‘Life is a fatal disease’ was a phrase frequently used by one of my favourite consultants. He was right. We are born, we die, and in between we experience the perversity of British weather (or the luxury of no such experience if you are an overseas Triple Helix reader). Apart...
I find using books on tape advantageous because they can be played in the car, on the train, whilst walking or even late at night in bed when tired eyes cannot focus on the words of a page. Listening to a cassette seems tireless effort and if, like myself, you...
Teenage pregnancies on the increase The British teenage pregnancy level is now the highest in Europe. Currently 9.4 per 1000 13-15 year-olds and 63 per 1000 16-19 year-olds get pregnant each year:[1],[2] twice the rate in Germany, four times that in France and seven times that in Holland. 87% of...
What hours does a GP work? Surgeries may start at 8.30am and last until 11am. The next 4 hours are likely to given over to reading letters, dictating referrals, making phone calls, signing repeat prescriptions, doing medical examinations (eg for insurance companies), performing minor surgical operations (fitting IUCDs, removing skin...
Pam, can you describe a ‘typical’ week? My average week contains one or two operating lists, one of which may be a day-case list. It is my routine to visit the 2 or 3 major cases on the ward, either the afternoon before, or the morning of their operation (in...
Imagine your medical student days are over and you are now a general practitioner. You are doing a clinic and the following cases present. Would you consider or even recommend abortion? Case one: A pastor and his wife who are extremely poor, have 14 children and mounting debt, are now...