Medcast news and blog

Injudicious use of inflammatory marker testing for non-specific symptoms is likely to cause more harm than good.

It can sometimes feel like people use the word ‘evidence’ as a stick to beat us healthcare professionals with. Whether it’s university academics...

In the weeks leading up to the OSCE, the question of how to dress for your exam is sure to pop up. However, your appearance is so much more than what you wear on the day.

Do you know anyone who has difficulty motivating themselves to exercise? I think we all know people who get too depressed to exercise or too anxious to leave the house. But there are other people who, despite a lack of “diagnosis”, find exercise hugely difficult to contemplate.

It's Monday morning. You're feeling bright and refreshed after the weekend, and looking forward to some interesting challenges. Your first patient is Louisa Hill, aged 43 years. "I'm tired Doc". Great start.

As someone who has practiced medicine for almost four decades I have had the opportunity to observe firsthand the upsurge in the use of opioid pain killers in non-cancer pain.

A recent study on interprofessional learning in the BMJ has highlighted the efficacy of online learning for health professionals.

I bought an alarm clock recently. For some years I have used my smart phone as an alarm clock but I’ve noticed that at times of stress when I wake at night I’ve been reaching for my phone and checking my emails. That’s just crazy! There is no expectation on the part of my employer or my patients that I will work in the middle of the night but it has become reflexive and obsessive.

Wouldn’t it be luxurious in General Practice to have three minutes to consider what the patient is likely to present with, and to consider and document a safe plan for proceeding with the consultation?