Bearing bad tidings better 14 May 2012 0 comments "If we get it right, the patients and their families will never forget us; if we get it wrong they may never forgive us." So wrote the late Dr Rob Buckman on breaking bad news in practice.
Fighting guideline fatigue 8 May 2012 0 comments Guideline fatigue syndrome (GFS) is a debilitating condition characterised by irritability and overwhelming lethargy in the presence of guidelines, according to the BMJ.
A political football vanishes 1 May 2012 0 comments For years, advanced care planning has been used as a political football in the US, and the issue could be heading back into the headlines again, according to a Viewpoint in the Journal of the…
Views of a formerly fat doctor 26 Apr 2012 0 comments There's a lot to be said for a good headline. In this high-traffic, information-laden world, simply dangling a hook is often not enough to get a story read -- you need a good headline as bait.
All change, or perhaps not 17 Apr 2012 0 comments Change is the theme of two recent opinion pieces, with one all for it and the other warning of its perils. The first editorial is a call to overhaul a core tradition in medical practice -- the…
The climate change debate 2 Apr 2012 0 comments Climate change and the environment are topics guaranteed to create a buzz in the media -- and the international medical literature is no exception.
Losing your identity 26 Mar 2012 0 comments I've been in a "heightened state of identity vigilance" of late. While this may put me on one axis or another in the new DSM-5, it simply reflects that I've been contemplating the complex issue of…
Any way the wind blows 20 Mar 2012 0 comments One of the great things about this profession is it regularly provides the opportunity to learn about things outside the realm of mainstream medicine. Take wind turbines, for example.
No need to be positive all the time 14 Mar 2012 0 comments A photograph of two cheery musicians setting up their instruments in what appears to be a doctor's consulting room enticed me to read the Reflections column in the Medical Journal of Australia that…
Recognising the role of grief 6 Mar 2012 0 comments Grief is a universal, levelling experience. It will almost certainly affect each of us in our lifetime. Not surprising, then, that much has been written about this complex emotion.
