Pulse articles from January 2005

Pulse archives from January 2005

The end of trust?
January 8, 2005... * April revalidation launch scrapped * DoH orders review * Tougher scrutiny beckons for GPs By Ian Cameron The Government has scrapped the April start date for revalidation and is to carry out a root-and-branch review of the...

New cox-2 warning as patients told to see GP.(general practitioners)
January 8, 2005... GPs face a surge in workload and new uncertainty over cox-2 inhibitors after the UK's drug regulator advised all patients on the drugs to seek a medication review. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency also warned GPs not...

Honeymoon GP: I'm so lucky to be alive.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... On Christmas Day, honeymooners Sue and Aled Price were enjoying a cocktail cruise off the Thai island of Phi Phi. The next day they were surveying a scene of devastation after the tsunami struck their resort, and Dr Sue Price, a GP in...

GPs race to help survivors of the tsunami disaster.
January 8, 2005... GPs from across the UK are offering their time, money and expertise to help the victims of the tsunami disaster. While some are travelling to assist the relief operation in the devastated countries, others have organised collections and...

GPs may have to say `over to you, matron'.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... GPs will hand over day-to-day responsibility for many of their most chronically ill patients to community matrons under Government plans to roll out active case management across the country. The much-heralded matrons will take on a central...

`Statins for all' ruling in type 2 diabetes triggers cost fears.
January 8, 2005... NHS prescribing advisers have opened the door to soaring statins bills after ruling the drugs should be considered in all patients with type 2 diabetes - regardless of lipid levels. It is the first time a Government body has come out in...

Minimum threshold to be set for starting statins.(Joint British Societies)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... The Joint British Societies will set a `minimum level of care' for statin treatment at 22.5 per cent 10-year CHD risk when they release their long awaited new guidelines later in the year. Pulse has learned that the societies see the...

GPs better with hypertension.(general practitioner)(treating patients with hypertension)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... GPs are becoming more successful at treating hypertension, according to new Department of Health data revealing an overall fall in the nation's blood pressure. The Health Survey for England found mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures...

Wrongly jailed sex case GP fighting for his future.(general practitioner)
January 8, 2005... A GP whose convictions for indecent assault were overturned last year is still waiting to hear if he will be reinstated by his trust - Anna Goldie reports Dr Dilip Gore spent six months in jail last year as the victim of a miscarriage of...

GP community hospital deal.(general practitioner)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... GPs in mid-Wales have won a landmark new contract for community hospital work. The agreement, between Powys local health board and GPs across 10 community hospitals, allows them to drop out-of-hours work, defines in- hours work and gives a...

Flu rise triggers antivirals.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Influenza rates have increased to the level where GPs can consider the use of antivirals in suitable patients, the Health Protection Agency has warned. Rates of infection have now reached the threshold of 30 consultations per 100,000,...

MPs to examine White Paper.(members of parliament)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... The Commons health select committee has announced an inquiry into the Government's White Paper on public health. MPs will examine whether the proposals will enable the Government to achieve its public health goals and whether they represent...

GPs honoured by the Queen.(general practitioner)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Three GPs have been named in the Queen's New Year Honours list. Dr Kishori Agrawal, a GP in Sandwell, West Midlands, was awarded an OBE for services to health care. Dr Iain McNicol, a GP in Appin, Argyll, and Dr Mark Porter, a GP in...

GPs shun `unpaid leave' offer.(general practitioner-primary care trusts)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Salaried GPs are giving the cold shoulder to a primary care trust that encouraged them to take unpaid leave to stave off its financial troubles. North Somerset PCT, which is facing a deficit of #10 million, sent letters to all its staff...

Bodies exhumed in GP murder inquiry.(general practitioner)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Two bodies were exhumed from cemeteries in County Durham last week as part of a police investigation into a GP who is already facing a murder charge. The bodies are those of two elderly men who had been patients of Dr Howard Martin at his...

Acquitted GP - I am devastated by misery.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... A GP accused of indecently assaulting a female patient during a consultation about a sore throat has been cleared. A jury at Southwark crown court took less than an hour to acquit Dr Nur Scerif. Dr Scerif, a GP in Shoreditch, east...

Campaign to ease GP workload.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... A new campaign to free up GPs' time by getting rid of unnecessary paperwork has been launched by the Department of Health. Posters will be made available to every practice telling patients they do not need to get a GP to countersign...

GPwSI policy `could waste NHS money'.(general practitioners)(national health service)
January 8, 2005... The Government's drive to increase the number of GPs with a special interest could be a waste of NHS cash, leading academics claim. A senior doctor who advised the NHS on setting up the scheme has also warned of future `clinical and...

Copyright law.(patients happy with radio at hospitals)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Practices playing music in waiting areas might be breaking copyright law by not paying royalty fees, Dr Ian Holwell is warning. His practice in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, now pays around #70 a year for the right to broadcast the radio in...

Choose and Book off to a slow start.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Only 50 referrals have been booked electronically by GPs piloting the Choose and Book project, the National Programme for IT (NPfIT) has admitted. But the national programme has insisted it is still on track to roll out the controversial...

GP's campaign to boost diabetes care pays off.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Dr Clare Davison was determined to transform the quality of care for diabetes patients around her inner-city practice in Newham, east London. She persuaded her local PCT to fund an innovative new incentive scheme, in which GPs were paid for...

NICE plans to rein back drug `waste'.(National Institute for Clinical Excellence )
January 8, 2005... NICE is to crack down on drugs that do not offer value for money in an effort to bring the spiralling drugs bill under control. Chief executive Andrew Dillon says NICE guidance has been associated with increased costs and is calling for a...

`Substantial' workload in colorectal Ca plans.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... The planned national screening programme for colorectal cancer is set to have a `substantial impact' on GP workload, according to many practices involved in screening pilots. A report on the impact of the pilots found 55 per cent of...

JOURNAL WATCH: CBT effective in chronic fatigue.(Cognitive behaviour therapy)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Cognitive behaviour therapy seems to be effective for chronic fatigue syndrome in adolescents. Dutch researchers conducted a randomised controlled trial of 71 chronic fatigue sufferers, comparing the effectiveness of five months of cognitive...

JOURNAL WATCH: Faecal DNA spots more colorectal Ca.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Faecal DNA testing may be a more effective way to detect colorectal cancers than faecal occult blood testing. US researchers conducted DNA tests, the haemoccult II test and colonoscopy in 4,404 asymptomatic subjects aged 50 or older. The...

JOURNAL WATCH: Exercise prevents type 2 diabetes.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Exercise could prevent the development of type 2 diabetes in high-risk individuals. Of 487 people with impaired glucose tolerance participating in the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study, 107 cases of diabetes occurred during the 4.1-year...

JOURNAL WATCH: Starch linked to prostate cancer.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... A high-starch diet may increase men's risk of developing prostate cancer. An Italian study analysed dietary records from 1,294 men who were diagnosed with prostate cancer between 1991 and 2002 and 1,451 controls. Men who ingested more than...

JOURNAL WATCH: Acupuncture effective in knee OA.(osteoarthritis)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Acupuncture is an effective therapy in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee, a US National Institutes of Health randomised controlled trial reports. Patients who received a 26-week course of acupuncture alongside standard therapy...

JOURNAL WATCH: Black hypertension `not genetic'.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Differences in incidence of hypertension between black and white populations are likely to be the result of lifestyle factors, not genetics, a new study suggests. A US team analysed standardised surveys of blood pressure from black...

Pneumococcal vaccine gets go-ahead in child schedule.
January 8, 2005... As pneumococcal vaccine is added to the child schedule, experts are asking how uptake will be encouraged - Emma Wilkinson and Cato Pedder report Pneumococcal vaccine will be added to the childhood schedule after the Government's...

More pressure on vaccine uptake.(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Performance indicators for PCT ratings should include uptake of all childhood vaccinations, Government immunisation advisers have recommended. The move could intensify the pressure on GPs to hit uptake targets in the face of parental...

Figures show trust in MMR not yet restored.(Measles-mumps-rubella )(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... Hopes of an improvement in MMR uptake have been dashed after figures fell for the second successive quarter. National uptake in two-year-olds fell from 81.5 per cent to 81.3 per cent in the three months from July, according to data...

My nine weeks of hell after being arrested for murder.
January 8, 2005... Fallout from Shipman has irrevocably changed the climate of palliative care, says GP Dr Paul Davis - by Nerys Hairon Stripped of his belt and tie and with his pockets emptied, Dr Paul Davis waited in a police cell for the questioning to...

Letters: Why many will welcome Shipman Inquiry report.
January 8, 2005... Thank goodness. Dame Janet Smith has produced a report that will come as a sigh of relief to most GPs. The GMC has been far too liberal with many drug-addicted doctors. We all know that appraisal is not robust, and does not differentiate...

EDITORIAL COMMENT: Complacency on revalidation damages us all.(Brief Article)(Editorial)
January 8, 2005... The Government's announcement of a wholesale review of revalidation and an indefinite delay in its start date heaps further embarrassment on the GMC. It also shows up the council's deep-rooted complacency. In the aftermath of the devastating...

Letter: Simple way to help tsunami survivors.(Letter to the Editor)
January 8, 2005... We are all aware of the terrible waste associated with prescribed medications that, for a variety of reasons, are not taken by patients and are subsequently either thrown away or returned to doctors' surgeries and chemists for disposal. This...

Letter: Why is such emphasis being put on statins?(Letter to the Editor)
January 8, 2005... Thank you for your excellent article on statins (Clinical, December 6). I share Dr Malcolm Kendrick's alarm that we could, within a few years, be spending more than #5 billion of the NHS's scarce resources on a drug that has no overall effect...

Letter: Do what you can.(Letter to the Editor)
January 8, 2005... The tsunami tragedy has undoubtedly touched everyone's hearts. Although we are many miles away, our medical and monetary support remain invaluable. Please support the various charitable organisations. Dr Hari Nawal, Bedford Copyright:...

Why it pays to invest your quality cash.
January 8, 2005... GPs may think, how dare the Government lay down the law on how to spend hard earned quality pay - but the money should not be thought of as purely a means to instant profits, says Dr David Colin-Thome It may seem like an easy choice for...

Move use of your practice computer into 21st century.
January 8, 2005... Your computer system still has a great deal more to offer - Dr John Couch shows how to bring functionality into the 21st century The new contract has prompted us to make better use of our computer systems. But there is still much room for...

On the record: patient phone calls.
January 8, 2005... Nick Norwell advises on how to operate within the law if telephone calls to your practice are recorded The MDU is often asked for advice about the legal and ethical implications of recording patients' telephone conversations. Recording...

The looming measles threat - what can GPs do about it?(general practitioner)
January 8, 2005... Swift action by GPs may be needed to contain measles outbreaks - Dr David Elliman and Dr Helen Bedford advise on contingency plans. HOW REAL IS THE THREAT? HPA modelling indicates that "The level of unvaccinated children in London...

Guide to measles.
January 8, 2005... Dr Vas Novelli advises on the tell-tale signs Maculopapular rash Measles is an acute viral infection characterised by an initial prodrome of upper respiratory tract signs and symptoms and an associated fever, followed by the...

LEARNING FROM ILLNESS: My cancer diagnosis changed me as a GP.
January 8, 2005... Ten years on from her breast cancer diagnosis Dr Ann McPherson is the driving force behind a website that highlights the importance of valuing patients' experiences Anniversaries, be they birthdays or a bereavement, are important in our...

Infant gut problems: primary care solutions.
January 8, 2005... Dr Donald Bentley, Sophie Aubrey and Melissa Bentley offer advice on the diagnosis and treatment of GI disorders in the very young Parents may well know instinctively how to nurture their infants, but controversies over nutrition require...

Treatment options when patient complains of morning stiffness.
January 8, 2005... Case history You haven't seen Mrs Smith for a few months and you are shocked to see her walk in and sit down as if she were an old woman instead of 62 years old. She tells you she has been gradually slowing down and now struggles to get...

GP OPTIONS: How a Mercy Ship puts the NHS in perspective.(general practitioner)(national health service)
January 8, 2005... Dr David Metson explains why his stint aboard a hospital ship in a developing world country put the troubled NHS in a more favourable light I felt virtuous as I climbed aboard the hospital ship docked in the port of Cotonou in Benin, West...

CV: Dr Aziz Sheikh answers the Pulse careers questionnaire.(Brief Article)(Interview)
January 8, 2005... What/who made you decide to go into general practice? Two main reasons: one positive and the other negative. First, I was particularly keen on the opportunity to develop meaningful relationships with people and their families over sustained...

WHY I LOVE BEING A SINGLEHANDED GP.(general practitioner)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... * A better doctor/patient relationship * A more integrated primary care team * Better communication and adaptability * Much greater flexibility to have a portfolio career * Much easier to achive maximum points in the new...

LET'S PRACTISE IN: WORCESTER.
January 8, 2005... Where: Nestling between the West Midland battlefields of the Civil War lies Worcester, a city built on the banks of the Severn and where it is said the ancient and modern walk hand in hand. Any sauce with that? Lashings. It's home to...

DEAR CAREER COACH.(physicians-career)(Brief Article)
January 8, 2005... I am thinking of adding a non-clinical string to my portfolio career but don't know quite where to start. What options might be available to me? Dear Doctor, In answer to your question `What options might be available to me?', the answer...

CAREERS: Launch of `GPs without Principals'.(general practitioner)
January 8, 2005... Jobhunter looks into his crystal ball and sees a change of name looming for `freelance' GPs Jobhunter has been given a glimpse into the crystal ball and can reveal all the news that won't be fit to print in 2005. January ...

GPs set for 950 quality points.(general practitioners)
January 15, 2005... GPs are on course for a lucrative average quality score of between 920 and 950 points. GPs are `overperforming' and will score far more points than expected, says Chris Town, head of the NHS's contract negotiating team. Although most...

Pension plans leave me confused and powerless.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Dr Rachel McKenzie says she feels `powerless' over proposed changes to NHS pensions. Dr McKenzie, a GP in Dunvegan, Skye, who qualified in 2000, is one of the younger cadre of GPs most affected by proposals in the NHS Pensions review. It...

GPs neglecting their own health.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... GPs are neglecting their own health by working through exhaustion and depression that they would treat in their patients. Researchers found GPs `did not practise what they preach' because the stigma of fatigue and depression meant they...

Government set to renege on 0870 phone system pledge.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Ministers are considering banning GPs from using telephone systems that force patients to call an 0870 number to contact the surgery. Labour MP and GP Dr Howard Stoate said Department of Health legal advisers were investigating ways of...

New rules make practice-based commissioning `unworkable'.
January 15, 2005... The Government is making practice-based commissioning `unworkable' for GPs because of its insistence on using more private providers in the NHS. Supporters of the scheme say GPs who take on commissioning in April will be `straitjacketed'...

Chaos looms over at-risk flu campaign.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The Government's much trumpeted campaign to target influenza vaccination at high-risk patients under 65 is descending into chaos. Vaccine uptake was running at only 40 per cent by the end of November in the handful of PCTs that had managed...

Discharge information fails to meet GP needs.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The current system for supplying hospital discharge information to GPs has widespread failings and urgently needs improving, GPs are claiming. The NHS Alliance warned new initiatives such as practice-based commissioning, in which funding...

Ministers order pay veto for GPs who follow NICE on COPD.(general practitioners)(national institute for clinical excellence)(chronic obstructive pulmonary disease )
January 15, 2005... GPs who try to claim points for diagnosing COPD without reversibility testing face a Government-ordered clampdown during quality visits. In a statement to PCTs, the Department of Health admitted a loophole existed in the Read codes that...

Firms use Act to fish for quality scores.(Freedom of Information Act)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Private firms are already taking advantage of the Freedom of Information Act to find out GP quality framework scores. At least five PCTs in England have been targeted by firms asking for the information, with one trust confirming it would...

Pledge over drug trials data.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Pharmaceutical companies are pledging to publish more data from clinical trials. Under an industry-wide plan, all data would appear on a publicly- accessible register within a year of a trial's completion. Although voluntary, companies...

PCOs warn of struggle to meet spiralling statin bill.(primary care office)
January 15, 2005... GPs fear cuts to services as PCOs warn they will struggle to cope with soaring statin bills. Guidance to be released later in 2005 could see the number of patients eligible for statins increase by up to threefold. The Joint British...

Hep C very high in injectors.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The incidence of hepatitis C infection among injecting drug users is `extremely high', say researchers who also found a higher than expected rate of HIV infection. Although sharing of injecting equipment is rare, some patients are still putting...

Body of missing GP is found.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The body of Tayside GP Dr Alisatair Boyd, who went missing after embarking on a hill-walking trip in gale-force winds, has been found. Dr Boyd, who practised in Dumbarton, was reported missing after he failed to return from climbing Meall...

Ischaemic stroke patients miss out on statins.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... More than half of patients with ischaemic stroke may be missing out on potentially beneficial statin treatment because of flaws in current guidance. In a study of 100 patients who had suffered ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic...

`Conserve your diamorphine'.(shortage)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... GPs are being told to conserve stocks of diamorphine after the Department of Health warned of critical shortages. The calls came after Chiron, the manufacturer of diamorphine, announced it had limited stocks and would not be able to provide...

The postgraduate way ahead.(Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board-published a consultation paper)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board has published a consultation paper outlining its aims for next three years. The board, which has been beset with problems since it was set up last year, said it was confident of being...

Ministers won't pledge allergy cash.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The Government has refused to make specific pledges to increase funding for allergy care in its response to an MPs' report that was heavily critical of current services. A report by the Commons health select committee, published late last...

GP sees tsunami suicide horrors.(general practitioners)
January 15, 2005... Suicide and displaced landmines are the new threats to life in areas of Sri Lanka devastated by the tsunami, according to a GP who has returned from one of the worst-hit areas. Dr Sashi Shashikanth flew to his home town of Point Pedro in...

Ex-GP named health minister.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Former GP Dr Brian Gibbons is the new minister for health in Wales. Irish-born Dr Gibbons, 54, replaces Jane Hutt, who was demoted this week after five years in the post. Ms Hutt had increasingly come under fire for failing to bring...

Call for health advice at work.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Three-quarters of people would be less likely to visit their GP if they were given health information at work, a survey by the charity Developing Patient Partnerships has found. Nearly half of the 1,116 people questioned said they would like to...

GP in #750k cancer pilot.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Dr Greg Tanner is piloting a #750,000 scheme to help practices identify patients at high risk of familial cancer. Under the Department of Health scheme, GPs will be able to refer patients to three specially trained nurses based within the...

New warning to GPs over rosuvastatin in Asian patients.(general practitioners)(AstraZeneca)
January 15, 2005... AstraZeneca is warning GPs to take Asian patients off the highest dose of rosuvastatin (Crestor) following new research suggesting they might be at increased risk of rhabdomyolysis. The warning adds to safety doubts over the drug after the...

Suicide rates plunge as anti-depressant prescribing soars.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Suicide rates have plummeted over the last decade at the same time as antidepressant prescribing has leapt by 250 per cent, new research shows. The rate of fatal overdose with antidepressants has fallen over the same period as SSRIs have...

PCTs snub GP premises cash pleas.(primary care trust)(general practitioner)
January 15, 2005... Cash-strapped PCTs are turning down an increasing number of bids from GPs for urgent premises improvements. Accountants and developers report as few as one application in 10 from GPs is being approved by some trusts. In a recent round...

Commuter backing for walk-in centres.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... More than half of commuters would use walk-in centres at train stations and two-thirds would be as happy to see a nurse as a GP, a Department of Health poll has found. But one in three would snub the centres, with half of those preferring...

Co-op GPs' windfalls.(general practitioners)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... GPs in Bolton are to receive windfalls of up to #40,000 following the dissolution of their out-of-hours co-operative. Even GPs who owned only a single #1 share will get a #1,200 payout after the co-op's assets have been shared out. ...

JOURNAL WATCH: HRT `increases the risk of stroke'.(Hormone replacement therapy)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Hormone replacement therapy increases the risk of stroke, a large meta- analysis of published trials suggests. University of Nottingham researchers analysed 28 previous trials involving 40,000 people and assessed the risk of stroke by type,...

JOURNAL WATCH: SSRIs cut tamoxifen effectiveness.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Antidepressants may reduce the effectiveness of tamoxifen, US researchers suggest. Their study examined the influence of SSRIs on effective plasma concentrations of tamoxifen in women of different genotypes. Among women homozygous for...

JOURNAL WATCH: Retinopathy predicts heart failure.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Retinopathy is an independent predictor of congestive heart failure, according to an Australian study. Researchers took retinal photographs in 11,612 patients aged from 49 to 73 and assessed retinopathy. Incidence of congestive heart...

JOURNAL WATCH: Neurological disability in pre-terms.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... Extreme pre-term birth can cause neurological and developmental disability in school-age children, according to a UK study. Researchers studied 308 children born at 25 weeks or earlier. They used standardised cognitive and neurological...

JOURNAL WATCH: Urea breath test best for H. pylori.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2005... The urea breath test appears to be the most useful non-invasive diagnostic test for H. pylori infection in patients with chronic renal failure. Spanish researchers conducted a cross-sectional study on 86 patients having dialysis for kidney...

Overturn new GP pension plan? `Almost no chance'.(general practitioners)
January 15, 2005... The Government has ignored all the BMA's arguments and is pressing ahead with the biggest change in NHS pensions since 1948 - Rob Finch reports The BMA has admitted it has almost no chance of overturning Government plans to raise the...