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Doctor exodus: tens of thousands planning to move abroad, NHS warned

Tens of thousands of doctors are hoping to quit the NHS and move abroad this year in search of better pay, the medical regulator has warned.

Half of the doctors planning to leave said they wanted to move to Australia, which has been the most popular destination for emigrating UK doctors for the past five years.

The General Medical Council surveyed 3,154 doctors about their attitudes towards leaving the UK, including 1,000 who had recently left to practise abroad. Some 13% of those working in the NHS said they were “very likely” to move in the next 12 months, while another 17% said they were “fairly likely” to move.

The GMC said this would amount to 96,000 doctors quitting over the next year if applied to the total number of doctors on the medical register, although it acknowledged that the actual rate of departures was likely to be much lower.

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Source: The Times, 12 April 2024

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Doctor error contributed to anorexic woman's death

A decision not to "urgently" refer an anorexic woman whose condition had significantly deteriorated contributed to her death, a coroner said.

Amanda Bowles, 45, was found at her Cambridge home in September 2017.

An eating disorder psychiatrist who assessed her on 24 August apologised to Ms Bowles' family for not organising an admission under the Mental Health Act.

Assistant coroner Sean Horstead said the decision not to arrange an assessment "contributed to her death".

Mr Horstead told an inquest at Huntingdon Racecourse that also on the balance of probabilities the "decision not to significantly increase the level of in-person monitoring" following 24 August "contributed to the death".

In his narrative conclusion, Mr Horstead said it was "possible... that had a robust system for monitoring Ms Bowles in the months preceding her death been in place, then the deterioration in her physical and mental health may have been detected earlier" and led to an earlier referral to the Adult Eating Disorder Service.
 
He said this absence "was the direct consequence of the lack of formally commissioned monitoring in either primary or secondary care for eating disorder patients".
 
 
Source: BBC News, 17 September 2020

 

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Doctor appeals to government to rethink Covid drug

A leading academic is calling on new Health Secretary Therese Coffey to reconsider rolling out a Covid drug for people with weakened immune systems.

Last month the government decided it would not supply Evusheld in the UK.

But Dr Lennard Lee, an academic medical oncologist from Oxford University who is backed by more than 120 leading scientists and clinicians, said a rethink was needed.

The government said more data was required on the treatment.

Evusheld was approved for use in March, but was reviewed after the Omicron variant emerged. The drug's manufacturer AstraZeneca said there was "ample real-world data" that it worked. It is currently available in 32 countries.

Dr Lee told the BBC: "It's time for a re-review of the data, and to think about transparency in terms of why they decided not to do this, and also the pros and cons of doing this.

"We do know that coronavirus cases are likely to go up in winter, and we do know there are people who face increased risks...

"Therefore if there is anything we can do to protect... anyone immunosuppressed I think this is something that does need to be reconsidered."

Research from the US and Israel suggests Evusheld reduces the risk of infection by about 50%, and cuts the risk of serious illness by 90%.

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Source: BBC News, 21 September 2022

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Doctor admits killing patient in botched routine procedure

A mother was killed at her hospital appointment by a doctor who botched a routine procedure, a court has heard.

Dr Isyaka Mamman, 85, was responsible for a series of critical incidents before the fatal appointment, Manchester Crown Court heard.

Mamman, who admitted gross negligence manslaughter, had already been sacked by medical watchdogs for lying about his age but was re-employed by the Royal Oldham Hospital.

He is due to be sentenced on Tuesday.

Mother-of-three Shahida Parveen, 48, had gone to hospital with her husband for investigations into possible myeloproliferative disorder on 3 September 2018 and a bone marrow biopsy had been advised, Andrew Thomas QC, prosecuting, told the hearing.

Normally, bone marrow samples are taken from the hip bone but Mamman, of Cumberland Drive, Royton, Oldham, failed to obtain a sample at the first attempt, he said.

Instead, he attempted a rare and "highly dangerous" procedure of getting a sample from Ms Parveen's sternum - despite objections from the patient and her husband, the court heard.

Mamman, using the wrong biopsy needle, missed the bone and pierced her pericardium, the sac containing the heart, causing massive internal bleeding.

Ms Parveen lost consciousness as soon as the needle was inserted. She died later that day.

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Source: BBC News, 4 July 2022

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Doctor admits inappropriately messaging teenage patient he met at a children’s hospital

A doctor has admitted to inappropriately messaging a vulnerable teen who he met in a hospital, and later went on to have a sexual relationship with.

Dr Cian Hughes, who lists himself as research scientist at Google on LinkedIn, began privately messaging the 13-year-old while she was a patient at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children. Dr Hughes, who was a 23-year-old medical student at the time, had been present during surgery on the young patient and later approached her about a research project, a tribunal heard.

Dr Hughes used his private email address to email the girl copies of her X-rays, and this began a chain of communication that ultimately led to a sexual relationship between them when the girl was 17, the tribunal heard.

The General Medical Council (GMC) brought a case against the doctor saying that he used his professional position to pursue an inappropriate relationship with the vulnerable patient. 

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Source: The Independent, 16 January 2025

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Doctor accused of falsifying artificial mesh records

A surgeon found to have left patients in "agony" after using artificial mesh to treat prolapsed bowels faces allegations he falsified medical notes.

Tony Dixon was suspended after the surgery was found to have caused harm to hundreds of patients at two hospitals in Bristol.

Now, a new hearing will examine Dr Dixon's records. He is accused of dishonestly creating patient records long after he was involved in their care, something he "strongly denies".

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) will begin Monday. It will examine claims medical records for seven patients contained false information, and were not created at the correct time.

A spokesperson for Dr Dixon said: "[He] always endeavoured to provide the highest standard of care to his patients.

"He strongly disputes falsifying any medical records and will provide his detailed evidence about those serious allegations to the tribunal, initially by way of a detailed witness statement which he has provided to the General Medical Council."

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Source: BBC News, 12 May 2025

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Doctor accused of failings following Claire Roberts' death

A paediatrician who was at the centre of one of Northern Ireland's longest running public inquiries will appear before a professional misconduct panel.

Dr Heather Steen is accused of several failings following the death of Claire Roberts at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children in October 1996.

The nine-year-old's death was examined by the hyponatraemia inquiry, which lasted 14 years.

It examined the role of several doctors.

Among his findings, the inquiry's chairman Mr Justice O'Hara said there had been a "cover-up" to "avoid scrutiny."

Monday's tribunal will inquire into allegations that, between 23 October 1996 and 4 May 2006, Dr Steen "knowingly and dishonestly carried out several actions to conceal the true circumstances" of the child's death.

Also that the doctor provided inappropriate, incomplete and inaccurate information to the child's parents and GP regarding the treatment, diagnosis, clinical management and cause of her death.

The tribunal website adds: "It is also alleged that Dr Steen inappropriately recommended a brain-only post-mortem for Patient A (Claire Roberts) when a full post-mortem was necessary.

"In addition, it is alleged that Dr Steen failed to refer Patient A's death to the coroner, inappropriately completed the medical certificate of cause of death and inaccurately completed the autopsy request form for Patient A.

"Furthermore, it is alleged that during a review of Patient A's notes, Dr Steen failed to consult with the necessary colleagues and medical teams and provided a statement and gave evidence to the coroner's inquest into Patient A's death which omitted key information."

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Source: BBC News, 21 March 2022

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Do not resuscitate: Man choked to death after paramedics stood down

Experts are calling for "do not resuscitate" orders to be scrapped, saying they are being misused and putting people's lives at risk. One woman told BBC News that her elderly father might still be alive if the DNR in his medical file had been properly checked.

When Robert Murray began choking on a piece of fruit at breakfast, staff at his care home called 999. He'd stopped breathing and the ambulance service operator immediately sent paramedics to attend.

But seconds later, the care home told the dispatcher that the 80-year-old had a do not resuscitate form (DNR) in his medical records. The paramedics were stood down. Mr Murray died minutes later.

However, it was all a terrible mistake. It hadn't been made clear to the ambulance service that Mr Murray was choking - the DNR was only meant to apply should he have a cardiac arrest.

Mr Murray's death, at a nursing home in Eastbourne in June 2021, is an example of what experts call "mission creep" in the use of DNR - also known as DNACPR (Do Not Attempt Cardiac Pulmonary Resuscitation) - decisions.

Researchers from Essex University say some care home residents are "being inappropriately denied transfer to hospital or access to certain medicines" due to the recommendations.

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Source: BBC News, 16 May 2023

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Do not impose personal views or beliefs on patients, doctors told

Doctors have been issued new guidance stipulating they must not impose their personal views, beliefs, or values on others.

The General Medical Council (GMC) has published the draft rules, currently open for consultation, which apply to all doctors, physician associates, and anaesthesia associates across the UK.

The guidance explicitly states that medics should not treat colleagues poorly based on assumptions about their beliefs or due to disagreements with their views.

It also makes clear that personal beliefs or values must not be imposed on patients.

The doctors’ regulator clarified that these directives relate specifically to professional practice and do not cover healthcare workers expressing their beliefs or values outside of the workplace.

This updated draft guidance follows a series of incidents involving healthcare professionals, both within and outside their professional duties.

The regulator is seeking views on draft updates to its “personal beliefs and medical practice guidance”, which also includes information about conscientious objections to providing certain treatment or procedures – which could include abortions.

The guidance states patients must be prioritised and that such an objection must not prevent a patient from being able to access the care or service they need.

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Source: The Independent, 19 March 2026

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DIY kits may see million more cervical-cancer tests

More than one million extra women could have life-saving cervical-cancer checks if the NHS adopted do-it-yourself testing, researchers estimate.

The team at King’s College London said the results of its self-testing trial were “fantastic” and “gave power to women”.

The kits are like a Covid swab but longer and are posted to a lab for analysis.

The NHS called the findings extremely positive and is assessing whether to roll out the scheme.

There are more than 3,000 new cases of cervical cancer in the UK each year.

“Cervical cancer screening has been in decline for the last 20 years,” a senior consultant on the trial, Mairead Lyons, said.

"Many women will describe it as an uncomfortable experience [or they are] too busy, embarrassed or afraid of the physical experience of it."

NHS England screening and vaccination director Deborah Tomalin called the trial results “extremely promising”.

“The NHS will now be working with the UK National Screening Committee to consider the feasibility of rolling this out more widely across England,” she said.

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Source: BBC News, 17 July 2024

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DIY drugs: should hospitals make their own medicine?

If pharmaceutical companies rapidly inflate the price of their products, is there an alternative? One Dutch chemist thinks so.

When a pharmaceutical company raised the price of an essential medicine to unacceptable levels, there was only one thing for pharmacist Marleen Kemper to do: start making it herself.

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Source: The Guardian, 15 October 2019

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Diversity in digital health ‘is a matter of patient safety’

Encouraging diversity in the NHS isn’t simply a matter of inclusion, it’s a matter of patient safety, delegates at the Healthcare Excellence Through Technology (HETT) conference have heard.

Speaking on 2 October, Heather Caudle and Ijeoma Azodo, both members of the Shuri Network, stressed the importance of diversity when developing new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI). Without a diverse and inclusive team, “unconscious bias” can be built into technology, ultimately putting patients at risk.

The next step in ensuring inclusive digital health solutions is including technology teams throughout the whole process, Heather Caudle, Chief Nursing Officer at Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust said. “In health what we have done really well is developed multidisciplinary teams when looking at the patient,” she told the audience at ExCel London.

“I think our technology colleagues are the next member of our multidisciplinary teams. If you think about AI and these new ways of doing things, how are we including the creators and the developers when thinking about patient care?

“We will have unintended consequences of artificial intelligence that hard-wires things like unconscious biases, that we are only going to treat people that are this age, this weight, this colour, because that’s how we think.

“Having that diversity on the team will help.”

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Source: Digital Health, 2 October 2019

 

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Ditching two-child benefit cap would cut deaths and A&E admissions, study says

Curbing child poverty by scrapping the two-child benefit cap would save hundreds of lives a year and avoid thousands of admissions to hospital, the largest study of its kind suggests.

Keir Starmer has faced repeated demands from within Labour ranks and opposition leaders to abolish the policy, which was announced in 2015 by George Osborne, then chancellor. Almost half of all children in some towns and cities now live below the breadline.

Now researchers from the universities of Glasgow, Liverpool and Newcastle have shown for the first time the extraordinary impact that reducing child poverty with measures such as ditching the two-child benefit cap could have in England.

Tackling it would substantially cut the number of infant deaths and children in care, as well as rates of childhood nutritional anaemia and emergency admissions, with the most deprived regions, especially in north-east England, likely to benefit the most, the projections indicate.

Changes were likely to have huge beneficial knock-on effects on local authorities and the NHS, the research concluded.

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Ditching of social care plan is a tragedy - Dilnot

Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s decision to scrap planned changes to the care system in England has been described as a "tragedy" by Sir Andrew Dilnot, the man who authored the proposals in 2011.

Speaking to the BBC's Today programme, Sir Andrew said: "We've failed another generation of families."

He said it was another example of social care "being given too little attention, being ignored, being tossed aside".

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Source: BBC News, 31 July 2024

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Ditch normal procedures to avoid A&E handover delays, trusts told

Regulators have warned hospital leaders they may have to ‘depart from established procedures’ over winter to minimise ambulance handover delays.

In a joint letter to nursing and medical leaders, NHS England, the Care Quality Commission and professional regulators said it was “vital that we have a whole system approach to risk across the urgent and emergency care pathway”.

The push has come amid a huge increase in instances of crews being held outside emergency departments, resulting in extended response times for time-critical 999 calls.

The letter added: “We… understand there will be concerns about working under pressure, and that you and your teams may need to depart from established procedures on occasion to provide the best care.

“Please be assured that your professional code and principles of practice are there to guide and support your judgments and decision making in all circumstances. This includes taking into account local realities and the need to adapt practice at times of significantly increased pressure.

“In the unlikely event of a complaint to your professional regulator they will, as is their usual practice, consider carefully whether they need to investigate. If an investigation is needed, they will consider all relevant factors including the context and circumstances in which you were working.

“One area that may be an example of this is in handing patients over to emergency departments from ambulance services. There is a strong correlation between ambulance handover delays at emergency departments and ambulance category 2 response delays, meaning longer handovers increase the chances those in need will wait longer for an ambulance.”

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Source: HSJ, 11 December 2023

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Disturbing pattern in baby deaths, nurse's trial told

A medical expert has told the trial of nurse Lucy Letby how he noticed a "quite disturbing and quite unusual" pattern in the deaths of babies she is accused of murdering.

Ms Letby is charged with killing seven babies and attempting to murder 10 others at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016.

Expert Dr Dewi Evans was approached by the National Crime Agency to review the case in 2017.

Giving evidence at Manchester Crown Court, Dr Evans said: "The concern was that there had been a number of deaths in the Countess of Chester that had been unusual.

"There were far more deaths than they would expect. There was collapses in babies that were otherwise quite stable, but in many of the cases resuscitation was not successful."

It is alleged Ms Letby injected air into the bloodstream of a baby referred to in court as Child A, shortly after she came on shift in June 2015, just over 24 hours after his premature birth.

The prosecution alleges she used the same method to attack his sister, Child B, on the following night shift.

Dr Evans told the court that a review of Child A's records showed that the baby boy was in a "stable condition" before his collapse.

He said: "He was as well as could be expected, all the markers of wellbeing were very satisfactory.

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Source: BBC News, 25 October 2022

 

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Distressed mother separated from breastfed baby for days during hospital stay

A new mother has spoken of her distress after wrongly-imposed Covid rules led to her being separated from her six-week-old baby for almost a week while she received treatment in hospital.

Charlotte Jones, 29, was taken to Princess Royal University hospital in Kent by ambulance last Wednesday, after complications following the birth of her son, Leo. When she arrived, she asked whether she would be able to see her baby, whom she is breastfeeding, while in hospital, but was told it would not be allowed because of the threat of coronavirus. She did not see him until her release six days later.

The restrictions as applied in Jones’s case, appear to contravene official guidance and go against the advice of NHS England, which specifies that mothers and babies should be kept together unless it is absolutely necessary to separate them. Separation at such a critical time can have an adverse impact on the physical and mental health of the mother, baby and wider family, say healthcare professionals and charities.

King’s College NHS foundation trust, which manages the hospital, has admitted that although it is limiting the number of visitors during the pandemic, there is no policy stopping babies to be brought in to be breastfed. The trust has pledged to ensure staff are aware of its policies.

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Source: The Guardian, 4 December 2020

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Distance not always factor in ambulance response times

There is significant variation in ambulance response times to patients with serious conditions such as suspected strokes or heart attacks, which is not fully explained by how rural an area is, an HSJ analysis has revealed.

The exclusive analysis represents the first time ambulance performance for category two calls, which have an 18-minute response time target, have been broken down to clinical commissioning group level. Category two, known as emergency calls, covers a wide range of conditions, including suspected stroke and heart attacks (except cardiac arrests), major burns and epileptic seizures. They account for well over half of ambulance responses.

The findings — described as “alarming” by the Stroke Association — lay bare the incredibly long waits which are usually hidden, because average waiting time data is usually published for ambulance trusts, which cover far larger areas than CCGs.

Mark MacDonald, Deputy Director of Policy at the Stroke Association, said: “It is alarming to hear that in some cases ambulance staff are taking over an hour to reach patients because when it comes to stroke, being assessed quickly and then, if necessary, transferred to hospital, is really important.”

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Source: HSJ, 5 March 2020

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Dissatisfaction with EHR increases nurses’ burnout risk

One long-term frustration for clinicians is the amount of time and effort it takes to document care or perform other administrative work in EHRs, which can contribute to burnout.

Thirty-three percent of nurses reported symptoms of burnout in the Klas survey, which included feedback from roughly 75,000 respondents. 

For example, nurses argue they face technological challenges, like slow loading times or unplanned system downtime. Forty percent of nurses reported their EHR doesn’t have the expected response time, while nearly a quarter said the record isn’t reliable. 

Even though nurse satisfaction with their health records has increased over the past three years, they still report insufficient training and system reliability problems that could contribute to burnout, according to the Klas report.

Training is also key to nurse satisfaction with their EHRs, but many nurses say their education was lacking —  nearly 40% reported their ongoing EHR education wasn’t sufficient, according to Klas.

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Source: Healthcare Dive, 22 August 2024

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Disruption to diabetes care during Covid threatens thousands, charity warns

Thousands of lives are being put at risk due to delays and disruption in diabetes care, according to a damning report that warns patients have been “pushed to the back of the queue” during the Covid-19 pandemic.

There are 4.9 million people living with diabetes in the UK, and almost half had difficulties managing their condition last year, according to a survey of 10,000 patients by the charity Diabetes UK.

More than 60% of them attributed this partly to a lack of access to healthcare, which can prevent serious illness and early mortality from the cardiovascular complications of diabetes, rising to 71% in the most deprived areas of the country.

One in three had no contact with healthcare professionals about their diabetes in 2021, while one in six have still not had contact since before the pandemic, the report by the charity said. 

Diabetes UK said that while ministers have focused on tackling the elective surgery backlog, diabetes patients have lost out as a result, and there is now an urgent need to get services back on track before lives are “needlessly lost”.

Chris Askew, the chief executive of Diabetes UK, called for a national diabetes recovery plan. “Diabetes is serious and living with it can be relentless,” he said. “If people with diabetes cannot receive the care they need, they can risk devastating, life-altering complications and, sadly, early death.

“We know the NHS has worked tirelessly to keep us safe throughout the pandemic, but the impacts on care for people living with diabetes have been vast. While the UK government has been focused on cutting waiting lists for operations and other planned care, people with diabetes have been pushed to the back of the queue.”

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Source: The Guardian, 20 April 2022

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Disputed medical terms used to explain dozens of deaths after police restraint in UK

A controversial unproven medical condition which is rooted in pseudoscience and disputed by doctors is routinely being used in Britain to explain deaths after police restraint, the Observer has found.

“Acute behavioural disturbance” (ABD) and “excited delirium” are used to describe people who are agitated or acting bizarrely, usually due to mental illness, drug use or both. Symptoms are said to include insensitivity to pain, aggression, “superhuman” strength and elevated heart rate.

Police and other emergency services say the labels, often used interchangeably, are a helpful shorthand used to identify when a person who might need medical help and restraint may be dangerous. But the terms are not recognised by the World Health Organization and have been condemned as “spurious” by campaigners who say they are used to “explain away” the police role in deaths.

The American Medical Association rejected “excited delirium” after it was used by police lawyers in the case of George Floyd. California lawmakers banned it as a diagnosis or cause of death in October, saying it had been “used for decades to explain away mysterious deaths of mostly black and brown people in police custody”.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists has also warned that the current definition of ABD, as it is now more commonly known in the UK, could be leading to people “being subjected to avoidable and potentially harmful interventions”. In 2017, a Home Office-commissioned review into deaths in police custody said the terms were “strongly disputed amongst medical professionals”.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists has also warned that the current definition of ABD, as it is now more commonly known in the UK, could be leading to people “being subjected to avoidable and potentially harmful interventions”. In 2017, a Home Office-commissioned review into deaths in police custody said the terms were “strongly disputed amongst medical professionals”.

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Source: The Guardian, 17 March 2024

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Disproportionate referrals of IMGs and ethnic minority doctors fall “significantly,” GMC says

Progress has been made in reducing the “collective shame” of disproportionate employer referrals of doctors from ethnic minority backgrounds or who qualified outside the UK, the doctors’ regulator says.

The General Medical Council says the proportion of employers with excess referrals in relation to a doctor’s ethnicity or place of qualification has now reduced by 48%—from 5.6% between 2016 and 2020 to 2.9% from 2020 to 2024.

The difference in employer referral rates between ethnic minority and white doctors has also fallen by 61%—from 0.28% (0.58% ethnic minority doctors v 0.3% white doctors) to 0.11% (0.26% v 0.15%).

For non-UK versus UK graduates, the difference in referral rates has dropped by 69%—from 0.42% (0.28% UK v 0.7% non-UK) to 0.13% (0.15% v 0.28%).

The regulator says it is now on track to hit its target of eliminating disproportionate employer fitness to practise referrals by the end of 2026, a goal it set in 2021.

Progress on eliminating discrimination in medical schools and training by 2031 has been much slower, however.

Speaking to The BMJ, GMC chief executive Charlie Massey said, “Inequality and discrimination are pernicious and we should be ashamed collectively about the level of disadvantage that doctors from particular backgrounds face in the NHS.”

He said, however, that the progress made so far is “pretty significant” and shows change is possible. “I don’t think any of us should be complacent. There’s still further distance to travel and we mustn’t let up now,” he said.

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Source: BMJ, 15 January 2026

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Dismissal of women’s health problems as ‘benign’ leading to soaring NHS lists

Doctors’ routine dismissal of women’s debilitating health problems as “benign” has contributed to gynaecology waiting lists soaring by 60% to more than half a million patients, a senior health leader has said.

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) president, Dr Edward Morris, told the Guardian that waiting lists for conditions such as endometriosis, prolapse and heavy bleeding had increased by a bigger proportion than any other area of medicine in the past two years.

Many such conditions are defined as medically benign despite being life-limiting and progressive in some cases. In medicine, “benign” is traditionally used to indicate non-cancerous conditions, but Morris said institutionalised gender bias meant the term was used more widely in gynaecology, resulting in conditions being “normalised” by non-specialists and deprioritised within the NHS.

We have to change the language. We have to call it what it is,” said Morris. “These conditions cause huge amounts of suffering to women. Being lumped in a topic called benign gynaecology downplays the importance and suffering.”

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Source: The Guardian, 2 June 2022

 

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Disgraced breast surgeon Ian Paterson refuses to attend inquest

The jailed former breast surgeon Ian Paterson has refused to give evidence at an inquest into the deaths of 62 of his former patients, in a move labelled “unacceptable” and “atrocious” by families of the deceased.

Paterson had been due to speak at the judge-led inquest at Birmingham and Solihull coroner’s court, which is investigating whether 62 of Paterson’s former patients “died an unnatural death as a result of his actions”.

Paterson, 66, was served a notice in September requiring him to give evidence on Thursday via video link from prison, where he is serving a 20-year sentence for 17 counts of wounding, but lawyers representing him said he had declined to attend.

In an application made at 11pm on Wednesday, they cited health reasons, which were not detailed in open court, as well as a “lack of legal representation” and “inadequate facilities to prepare” as the reasons why Paterson could not engage in the inquest process.

Judge Foster, leading the inquest, said it would “be greatly enhanced and improved if Paterson participated” and it was the first opportunity, apart from his criminal trial, for him to answer questions about his practice under oath.

Stephen Baker, whose wife, Christine, died in 2015, said: “We’ve been put through hell by this individual, and now they’re extending this hell with the constant delays Ian Paterson is creating. I think it’s unacceptable to put [the families of the deceased] through the increased stress of an inquest delay.”

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Source: The Guardian, 10 October 2024

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Disease experts warn: ‘The world needs a reality check’

WHO epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove wrote in her notebook before a keynote address "the world needs a reality check" after becoming increasingly concerned about the rise in coronavirus infections. 

Reports have found Covd-19 has been rising rapidly in places where there has been a low vaccine uptake and it has been confirmed the delta variant is the most transmissible than earlier strains. However, despite this, there has been a lack of social distancing and mask wearing from the public. 

“We’re getting further away from the end than we should be. We’re in a bad place right now globally,” Van Kerkhove has said.

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Source: The Washington Post, 17 July 2021

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