Jeremy Hunt would appear to be in a difficult situation. His threat to impose changes to doctor’s contracts in the drive to create a seven day NHS has directly resulted in a defiant and militant response. First there was the avalanche of #ImInWorkJeremy posts on twitter. Now a group of NHS doctors have responded with […]
The General Practice Extraction Service was planned as an IT system which would make data from GP systems in England available across the health service. It was intended to dramatically improve quality and planning for the NHS. Unfortunately, the National Audit Office has reported that the service has so far cost £40m, rather than the […]
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s Dying Without Dignity report is an uncomfortable but essential read for anyone concerned with healthcare: doctors; nurses; patients; carers; even politicians. The key themes are graphically illustrated by real case reports ahead of the conclusions, with poor communication clearly identified as a major issue. “Almost all the cases we looked […]
Good Medical Practice is a comprehensive description of the professional and ethical conduct required of a doctor in the UK. It therefore provides an excellent framework to structure a review of performance. In this piece I am going to start off by focusing on two key statements from the standards: 7: You must be competent […]
With Hippocrates considered as the Father of Modern Medicine, the influence of the ancients on the 21st century doctor is very clear. So what about the teachings of Confucius? Though revered by many, the power of the great philosopher’s teaching is often diluted by the world of throw away fortune cookie wisdom. A great deal […]
On the 1st of April the HSJ published an exclusive report. “Performance Bonuses for NHS board directors which could be worth up to £1m, are the flagship recommendation of the report prepared for the government by former Marks & Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose.” The proposal is to adopt an approach modelled on those used […]
At Oxford Medical Training we support thousands of doctors each year through our training events, programmes and materials. Here is some information about the recent changes which we have made in our drive to continually improve our service to you. New locations – Belfast, Leeds/Wakefield and Nottingham Advanced Patient Communication Skills for Doctors Presenting, Lecturing […]
Demanding, intolerant, short-tempered. The towering, cartoon-like figure of Sir Lancelot Spratt as chief surgeon in the old Doctor in the House series of comedy films is clearly a figure from a bygone age. In this era it was accepted and even expected that senior figures should strike terror into less experienced and ‘less important’ people. […]
“The more I practice, the luckier I get”, quipped Gary Player in response to a wisecracking spectator who had watched him hole a difficult shot from a deep bunker. To demonstrate his point, the master golfer took his detractor’s bet and successfully repeated the shot – then did it once again just for good measure […]
“How effective are you as a catalyst for change?” Whenever you are preparing for your medical interview it pays to consider as many potential questions as possible as this will help you to clarify your experience and opinions in advance of the event. You will always impress most if you can illustrate your responses with […]
