Prescribing controlled drugs
Nearly half of fatal drug poisonings in the UK involve opiates - and clinicians remain at the sharp end. How do you avoid the pitfalls?
Recording telephone consultations with patients
Organisations often now record telephone calls to monitor quality control and for training purposes. But do you adequately inform patients of this – and what about data protection?
Making decisions about CPR
Doctors will be familiar with the difficult challenge of dealing with advance decisions on the resuscitation of patients (DNACPR decisions) - more particularly so during the pandemic. What key issues need to be considered?
Providing routine primary care during COVID-19
WHAT are your professional responsibilities in providing routine healthcare in a primary care setting where service demand and modes of delivery are drastically different?
Time saving or risky business?
WORKFLOW optimisation utilising non-clinical admin staff has been shown to ease GP workloads but concerns have been raised it may put patient safety at risk.
Challenging authority
WHAT do healthcare staff do when faced with a bad decision by someone senior? 'Authority gradients' are a prime consideration in safe team working.
Caught in the media spotlight
Dealing with the press can be stressful for anybody – but for doctors and other healthcare professionals it can be particularly tricky
Saying sorry
A recent Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report highlights reluctance among some healthcare professionals to offer a sincere apology to patients when something goes wrong.
Compulsory data audits now a reality
NHS data controllers have been put on notice by the Information Commissioner to ensure they have appropriate systems and controls in place to protect patient data – as NHS organisations, including GP practices, now face compulsory data protection audits.
Departing from guidelines
CLINICAL guidelines are not legally binding but clinicians should exercise caution and discuss the matter with patients before going against recommendations.