Stories from the front line

Articles in this category

1. Patient barcode scanning in NHS hospitals: safety, snags and workarounds. A nurse’s perspective

   • Patient identification
   • Technology
   • (and 9 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Patient identification
     • Technology
     • Medication
     • Care plan
     • Work / environment factors
     • Human factors
     • Flawed processes
     • Nurse
     • Organisational culture
     • Psychological safety
     • Feedback

   By Claire Cox, 6 August, 2025

   • 4 comments
   • 7,794 views
   • 
   • Comment by Andyb
   • 20 August, 2025

2. NHS, a boiling frog in a saucepan: has suffering in care become mundane?

   • Lack of resources
   • Long waiting list
   • (and 5 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Lack of resources
     • Long waiting list
     • Hospital corridor
     • Patient suffering
     • Patient death
     • Patient harmed
     • Organisation / service factors

   By Patient Safety Learning, 4 March, 2025

   • 1 comment
   • 999 views
   • 
   • Comment by Adam
   • 28 May, 2025

3. I’m an A&E nurse – and in my hospital right now, we can’t give patients the dignified care they need (The Guardian, 20 January 2025)

   • Hospital corridor
   • Organisation / service factors

   By Patient Safety Learning, 20 January, 2025

   • 0 comments
   • 528 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 20 January, 2025

4. ‘Voters are unhappier with the NHS than they’ve been for 30 years. As a GP, I feel the same’ (Guardian, 24 August 2023)

   • GP
   • GP practice
   • (and 5 more)

     Tagged with:

     • GP
     • GP practice
     • Patient
     • Leadership
     • Organisation / service factors
     • Long waiting list
     • Lack of resources

   By Patient Safety Learning, 29 August, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 1,056 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 29 August, 2023

5. Public satisfaction with A&E at an all-time low: reflections of an A&E doctor (4 May 2023)

   • Accident and Emergency
   • Emergency medicine
   • (and 5 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Accident and Emergency
     • Emergency medicine
     • Doctor
     • Patient engagement
     • Long waiting list
     • Lack of resources
     • Survey

   By Patient Safety Learning, 5 May, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 1,367 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 5 May, 2023

6. I fight every day to care for my patients – but junior doctors are at breaking point (12 April 2023)

   • Long waiting list
   • Lack of resources
   • (and 5 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Long waiting list
     • Lack of resources
     • Patient harmed
     • Patient suffering
     • Doctor
     • Personal reflection
     • Organisation / service factors

   By Patient Safety Learning, 13 April, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 1,226 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 13 April, 2023

7. Helping patients get their lives back: the colorectal surgeon (BMJ, 31 January 2023)

   • Surgeon
   • Cancer
   • (and 1 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Surgeon
     • Cancer
     • Patient engagement

   By Patient Safety Learning, 11 February, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 1,204 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 11 February, 2023

8. ‘It feels terminal’: NHS staff in despair over working at breaking point (The Guardian, 4 January 2023)

   • Staff support
   • Lack of resources
   • (and 8 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Staff support
     • Lack of resources
     • Patient harmed
     • Accident and Emergency
     • Emergency medicine
     • Organisation / service factors
     • Fatigue / exhaustion
     • Mental health
     • Doctor
     • Nurse

   By Patient Safety Learning, 6 January, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 918 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 6 January, 2023

9. ‘We can’t even get basic care done’: what it’s like doing 12-hour shifts on an understaffed NHS ward (The Guardian, 5 January 2023)

   • Older People (over 65)
   • Healthcare
   • (and 7 more)

     Tagged with:

     • Older People (over 65)
     • Healthcare
     • Hospital ward
     • Fatigue / exhaustion
     • Lack of resources
     • Staff factors
     • Staff support
     • Organisation / service factors
     • Additional staff required

   By Patient Safety Learning, 5 January, 2023

   • 0 comments
   • 1,082 views
   • 
   • Added by Patient Safety Learning
   • 5 January, 2023

10. “The term 'challenging’ doesn’t cut it”: A personal reflection from an Emergency Medical Technician

    • Emergency medicine
    • Safe staffing
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Emergency medicine
      • Safe staffing
      • Paramedic
      • Social Care

    By Patient_Safety_Learning, 22 December, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 2,718 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient_Safety_Learning
    • 22 December, 2022

11. Stress, exhaustion and 1,000 patients a day: the life of an English GP (The Guardian, 27 November 2022)

    • Staff safety
    • Fatigue / exhaustion
    • (and 3 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Staff safety
      • Fatigue / exhaustion
      • GP
      • Stress
      • Lack of resources

    By Patient Safety Learning, 1 December, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 938 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 1 December, 2022

12. 'We all kill a few patients as we learn' (The Guardian, 18 May 2022)

    • Doctor
    • Whistleblowing
    • (and 6 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Doctor
      • Whistleblowing
      • Speaking up
      • Organisational culture
      • Patient harmed
      • Human factors
      • Human error
      • Surgeon

    By Patient Safety Learning, 10 September, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 1,207 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 10 September, 2022

13. As an NHS doctor, I’m undervalued and overworked – so I’m moving abroad (15 July 2022)

    • Doctor
    • Fatigue / exhaustion
    • (and 5 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Doctor
      • Fatigue / exhaustion
      • Staff support
      • Staff safety
      • Mental health
      • Workforce management
      • Emergency medicine

    By Patient Safety Learning, 23 July, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 1,119 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 23 July, 2022

14. I’m an NHS doctor and my first word to patients is this – sorry (2 March 2022)

    • Doctor
    • Patient
    • (and 3 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Doctor
      • Patient
      • Lack of resources
      • Long waiting list
      • Emergency medicine

    By Patient Safety Learning, 19 March, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 1,354 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 19 March, 2022

15. ‘In my 30 years as a GP, the profession has been horribly eroded’ (22 February 2022)

    • GP
    • Staff factors
    • (and 5 more)

      Tagged with:

      • GP
      • Staff factors
      • Staff support
      • Community care
      • Patient engagement
      • Appointment
      • Follow up

    By Patient Safety Learning, 23 February, 2022

    • 0 comments
    • 1,206 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 23 February, 2022

16. What can we do to improve safety in the theatre? Reflections from theatre nurse Kathy Nabbie

    • Operating theatre / recovery
    • Emergency medicine
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Operating theatre / recovery
      • Emergency medicine
      • Pandemic
      • Virus

    By Patient Safety Learning, 21 December, 2021

    • 0 comments
    • 4,558 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 21 December, 2021

17. 'A broken system can only run for so long': Why 2 nurses left the profession — and what would have made them stay (30 April 2021)

    • Interview
    • Nurse
    • (and 6 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Interview
      • Nurse
      • Organisational culture
      • Pandemic
      • Staff safety
      • Fatigue / exhaustion
      • HDU / ICU
      • USA

    By Patient Safety Learning, 4 May, 2021

    • 0 comments
    • 1,850 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 4 May, 2021

18. There's a patient I'll never forget. Their burns and screams still haunt me

    • Mental health
    • Accident and Emergency
    • (and 1 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Mental health
      • Accident and Emergency
      • Staff support

    By Patient Safety Learning, 5 October, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,411 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 5 October, 2020

19. Four ways to decrease your dread of being on-call

    • Staff support
    • Stress
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Staff support
      • Stress
      • Anxiety
      • Personal reflection

    By Patient Safety Learning, 2 September, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,881 views
    • 
    • Added by Patient Safety Learning
    • 2 September, 2020

20. COVID-19: voices from the front line

    • Anaesthetist
    • ICU/ ITU/ HDU
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Anaesthetist
      • ICU/ ITU/ HDU
      • Physical environment
      • Work / environment factors

    By Claire Cox, 31 July, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,244 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 31 July, 2020

21. What is civility?

    • Civility
    • Leadership
    • (and 3 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Civility
      • Leadership
      • Communication
      • Culture of fear
      • Bullying

    By Claire Cox, 21 July, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,342 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 21 July, 2020

22. This is the US Military Health System

    • Team culture
    • Emergency medicine
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Team culture
      • Emergency medicine
      • System safety
      • Work / environment factors

    By Claire Cox, 7 June, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,423 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 7 June, 2020

23. Not conveying patients: podcast by East of England Ambulance Service

    • Paramedic
    • Pre-admission
    • (and 1 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Paramedic
      • Pre-admission
      • Emergency medicine

    By Claire Cox, 14 May, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,370 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 14 May, 2020

24. Doctors need to be supported, not trained in resilience (15 September 2015)

    • Resilience
    • Doctor
    • (and 1 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Resilience
      • Doctor
      • Training

    By Claire Cox, 11 May, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,885 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 11 May, 2020

25. Perspectives on dying from COVID-19: The rising tide (part two)

    • Virus
    • Patient death
    • (and 2 more)

      Tagged with:

      • Virus
      • Patient death
      • Doctor
      • Personal reflection

    By Claire Cox, 30 April, 2020

    • 0 comments
    • 1,671 views
    • 
    • Added by Claire Cox
    • 30 April, 2020