Hospital Doctor articles from May 2004

Hospital Doctor archives from May 2004

Frozen out.
May 6, 2004... The Government may still be pushing its agenda to tackle certain priority areas such as cancer and heart disease, but it is causing misery for other specialties. Francesca Robinson reports on some of the Cinderella services that are being left...

Let doctors drive reform.(Modernising Medical Careers programme)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2004... It is difficult to argue with the principles of the Department of Health's Modernising Medical Careers (MMC) programme. Its aims - to streamline and improve training by putting all trainees into well-structured, managed programmes - make a lot...

Major delays predicted for NHS IT programme.(national health services)
May 6, 2004... By Sarah Hall hospital.doctor@rbi.co.uk The [pounds sterling]6bn NHS IT programme hit a major stumbling block last week as its top medical adviser claimed deadlines could not be met. Prof Peter Hutton, former chairman of the National Clinical...

Health services stage chemical attack drill.(nerve gas attack simulation)
May 6, 2004... By Sarah Hall hospital.doctor@rbi.co.uk Health and emergency services in Newcastle upon Tyne were on full alert last week as they took part in the first simulated chemical attack on a city outside London. The day-long simulation - branded...

Trainee assessment struggle.(medical trainee evaluation)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2004... The new medical training board will struggle to assess all trainees under the Mod-ernising Medical Careers programme, the BMA has warned. BMA council chairman Mr James Johnson said the Postgraduate Medical Educ-ation and Training Board (PMETB)...

BMA blacklists trusts.(British Medical Association)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2004... The BMA has named and shamed those NHS trusts that it says are creating 'serious difficulties' for consultants over the implementation of their new contract. It said there were concerns that these trusts were insisting on immediate cuts in...

Colleges split over revamp of training.(revamping of medical education)
May 6, 2004... By Melanie Newman melanie.newman@rbi.co.uk There is a growing divide between the royal colleges over current plans to modernise medical training, with some calling for delays to the programme. The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSE)...

Have a nice day.
May 13, 2004... Its been attacked, praised and now it's five years old. Janis Smy reports on the National Institute for Clinical Excellence The soothsayers made gloomy predictions as they gathered in 1999 to witness the birth of the National Institute for...

Consultants to appeal job plans in cash row.
May 13, 2004... By Simon Meek and Sarah Hall hospital.doctor@rbi.co.uk Scores of consultants are ready to launch appeals over their job plans as strategic health authorities (SHAs) refuse to budge on the financial restrictions placed on trusts. Hospital...

letters.
May 13, 2004... Give EU rights to all doctors Sir, When I first came to this country, I was a young doctor full of energy, enthusiasm and ambition. I was fortunate enough to get onto a training rotation at an early stage and did not have to wait a long...

Juniors revolt as limits to hours lead to lower pay.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2004... By Melanie.Newman melanie.newman@rbi.co.uk Doctors have forced through a motion calling for pay negotiations to be re-opened, despite opposition from senior members of the Junior Doctors Committee (JDC). Dr Daniel Frith, a house officer at the...

BMA to consider fixed rewards.(British Medical Association.)(National Health Service (UK). )(Brief Article)
May 13, 2004... Compensation for loss of earnings among BMA council members could be based on fixed rewards for the position held, with no payment for loss of earnings. This is one possibility set out in a report drafted by the compensation committee and put...

Union settles racism cases.(British Medical Association.)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2004... Five high-profile racial discrimination claims against the BMA have been dropped after agreeing a total settlement of [pounds sterling]130,000. Dr Fahtima Farook, Dr Shreedhar Vaidya, Dr Kumar Ghosh, Mr Vijay Jadhav and Mrs Vanlila Bera had...

Stop us losing faith in reform.(Modernising Medical Careers Programme.)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2004... There is growing resistance to the timetabled implementation of changes to medical training. Last week, doctors at the BMA's annual juniors' conference backed a vote of no confidence in the execution of the Modernising Medical Careers programme...

New plans to fix MMC.(Modernising Medical Careers.)
May 13, 2004... By Melanie Newman melanie.newman@rbi.co.uk The Government team resp-onsible for reforming medical training has responded to pressure from juniors, agreeing to set up joint working groups to try to resolve concerns over implementation. A...

Women who are making the cut.(health care industry)
May 20, 2004... Surgery has traditionally been male-dominated, but now more women are entering the specialty. Francesca Robinson reports case study Miss Fee Abbas SHO in general surgery Miss Abbas is a dentist who is now training to become a...

Revalidation worries.(Non-Consultant Career Grade (NCCG) doctors risk failing revalidation because they have not been appraised.)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2004... Many non-consultant career grade (NCCG) doctors risk failing revalidation because they have not been appraised, the BMA has warned. Mr Mohib Khan, chairman of the BMA's staff and associate specialists committee, said that unlike consultants,...

letters.(health care industry)
May 20, 2004... Hours law is opportunity Sir, We are used to hearing about the deficiencies of the NHS, but the discussions around the implementation of the European Working Time Directive (EWTD) throw the spotlight on some fundamental questions that have...

Time to give hit squads a shot.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2004... Implementing the revised consultant contract is proving to be a slow process. According to the BMA, just half of trusts have the contract in place, and there has only been modest progress since the Government's 30 April deadline. City-based...

Anger as NICE rules out insomnia drugs.(National Institute for Clinical Excellence)
May 20, 2004... By Lisa Hitchen and Simon Ebbett hospital.doctor@rbi.co.uk Specialists have criticised the National Institute for Clinical Excellence's (NICE) guidance on insomnia drugs, saying it ignores benefits to patients' quality of life. The guidance...

Orthopaedic row over outsourcing.
May 20, 2004... By Melanie Newman melanie.newman@rbi.co.uk A row has broken out between the Government and orthopaedic surgeons over the use of treatment centres. Deputy chief medical officer Prof Aidan Halligan has vehemently rejected criticisms that...

Change to charges.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2004... Doctors will no longer be able to charge by the hour for medical reports in low value personal injury cases, and are unlikely to be paid until the case is resolved. The changes are being driven by a new legal cost regime governing low-value,...

Hit squad acts.(Gloucestershire Hospitals local negotiating committee on action)
May 20, 2004... By Melanie Newman melanie.newman@rbi.co.uk The first consultant contract 'hit squad' has been called in to break a deadlock in negotiations. The local negotiating committee (LNC) at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS trust has formally applied for...