care are unique
Medical students rotate through clinical placements in their final three years of study. The timetables at medical schools are tailored to ensure that medical students experience different hospital environments, from […]
Rammya Mathew and John Launer: Holistic care is fast disappearing
GPs have considerable insight into the care that their patients receive as we are commonly the ones to instigate the acute admission. We also take over the ongoing care of […]
Gavin Newby: Reclaiming the lost art of lunch
When was the last time you had a proper lunch at work? I bet you are reading this munching a sandwich at your desk, or squeezing in a bit of […]
Should we abandon routine blood tests?
The practice of ordering routine blood tests for patients attending hospital regardless of clinical need is wasteful and potentially damaging, argue three doctors […]
Richard Smith: Tales of sustainability II—a way forward from Brighton
The NHS is legally committed to reducing its carbon consumption by 80% by 2050, but the route to that destination is far from clear. The leaders in trying to find […]