China’s organ donation figures appear to be falsified, study claims
China’s organ donation numbers appear to have been systematically manipulated and falsified, according to new…
Author: British Medical Journal
Sexism at the BMA: the ordinary BMA doctor has moved forward
It is unfortunate that in her otherwise depressingly accurate editorial Jane Dacre unwittingly misrepresented the…
Mycobacterium tuberculosis: concentrate resources on recent infections
Behr and colleagues1 conclude that tuberculosis (TB) has a much shorter incubation time than previously…
It’s the workforce, stupid: five minutes with . . .Mark Britnell
“I consider the workforce challenge to be the greatest crisis that healthcare faces globally. Quite…
Retired and retiring consultants: an unrecognised and undervalued resource
Cuts in job advertisements and the lack of trainees have been blamed for the shortage…
GP to appeal decision that failure to refer patient for heart tests led to spinal injury
A GP who was found liable for a serious spinal injury sustained by a patient…
Judith Mary Hockaday
bmj;367/nov15_4/l6512/FAF1faJudith Mary Hockaday (née Fitzsimons) was both of Irish stock and from a strongly medical…
NHS is facing one its “bleakest” winters after worst ever performance on key targets
Doctors have been warned that the NHS faces a “bleak” winter, as the latest figures…
Inequality matters
Medicine has a class problem. While other professions have made progress in recruiting more students…
US rule would strip science from environmental policies and increase premature deaths, warn scientists
Decades of landmark public health studies on matters such as air pollution and water quality…
Blood markers to diagnose Parkinson’s . . . and other stories
Biomarkers for Parkinson’s diseaseScreening 1000 different proteins in blood samples from people with Parkinson’s disease…
Sixty seconds on . . . #WonderfulWomenDo
What do wonderful women do?Presumably lots of things, but this particular campaign focuses on women…
Climate crisis threatens gains in life expectancy, report warns
If the world follows a “business as usual pathway” in relation to the climate emergency,…
Should medical schools relax academic admission criteria?
Yes—Drew TarmeyI’m not about to argue for the removal of all standards and benchmarks for…
Delivering cost effective healthcare through reverse innovation
The process of reverse innovation, where ideas originating in low resource settings are adopted by…
Shut out: the medical profession’s intractable class problem
In 2012 the UK government’s social mobility adviser lambasted the medical profession. Too few people…
Umbilicated papules on the face
A 5 year old boy presented with a three month history of multiple mildly pruritic,…
Rupioid syphilis
This is rupioid syphilis in a 22 year old man with HIV.Multiple, black, crusted lesions…
How to become a physician in obstetrics and gynaecology
Although there is an option to choose one or the other, most consultants in obstetrics…
Labour pledges to outspend Conservatives on health with {pound}26bn NHS “rescue plan”
A Labour government will increase health spending by an average of 4.3% a year over…
Seven days in medicine: 6-12 Nov 2019
CAMHSGPs are unsure that referrals lead to treatmentOver three quarters (76%) of 1008 GPs surveyed…
Rates of colorectal cancer after negative colonoscopies vary by provider, study finds
The rate at which people develop colorectal cancer within three years of a colonoscopy negative…
New Zealand will hold referendum on assisted dying in 2020
The New Zealand government has announced a public referendum on euthanasia which, if passed, will…
US to probe Google deal to manage healthcare data
The Office for Civil Rights of the US Department of Health and Human Services has…
High Court rules that 14 year old Jehovah’s Witness should have blood transfusions
A High Court judge has given the go-ahead for doctors to give blood transfusions to…
Can we discuss my life goals as well?
This year I felt positive when I arranged the annual review for my mild asthma….
Ebola is now “preventable and treatable,” says WHO after approving vaccine in record time
The World Health Organization has prequalified the injectable Ebola vaccine Ervebo in a move that…
Polio outbreak: officials deny reports of cover-up in Pakistan
Pakistan has launched a fresh campaign to increase the uptake of polio vaccine, after the…
Ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage: diagnosis and initial management: summary of updated NICE guidance
What you need to knowThe guideline now includes new recommendations on the ultrasound features for…
Back to the future? Health and the World Bank’s human capital index
Over the past 25 years, the World Bank has become one the world’s most influential…
David Oliver: Does doctors’ admin take up too much time?
An essay by Atul Gawande in the New Yorker, “Why doctors hate their computers,” made…
Well played: the joy of outdoor freedom
bmj;367/nov13_1/l6478/FAF1faChildren play in Manchester in 1969, jumping in and out of burnt-out cars, balancing on…
Tories promise 6000 extra GPs by 2024
General practice hit the headlines this week when the Conservatives promised to deliver 6000 more…
Jobs come under threat at troubled Karolinska hospital in Sweden
Some 250 doctors and 350 nurses at the New Karolinska Hospital (NKS) in Stockholm have…
Rammya Mathew: We need to rise above racist abuse and challenge attitudes
The recent case of Radhakrishna Shanbhag, a senior trauma and orthopaedic surgeon who was asked…
Rising opioid prescriptions may not be a crisis
Smith and colleagues describe widespread opioid prescribing and use in European and North American countries.1…
Most of the world’s population lacks access to opioid drugs for pain control
Smith and colleagues say that opioid prescribing is rising in many countries,1 with the result…
Drug related deaths: playing politics while people die
Once again the UK has recorded its highest rate of drug related deaths—this is the…
Can a low income country move towards universal health coverage?
Mali is a vast and troubled country. Much of it is lawless Sahara desert, where…
Helen Salisbury: The performance of kindness
Patients arrive at a GP appointment with all manner of symptoms and varying degrees of…
Matt Morgan: We should encourage short service awards
As I walk towards the sound of 1970s music, coloured disco lights spill out from…
Obesity epidemic: bold and decisive action needed
The chief medical officer’s report on childhood obesity has helped to raise awareness of one…
Severe allergic reaction to vaping prompts warning from doctors
A Nottinghamshire paediatrician has reported a severe immune reaction in a 16 year old boy…
NICE recommends cannabis based drugs for epilepsy and multiple sclerosis
In final appraisal documents the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has recommended…
“Touchy-feely” psychiatrist is suspended for six months
A psychiatrist whose “touchy-feely” advances led five female colleagues to complain about him has been…
Practical aspects of childhood epilepsy
What you need to know Official guidance advises consistency in brand prescribing of anti-epileptic drugsSleep…
Maurice Wilson Fowles
bmj;367/nov11_7/l6454/FAF1faMaurice Wilson Fowles was born in St Helens, Lancashire. He met his wife of over…
Cuts are stopping young adults getting specialist drug treatment, says expert
A 50% drop in the number of 18-25 year olds presenting for specialist drug treatment…
Will genome testing of healthy babies save lives?
What’s the claim?The media have reported that the health and social care secretary, Matt Hancock,…
Alan George Blandford
bmj;367/nov11_4/l6450/FAF1faAfter house jobs in Bristol Alan George Blandford joined his brother in law, Michael Bourke,…