Blog 15 Life as a medical resident in the Royal Infirmary in 1966
July 5, 2018Thursday 5th July 2018 marks the 70th Anniversary of the NHS so this week, instead of relating a story, I offer you a bit of history; a factual account of my life as a resident doctor 52 years ago. The year was 1966, the year in which England won the World Cup. Could this be […] Read more
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Blog 14 Doctor quickly regrets stealing from patient
June 13, 2018Dr Andrew Jackson knew that the staff at the High Grove Medical Practice regarded him as being old fashioned but he didn’t care; in fact, the knowledge rather pleased him. He wasn’t afraid to stand out from the crowd. The truth was that he hadn’t taken kindly to the changes that his younger colleagues had […] Read more
Blog 13 Can sexual harassment ever be accidental?
May 30, 2018When Dr Richard Alexander went to work on that lovely spring morning in April 2010, he had no idea that he would come within an inch of an accusation of sexual harassment. When I say ‘an inch’, I mean a metaphorical inch, not the sort of an inch of which a blue comedian might speak […] Read more
Blog 12 Harry, the Wedding and the Cup Final
May 11, 2018This story really isn’t a medical tale, but it’s quite short, it’s extremely topical and I couldn’t resist posting it for you to read. Essentially it amounts to a cry for help from a Junior Hospital Doctor called Harry who finds himself in a difficult situation. My hope is that someone reading this blog will […] Read more
Blog 11 Nurse Sansom’s baptism of fire on the men’s surgical ward
May 6, 2018I was a First Year Student Nurse working on the men’s surgical ward in a busy city hospital when an incident occurred which threatened to end the career upon which I had set my heart, before it had even begun! I had been assigned to give drinks to post-operative patients by Sister Bagshaw who […] Read more
Blog 10 Life; a lottery for patients and staff
April 24, 2018Late one night, a couple of weeks ago, the Lancashire police received reports that a car was being driven east bound at speed on the west bound carriageway of the M62 trans-Pennine motorway. Regrettably before they were able to intercept the vehicle, it was involved in a ‘head-on’ collision and two people were killed. The […] Read more
Blog 9 Health service bureaucracy goes mad
April 9, 2018Tension often exists between healthcare managers and those at the coal face. The former may regard doctors and nurses as obdurate and resistant to change; the latter may feel that many directives are unnecessary and unhelpful. Of all the directives ever issued however, the one reproduced below surely takes the biscuit. Memo to all NHS […] Read more
Blog 8 Nurse Janet’s Ethical Dilemma
March 23, 2018Janet smiled to herself as she ran across the concourse at Euston Station to catch the train north. She felt relaxed and happy; proud of her recent achievement. She had completed her nurse training at St Thomas’ Hospital, passing the final examination with honours. She was now on her way to take up a post […] Read more
Blog 7 Urine tests, loose stools and syphilis
March 19, 2018The clinical assessment, essentially a practical examination, was the critical part of the final examination which would decide whether I was fit to put the letters MB ChB after my name and commence my life as a doctor. It began with a requirement to analyse a specimen of urine. With three other equally apprehensive candidates, […] Read more
Blog 6 First steps on my medical journey
March 8, 2018I was facing the hurdle which would decide whether the five long years I’d spent as a medical student were finally coming to an end. I was tackling the MB ChB examination – Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery. Succeed and I became a doctor – fail and I faced a further 6 months of […] Read more
