MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'gordon'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 01:57:16 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5028567&cid=t_167087_113_f&fid=38236&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.healthcareitnews.com%2Fblog%2Fpersonal-health-information-and-rupert-murdoch-effect Personal health information and the lack of security surrounding it has caused quite a bit of buzz lately. read more (Source: Healthcare IT News Blog) Healthcare IT News Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5028567 Wed, 13 Jul 2011 12:26:32 +0100 5028567 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4953275&cid=t_167087_136_f&fid=35302&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FWhitePebble%2F%7E3%2F2_CBHPxEUnY%2F General Order 3: The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere. — General Gordon Granger via Daily Kos: Happy Juneteenth!. Filed under: Current Affairs, qotd Tagged: Emancipation Proclamation, Galveston Texas, Gordon Granger, Juneteenth (Source: white pebble) white pebble blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4953275 Sun, 19 Jun 2011 20:38:23 +0100 4953275 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4734063&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FOJ5BsPWZczg%2F By George Scoville Please join us this Thursday, April 21 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern for a book forum and debate on “green energy” policy, following the recent release of the Cato book The False Promise of Green Energy. On Thursday, University of Alabama Professor of Law and Business Andrew P. Morriss (one of the book’s authors) and Center for American Progress Vice President for Energy Policy Kate Gordon will debate the merits of the “green” economic agenda, moderated by Cato Institute Senior Fellow Jerry Taylor. Complimentary registration is required of all attendees by noon TOMORROW, Wednesday, April 20. We hope you can join us in person and for the reception following the event–if you cannot attend in person, we hope you’ll tune in online or on Faceb... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4734063 Tue, 19 Apr 2011 14:29:37 +0100 4734063 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4560274&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fadvice-from-the-emr-trenches%2F2011.03.07 The latest from moi: “Implementing Electronic Medical Records: Advice from the Trenches” in the March/April 2011 issue of HIT Exchange magazine. An excerpt: The news released in late December from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that more than half of the nation’s physicians are now using electronic medical records (EMR)—double the adoption rate of just five years ago—is surely worth celebrating. Until, that is, you take a look and realize that just a fourth of office-based physicians have access to a “basic” EMR system including patient history, demographics, problem lists, clinical notes, and computerized physician order entry (CPOE), while just one in 10 has a “fully functional” system, which also includes the communication system required for me... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4560274 Mon, 07 Mar 2011 23:00:00 +0100 4560274 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4554587&cid=t_167087_83_f&fid=34856&url=http%3A%2F%2Finsidesurgery.com%2F2011%2F03%2Fdr-chad-gordon-develops-patientdoctor-communications-app%2F Prominent plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Chad Gordon has developed a new electronic, HIPAA-compliant physician-patient communication tool dubbed MDconnectME. Gordon is now on staff at Massachusetts General Hospital. (Source: Inside Surgery) Inside Surgery blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4554587 Sun, 06 Mar 2011 14:37:47 +0100 4554587 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4464494&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fcardiologists-as-heart-whisperers%2F2011.02.11 From the Dallas Morning News, a creative moniker if there ever was one, but it should probably be reserved for primary care specialists instead: DALLAS — Heart attacks are the No. 1 cause of death and a major cause of disability in America. For nearly half of the casualties, the first symptom is the last. That’s how cardiovascular disease has earned the nickname “silent killer” — you never know when it will strike. Doctors are trying to change that by treating heart disease as a progressive problem. They are becoming “heart whisperers,” seeking new tests to read the small stresses that can, unchecked, grow into big ones. “By the time someone rolls in with a heart attack, his family will look at me bewildered, and the patient may say, ‘Doc, wha... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4464494 Fri, 11 Feb 2011 20:00:00 +0100 4464494 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4450292&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fend-of-life-care-when-medicine-prolongs-dying-not-living%2F2011.02.08 The recent Washington Post article entitled, Who decides when medicine prolongs dying, not living? perfectly captures my earlier blog on why we’re afraid of death. An excerpt from the Post piece: [There's a] huge gap between Americans’ wishes about end-of-life care, as expressed in numerous public opinion polls, and what actually happens in too many instances–futile, expensive, often painful procedures performed on people too sick to leave the hospital alive–much less survive with a decent quality of life. Ninety percent of Americans say they want to die at home but only 20 percent do so. Half of Americans die in hospitals and another 25 percent in nursing homes, after a long period of suffering from chronic, incurable conditions that finally become untreatable. An ... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4450292 Tue, 08 Feb 2011 20:00:00 +0100 4450292 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4394750&cid=t_167087_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FiXHgRhTRH_Q%2F The embarassing mess that has become Johnson & Johnson has taken a severe toll on a once-storied corporate name as hundreds of millions of products have been recalled - from Tylenol, Rolaids and Benadryl to contact lenses and hip replacement devices. There was even a shortage of Tampons for awhile. The manufacturing flubs and corporate missteps have yielded government probes, a shuttered factory, layoffs, bonus cuts for some employees and, significantly, a tattered reputation (see this) for the way the healthcare giant has responded (back story here and here). We spoke with Erik Gordon, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, who believes the situation is so far gone that J&J ceo Bill Weldon should be shown the door right away… Pharmalot: J... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4394750 Mon, 24 Jan 2011 13:45:59 +0100 4394750 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4322506&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fdeath-why-are-we-so-afraid-of-it%2F2011.01.07 My cousin’s mother-in-law is in her late 90s. She had horrible osteoporosis and can barely move. She has little cognitive function left. She requires nearly 24-hour care and no one would even attempt to say she has any quality of life left. She told her son years ago that she was “ready to go,” and had had enough. And yet when I asked my cousin’s husband if his mother had any do-not-resuscitate orders, or had ever completed an advanced director  outlining her wishes of what kind of end-of-life care she wanted, he said no. His sister, he said, just wasn’t ready for that yet. So what, I asked, will you do when/if your mother gets pneumonia? Will you treat it with antibiotics? Will you put her on a respirator? If she is no longer able to eat, will you feed her t... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4322506 Fri, 07 Jan 2011 22:00:00 +0100 4322506 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4314008&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fliposuction-related-death-and-finding-a-safe-doctor%2F2011.01.05 From the Chicago Tribune: A 35-year-old woman who wanted to resculpt herself for the new year with liposuction and a buttocks enhancement is dead from apparent complications of plastic surgery, her husband and lawyer said Thursday. Miami customer service representative Lidvian Zelaya died Monday, hours after the operation began at Strax Rejuvenation and Aesthetics Institute, a busy cosmetic surgery practice in Lauderhill. Zelaya went to Strax to have fat suctioned from her back and belly, and to have the material injected into her backside, family representatives said. She chose Strax because she got a good deal. Aronfeld said the operation was to be done by Dr. Roger L. Gordon. He was disciplined by the state in connection with two plastic surgery deaths in 2004. This is getting ridiculou... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4314008 Wed, 05 Jan 2011 16:00:26 +0100 4314008 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4121846&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FxhQd-R9O77M%2F By Daniel GriswoldCandidates from both parties are trying to win votes this fall by criticizing free trade and trade agreements. As John Steele Gordon points out in a wonderful historical essay, “The Great Mistake,” in the latest Barron’s Weekly: We’ve been down this unfortunate road before. Recall the Smoot-Hawley tariff, named after its chief congressional sponsors, Sen. Reed Smoot of Utah and Rep. Willis Hawley of Oregon, both Republicans and both chairmen of the committees in charge of taxes. Introduced in 1929 as the country was tipping into recession, their bill did not have a happy ending. It imposed steep tariff increases on agricultural as well as manufactured goods, raising overall U.S. tariffs to their highest levels in decades. When President Hoover reluctantly signed t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4121846 Sat, 30 Oct 2010 10:36:38 +0100 4121846 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4105666&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fis-looking-at-long-term-impossible-in-our-healthcare-system%2F2010.10.25 I spent last week in Gothenburg, Sweden covering the European Committee for the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) meeting. Lots of good science, lots of excitement over the new oral and targeted therapies coming on the market to treat this awful disease. But what I want to write about isn’t the science, but about how it will play out in the brave new world of healthcare in which we all live in today. For instance, consider the first oral therapy to hit the market: Gilenya (fingolimod), which the FDA approved in September. Last month Novartis announced the price: $48,000 a year. This is not a rant against the high cost of drugs, however. It is a rant against the inability of our healthcare system to take the long view of the impact of such drugs, a view that is particularly im... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4105666 Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:00:00 +0100 4105666 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4106061&cid=t_167087_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FvbJfq4gqoWM%2F Two years ago, AstraZeneca halted a trial called Jupiter because its Crestor cholesterol pill outperformed a placebo. The study was undertaken to determine whether Crestor would reduce heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems in patients with no signs of pre-existing cardiovascular disease and low to normal LDL, but elevated levels of CRP, a market linked to heart attack risk (back story). In doing so, however, the stoppage helped fuel a debate about the vagaries of halting trials before their time. In this video, Gordon Guyatt, an epidemiologist, biostatistician and professor of medicine at McMaster University discusses concerns that stopping trials early is done so to inflate efficacy and the implications of the Jupiter trial. This first appeared on Currrent Medicine TV. There is ... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4106061 Mon, 25 Oct 2010 13:36:17 +0100 4106061 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3876750&cid=t_167087_113_f&fid=34634&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.emrandhipaa.com%2Femr-and-hipaa%2F2010%2F08%2F11%2Fwhat-uk-icd-10-use-can-teach-the-us-icd-10-implementations%2F I guess kind of like they just had Shark Week on TV, this week on EMR and HIPAA has been ICD-10 week. So far I’ve covered EMR vendors ICD-10 planning, moving to ICD-10 and bridging from ICD-9 to ICD-10. In response to my previous ICD-10 posts, Gordon Fenton provided this interesting insight about the UK’s experience with ICD-10. Over in the UK we already use the ICD10 along side the OPCS code to generate our HRG’s which is the currenvy that commissioners and providers use in the billing process. While I am based on the commissioner side I know that our providers employ coders whose specific job is to translate Doctors notes into ICD and OPCS codes. The main challenge will be in varifying and validating the codes being applied by providers, the IT is just a small issue. I... EMR and HIPAA blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3876750 Wed, 11 Aug 2010 16:04:14 +0100 3876750 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3718699&cid=t_167087_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FQO1X5ewvc0Y%2Fsanofi-aventis-to-raise-awareness-of.html According to Medical Media & Marketing, Jeff Gordon is teaming up with sanofi-Pasteur to promote awareness of whopping cough. Television and radio ads will begin running in August, in combination with print, online and patient materials that will also be distributed.A digital effort will take place as well:Other campaign elements include a website (SoundsofPertussis.com) and Facebook page. By texting “SOUNDS” to 292929 on a mobile phone, participants will receive a text message five days later reminding them to get vaccinated. From the campaign website, visitors can check out Jeff Gordon's “favorite road tunes,” and download the songs from iTunes for $0.99 to $1.29 each. For every song downloaded (selections run the musical gamut, from U2, Sheryl Crow and Rascal Flatts, to Riha... ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3718699 Thu, 01 Jul 2010 15:41:00 +0100 3718699 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3678636&cid=t_167087_131_f&fid=35005&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Ffungalcompgenomics%2F%7E3%2FCB4UeH8m5zc%2F Another excellent Cellular & Molecular Fungal Biology Gordon Research Conference held at Holderness School – I won’t blog about the details of the talks since they are intended to be off the record, but you can see the program here. Program chairs John Taylor and Michelle Momany did a great job setting the program slate and vice-chairs Judy Berman and Alex Andrianopoulos prepared the “hot topics” session and will be chairs for the 2012 conference. I had a great time catching up with friends and meeting new folks – here’s a few pictures from the week including one of us catching up on our reading late night. Congrats to Jim Anderson and Jenny Lodge who were elected vice-chairs for 2012 and will be chairs in 2014. (Source: Fungal Genomes and Compara... Fungal Genomes and Comparative Genomics blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3678636 Sun, 20 Jun 2010 01:05:28 +0100 3678636 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3573655&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36050&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblisstree.com%2Flive%2F178549%2F How do you make your garden grow? Check out The Back Garden Project: New Plants, New Plans an inspirational (for wanna-be gardeners, anyway) blog series by Gordon Douglas on GOOD. Post from: BlissTree (Source: Breastfeeding 1-2-3) Breastfeeding 1-2-3 blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3573655 Tue, 18 May 2010 00:45:43 +0100 3573655 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3526725&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fheqs31Ut9lk%2F By adminBritain may have given the world freedom as we understand it (i.e. see The Liberty of Ancients Compared with that of Moderns by Benjamin Constant), but you would not know it from the last prime ministerial debate that took place last Thursday. The candidates (Conservative David Cameron, Labour’s Gordon Brown and Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg) used the word “freedom” only 2 times. They said the word “free” 5 times, but all in the context of the supposedly “free” goodies, which they promised to lavish on the electorate. Words “responsible” and “responsibility” fared somewhat better (4 times). But the winning words were “fair” and “fairness” that were mentioned 22 times — almost always in connection with taxing the rich. Here is a typical example: Bro... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3526725 Mon, 03 May 2010 15:37:16 +0100 3526725 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3519469&cid=t_167087_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D3000 I voted labour in every election (apart from my very first) up to and including 1997.  This is about my feelings for the 2010 election.  Make up your own mind (but don’t let Rupert Murdoch manipulate you). Downloadable button from Mark Golding at http://www.coia.org.uk Don’t Get Fooled Again “I agree with Rupert“ By 2001 election, I had been forced to the conclusion that Tony Blair had views that were well to the right of Margaret Thatcher’s, in many areas that mattered to me. so I voted Lib Dem. That was before 9/11 After that event, all doubt was gone, so the 2005 election it was Lib Dem again.  I won’t even consider the Conservative party much.  I have never understood how anyone could vote for them, ever. The only choic... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3519469 Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:30:42 +0100 3519469 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3499129&cid=t_167087_109_f&fid=34786&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdrmichelletempest.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F04%2Fhustings-at-castleside.html This is a short clip from the Castleside Hustings on Wednesday night - from left to right the representatives are for Liberal Democrats, Labour, Conservative, Independent, UKIP and BNP, all hoping to represent the people of the North West Durham constituency. We were asked questions from directly from the audience. The question: 'Like many people over the past few years politicians from all Parties seem to have lost touch with ordinary people in the street. People are worried about crime, the NHS and many other things. How do I know you will listen and speak up for us in Westminster?' (Source: The Psychiatrist Blog) The Psychiatrist Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3499129 Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:55:00 +0100 3499129 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487038&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F0dxkf7UyBvk%2F By David BoazThe March-April issue of Cato Policy Report featured a discussion among Timothy Carney, Uwe Reinhardt, and Ross Douthat of Carney’s book Obamanomics: How Barack Obama Is Bankrupting You and Enriching His Wall Street Friends, Corporate Lobbyists, and Union Bosses. The tenor of the discussion was reflected in the title, ”Big Business, Big Government, and Libertarian Populism.” Richard L. Gordon, a distinguished economist emeritus at Pennsylvania State University and a Cato adjunct scholar, took strong issue with all three commenters and sent us the following rebuttal, which we’re pleased to publish here: The March/April Cato Policy Report covered a January 2010 Cato Book Forum on Timothy P. Carney’s Obamanomics. Carney summarized his book and there we... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487038 Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:40:51 +0100 3487038 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3437763&cid=t_167087_113_f&fid=38236&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.healthcareitnews.com%2Fblog%2Frethinking-clinical-documentation Over the past 5 years, I worked with HITSP and the HIT Standards Committee to select standards for exchanging clinical summaries. But what exactly is a clinical summary? There is common agreement about the need to exchange codified, structured data for problem lists, medications, allergies, and labs. However, what is the role of unstructured clinical documentation text? Some have suggested that unstructured text is hard to navigate, at times repetitious, and challenging for computers to interpret. (Source: Healthcare IT News Blog) Healthcare IT News Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3437763 Mon, 05 Apr 2010 14:14:50 +0100 3437763 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3346446&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F_2rkEyE6Yn4%2F By David Boaz“Michael Foot, a bookish intellectual and anti-nuclear campaigner who led Britain’s Labour Party to a disastrous defeat in 1983, died [March 3],” reported the Associated Press. He was 96. Foot personified the socialist tendency in the Labour Party, which Tony Blair successfully erased when he won power at the head of a business-friendly, interventionist “New Labour.” Yet Foot remained a respected, even revered, figure. “Michael Foot was a giant of the Labour movement, a man of passion, principle and outstanding commitment to the many causes he fought for,” Blair said Wednesday. Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Blair’s partner in creating “New Labour,” praised Foot as a “genuine British radical” and a “ma... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3346446 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:40:51 +0100 3346446 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3075616&cid=t_167087_113_f&fid=38494&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcuretogether.com%2Fblog%2F2009%2F12%2F09%2Fcuretogether-in-h-magazine%2F h+ Magazine asked me to write an article about self-tracking, so I did! It’s in the Winter Issue of h+, available for download now. It talks about Gordon Bell’s self-tracking work at Microsoft, the Quantified Self, my own tracking, and CureTogether. I think the Quantified Life is worth living, do you? (Source: The Collective Well) The Collective Well blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3075616 Wed, 09 Dec 2009 19:10:30 +0100 3075616 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2984986&cid=t_167087_136_f&fid=37846&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthinfoispower.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F11%2F11%2Fnationwide-registry-to-match-study-volunteers-with-researchers%2F Individuals who want to participate in research studies can connect online with researchers nationwide through the first disease-neutral, volunteer recruitment registry.  ResearchMatch.org is a not-for-profit secure Web site, designed to provide people who are interested in participating in research the opportunity to be matched with studies that may be the right fit for them. NIH Announces [...] (Source: Libby's H*O*P*E*) Libby's H*O*P*E* blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2984986 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 06:32:15 +0100 2984986 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2908545&cid=t_167087_86_f&fid=38272&url=http%3A%2F%2Flaikaspoetnik.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F10%2F19%2Fcochrane-colloquium-2009-better-working-relationship-between-cochrane-and-guideline-developers%2F Last week I attended the annual Cochrane Colloquium in Singapore. I will summarize some of the meetings. Here is a summary of an interesting (parallel) special session: Creating a closer working relationship between Cochrane and Guideline Developers. This session was brought together as a partnership between the Guidelines International Network (G-I-N) and The Cochrane Collaboration to [...] (Source: Laika's MedLibLog) Laika's MedLibLog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2908545 Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:02:35 +0100 2908545 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2751886&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FFr2fYFB1Lzk%2F A further chapter in Britain’s economic suicide comes from Tax Notes International today (subscription only): In a move apparently aimed at lowering their tax bills, major U.K. sports bookmakers William Hill and Ladbrokes plan to relocate their sports betting operations to Gibraltar, according to media reports. The move by William Hill was announced on August 4 and was subsequently followed by Ladbrokes’ announcement on August 6. The moves are projected to cost the U.K. Treasury millions of pounds in tax revenue, according to an August 6 report on www.guardian.co.uk. The departure of these sports betting firms, particularly if other sports bookmakers follow, could put the U.K.’s entire online gambling market (the largest legal betting market in the world) beyond the reac... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2751886 Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:22:36 +0100 2751886 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2737696&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FyPNJcGHYRgM%2F A Bloomberg story on one cause of the ongoing British economic disaster under Prime Minister Gordon Brown: Andrew Wesbecher moved to London from New York in 2006 to sell software to banks and hedge funds. This month he joined the exodus of American expatriates fleeing high taxes and the city’s shrinking financial industry . . . Americans are heading home as Britain plans a 50 percent tax rate for those who earn more than 150,000 pounds ($248,000) a year and employers cut benefits for workers living abroad, reducing the allure of London. That comes a year after the U.K. said foreigners who have lived in the country for more than seven years must pay 30,000 pounds annually or give up the special status that shields overseas income from British taxes. Since the 1980s, London has boomed as a... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2737696 Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:30:19 +0100 2737696 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2601989&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F07%2Fgovernment-rules-on-masturbation.html News is slow to reach this still very wet corner of North Wales, and so I am grateful to an NHS BLOG DOCTOR reader for drawing my attention to an hilarious document, entitled Pleasure, which has been produced by NHS Sheffield.For too long, say the authors, experts have concentrated on the need for safe sex and committed relationships. “Together with your five portions of fruit and veg a day and 30 minutes of physical activity three times a week, what about sex or masturbation twice a week?”Much hilarity amongst the medical profession, but the Archbishop is not amused. This is just more New Labour top-down micromanagement. Is there no part of our private lives in which they will not interfere? Too silly words. Twice weekly masturbation? How precisely does Gordon Brown propose to enforce... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2601989 Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:25:00 +0100 2601989 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2464089&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F3UHApBS5qak%2F Thomas Paine, one of the fathers of American freedom, died almost unmourned 200 years ago today. Brendan O’Neill remembers him at BBC.com: In January 1776 he published a short pamphlet that earned him the title The Father of the American Revolution. Titled simply, Common Sense, the work has been described by the Pulitzer-winning historian Gordon S Wood as “the most incendiary and popular pamphlet of the entire [American] revolutionary period”. It put the case for democracy, against the monarchy, and for American independence from British rule. Lefties like Harvey Kaye, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and author of Thomas Paine and the Promise of America, like to say He put the case for political democracy AND social democracy, arguing in The Rights of... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2464089 Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:58:29 +0100 2464089 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458082&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fshould-iain-dale-discuss-prime.html Yesterday, I described Caroline “give me a job or I will stamp my little foot” Flint as having a hissy fit when Gordon Brown did not offer her a job commensurate with what she sees as her abilities. She played the “sexism” card. She thought she should have a short cut to promotion because of her gender. She did not get it so she had a hissy fit. Late last night on Sky News, Michael White of the Guardian also described Flint as having a "hissy fit". Iain Dale, sometimes too gentle for this world (Iain will defend Nadine Dorries even when she takes her position of the week), leapt to Flint’s defence.Because White started being sexist and I questioned Gordon Brown's mental state. He accused Caroline Flint of having a "hissy fit". "Don't be so sexist," I said. Eve Pollard nodded in ... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458082 Sat, 06 Jun 2009 12:42:00 +0100 2458082 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458083&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fbaron-and-barrow-boy.html Unelected leaders :  the "sinister minister" and the "business czar"The British Constitution is (largely) unwritten and, unlike the American Constitution, it is not entrenched. The British legislature, the Queen in Parliament, remains supreme. In theory, an Act of Parliament could be passed tomorrow taking us out of the EC, abolishing the Act of Settlement, even abolishing the monarchy. The beloved political doctrine of the separation of powers has little reality in the UK. The executive controls the legislature and, with a working majority and the veiled powers of patronage, can pass any legislation it wishes. Do not underestimate the influence of patronage. There would have been no feminist diatribe from Caroline “give the girls a job” Flint if she had been offered the Home Office.O... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458083 Sat, 06 Jun 2009 09:51:00 +0100 2458083 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458084&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fpeter-hain-you-cant-keep-good-man-down.html Peter Hain MP, Secretary of State for WalesAm I missing something here? Has Peter Hain just slipped unnoticed back into the Welsh Office? Is this the same Peter Hain who has the distinction of being the first Cabinet Minister to be driven out of office by revelations made by a blogger? Peter Hain was under the spotlight for er…creative use of MPs’ expenses and allowances long before such scandals became fashionable and common place.Guido had it all.Now Peter Hain is back in office. The same office. Does Gordon Brown think that people have forgotten? It was only January of this year.Peter Hain is due to apologise to the House at 3.30pm via a personal statement. Will he try to claim his reputation and integrity are untainted?Don’t think so Peter. After all, paying your 80-year-old moth... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458084 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:26:00 +0100 2458084 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458085&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fben-bradshaw-nhs-and-bbc.html Ben BradshawThere was widespread relief in the NHS today when it was announced that Ben Bradshaw has given up his health portfolio to become Commissar for Kulture. Bradshaw was second only to Patricia Hewitt in terms of the hatred he engendered amongst those of us who work in the NHS. He was unsympathetic. He did not listen. He was consistently economic with the truth. The Guardian reports that, in his new role, which will include responsibility for broadcasting, he intends to "hit the ground running."It does not look good for the BBC. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458085 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:56:00 +0100 2458085 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458086&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fcaroline-flint-has-hissy-fit.html Two days ago in “The girlies are taking over” we looked at the way that the pendulum of sexual equality has swung so far in medicine that, before long, female doctors will outnumber their male counterparts.Despite the best efforts of the preposterous Harriet Harperson there is no such thing as the “girlie fast track” in politics. Truly successful female politicians such as Barbara Castle and Margaret Thatcher came up the hard way. No quarter was asked, nor was it given.Today’s “righteous indignation” from Caroline Flint is tainted with hypocrisy. Last night, when the prospects of a Cabinet job were still (she thought) dangling in the air, Caroline Flint was openly supportive of Gordon Brown. Today, when she did not get the job that she thought she deserved, out came the sexis... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458086 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:33:00 +0100 2458086 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2458087&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fandy-burnham-gets-health.html There were scary rumours around this morning that Caroline Flint was going to get health. Instead, it's to be Andy Burnham, a man who cut his healthcare teeth with Particia Hewitt.Andrew Neil is an excellent interviewer. He cuts to the quick far more quickly than Paxman and Humphreys and does so without causing offence. And why were doctors so dissatisfied with the NHS changes despite the large sums of money thrown at them? Because top-down micro-management, protocols and target culture sapped morale, stifled professional autonomy and failed to deliver better care for the patients.Burnham may be the short serving Health minister of modern times. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2458087 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:27:00 +0100 2458087 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2452455&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F06%2Fold-amstrad-will-not-save-gordon-brown.html The old Amstrad 1640 (the upmarked 1512) was my first real computer. It must be nearly 25 years since I bought it. I loved it. Two disc drives, but no hard disc. Who needed data storage then? After a few months I bough a 32 megabyte card. I used Wordperfect. I had a dot matrix printer. It all worked well and Alan Sugar deservedly made his fortune. I do not know what Alan Sugar does now, except appear on The Apprentice. More "theatre of cruelty" television. Britain's got Talent in a suit. I do not watch it.The Amstrad 1640 is yesterday's computer, and Alan Sugar, television star though he may well be, is last year's entrepreneur. He won't be able to save Gordon Brown and his appointment to whatever he has been appointed to may grab a headline, and may appeal to watchers of The Apprentice, b... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2452455 Fri, 05 Jun 2009 11:55:00 +0100 2452455 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2453074&cid=t_167087_136_f&fid=37846&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthinfoispower.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F05%2F31%2Fearly-treatment-of-recurrent-ovarian-cancer-based-upon-rising-ca-125-levels-does-not-increase-survival%2F “European researchers report [at the 2009 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting being held in Orlando, Florida from May 29 through June 2nd] that starting treatment early for an ovarian cancer relapse based on CA125 blood levels alone does not improve overall survival, compared with delaying treatment until symptoms arise.” PLENARY PRESENTATION SUNDAY, MAY 31, 1:45 [...] (Source: Libby's H*O*P*E*) Libby's H*O*P*E* blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2453074 Sun, 31 May 2009 23:41:47 +0100 2453074 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2442122&cid=t_167087_122_f&fid=36582&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FSharpBrains%2F%7E3%2FHMdav34z_sI%2F Arts education influences learning and other areas of cognition and may deserve a more prominent place in schools, according to a wave of recent neuroscience research.One recent study found that children who receive music instruction for just 15 months show strengthened connections in musically relevant brain areas and perform better on associated tasks, compared with students who do not learn an instrument. A separate study found that children who receive training to improve their focus and attention perform better not only on attention tasks but also on intelligence tests. Some researchers suggest that arts training might similarly affect a wide range of cognitive domains. Educators and neuroscientists gathered recently in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., to discuss the increasingly detai... SharpBrains blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2442122 Sun, 24 May 2009 19:15:40 +0100 2442122 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2405132&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F05%2Fexpenses-scandal-decisive-leadership.html This is impressive and decisive leadership from David Cameron. Action not words. Action not consultations. The MPs expenses scandal is one of the most difficult problems a party leader has ever faced. It is hard to know what more he could have done. A full and frank apology. No prevarication.  Conservative MPs instructed to pay back all excessive claims immediately or face the sack. Dr Crippen is impressed. Heavens, even the DK is impressed.Compare it with this:and then thisThen chose your leader. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2405132 Tue, 12 May 2009 21:53:00 +0100 2405132 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2367431&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fmessage-for-gordon-brown.html These spoof videos have done the rounds but still amuse, and this one was never more relevant. A few weeks ago NHS BLOG DOCTOR held a light hearted pole to find the Ten most popular reasons why Gordon Brown should go. Events have move on a pace since then. Now it is serious.Iain Dale and Guido draw my attention to a new petition on the Number 10 website:We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to resign.Guido has spoken to Civil Service types who confirm that under the rules of the petition service this petition is valid and permissable since it is non-partisan. It has already attracted hundreds of petitioners in support. Something tells Guido this could be big, really big. Over two million people watched Dan Hannan on YouTube crush Gordon in a speech. If half of them can be bothered... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2367431 Fri, 24 Apr 2009 21:12:00 +0100 2367431 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2353791&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fwhat-is-wrong-with-gordon-brown.html This video is doing the rounds at the moment. It was recommended to me by my ageing Greek friend but it was probably Fraser Nelson in The Spectator who first commented on it.I would recommend watching it with the sound turned off at first. Concentrate on the facial expressions. Then take a look at Fraser Nelson's analysis, and watch it again. Look for the COMIC PAUSE, the VANISHING GRIN, THE SHOULDER SHIMMY, the HAND PUSH, and the POWER SHRUG in which the arms and hands join the shoulders in an upward burst.  And there is lots more. My particular favourite is the facial expression at 1.57 before he steels himself to say the dreaded words "Harriet Harman".  You are more likely to hear an actor naming the Scottish Play.Maybe this new, "improved" Gordon Brown was designed by Damien McBride'... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2353791 Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:01:00 +0100 2353791 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2347977&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fgordon-brown-to-conscript-teenagers.html I am grateful to my ageing Greek friend for drawing my attention to this:Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged to ensure every young person has done 50 hours of voluntary work by the time they are 19 years old. Mr Brown said a promise to bring in compulsory community service would be a part of his next election manifesto.BBCOnwards and upwards, comrades. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2347977 Mon, 13 Apr 2009 07:58:00 +0100 2347977 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2347981&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Flabour-partys-answer-to-jeffrey-archer.html News of the World"The Prime Minister has accepted Mr McBride's resignation. Neither he nor anybody else in Downing Street had knowledge of these emails. It is the Prime Minister's view that there is no place in politics for the dissemination or publication of material of this kind, which is why it is right that Mr McBride and Mr Draper decided not to publish this material."Earlier in the day, ex Home Secretary Charles Clarke blasted McBride, saying he had brought shame to the Labour party, adding: "Damian McBride has no place in Downing Street."News of the World via GuidoLet us not forget that McBride was working in Downing Street. He had a senior position. He was conspiring with Draper to launch a viscious smear campaign against Conservative Shadow Cabinet Members and, to boot, Samantha C... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2347981 Sun, 12 Apr 2009 09:15:00 +0100 2347981 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2347982&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fanother-blog-triumph.html Another triumph for Guido.The appalling Damien McBride has been utterly discredited and, any second now, will be falling on his sword.Those not interested in political rough-and-tumble may not have been following Guido’s remorseless pursuit of these appalling Labour Party apparatchiks. The main stream media has, as always, tried to stay aloof from what they have dismissed as a internecine blog war between Guido, Iain Dale and Derek Draper.  It was far more than that. Derek Draper was dishonest with an overinflated c.v. but both he and Damien McBride had the Prime Minister’s ear. McBride was playing a major role in an underhand Labour Party smear campaign that was to be directed, with Draper's help, against leading members of the Conservative Party. And Nadine DorriesThe power of the i... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2347982 Sat, 11 Apr 2009 15:10:00 +0100 2347982 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2307013&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F04%2Fthings-can-only-get-better-comrades.html It was All Fool's Day when our practice introduced the rejigged surgery times to enable us to snaffle another wedge of taxpayer's money for offering more appointment time to our patients. Note carefully, comrades, that I say "more appointment time" not more appointments.Our early morning, walk-in surgeries, starting at 7.15, have always been popular, particularly for those who work a distance from the practice area. These appointments have always been unbookable, walk in on the day. The government insists that we should make the appointments bookable in advance, and that the appointments must be ten minutes in duration. Good news, comrades. We have done that. I thought you might like to see our three day mini audit.36 pre-bookable appointments rather than 48 walk-in appointments14 pat... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2307013 Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:53:00 +0100 2307013 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2207951&cid=t_167087_146_f&fid=38266&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsleepeducation.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F02%2Fdrowsy-racing-nascars-jeff-gordon.html Even a top NASCAR driver can suffer from drowsy driving. Especially when he’s a new parent.Florida Today reports that sleep loss may help explain Jeff Gordon’s disappointing 2008 season. It seems that the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is still adjusting to fatherhood. His wife Ingrid gave birth to their daughter Ella Sofia on June 20, 2007.“It's that I'm not sleeping,” Gordon recently told reporters. “I'm showing up to the race track trying to hold my eyes open because I'm sleep deprived because she was up crying at 3 in the morning. I'm trying to be a good husband, not necessarily just a good father, and play my role."The 37-year-old Gordon already ranks as one of the best NASCAR drivers in history. He is sixth on NASCAR’s all-time win list with 81 victories; “The Kin... Sleep Education blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2207951 Tue, 17 Feb 2009 18:34:00 +0100 2207951 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2182455&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F02%2Fdestruction-of-nhs-dentistry-fat-cats.html William Kelly : leading British Dental SurgeonTony Blair admitted failure late last month when challenged in the Commons by Liberal Democrat MP Mark Hunter. He conceded that a pledge made in 1999 to ensure within two years access to an NHS dentist for all regardless of where they lived had not been realised. "It has been a real problem. I entirely accept that," the Prime Minister said.sourceIt has not got any better since Gordon Brown took over. Today we learn that as many as six million British citizens have now resorted to DIY dentistry. Of those trying DIY dentistry,26% have tried to pull a tooth using pliers12% have tried tying a piece of string to a door handle.30% admitted to attempting to whiten their teeth with household cleaning products.11% admitted to included using household gl... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2182455 Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:40:00 +0100 2182455 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2144498&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F01%2Fpreventative-medicine.html click to enlargeMovin’ Meat is an ER doctor on the West Coast of America (you know, like Mark), and is responsible for drawing my attention to the entertaining but surely entirely fictional picture above.Here's the odd thing.  You notice in the above graphic (obtained via DKos) there is a blurb titled "Defense Accessories," which reads in part, "Bottles of the President's blood kept on board in case he needs an emergency transfusion."Um, really?  Full story in : This is cool, and a little odd All sounds a bit silly, particularly as there will (as a nurse points out in the comments - and do skim down for the one on dear old OJ) be O Negative (the universal donor blood) available at any hospital near you. Still, the security services will do anything they can to protect Mr Obama. Meanw... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2144498 Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:12:00 +0100 2144498 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2104572&cid=t_167087_133_f&fid=35127&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthefamilyvoyage.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F01%2Fevidence-based-cam.html Isn't this quite a coincidence?Or...is it something else, a sign perhaps? (Cue spooky music...)Photo owned by BrianVoxGtr (cc)Gordon forwarded an email he received yesterday asking him to review submissions to a publication called "Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine." It's the most baffling name ever, akin to, "animal loving puppy killers."If it's evidence based, it's no longer "complementary or alternative," it's just medicine.I asked Gordon to send them a link to his guest post to see if they'd still require his services. Unlikely, I'd say.Here's the email:To: GordonSubject: Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Account Created in Manuscript Central13-Jan-2009Dear Dr Gordon,Welcome to the online submission and peer-review site for Evidence Based Compl... The Voyage blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2104572 Wed, 14 Jan 2009 11:33:00 +0100 2104572 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2096043&cid=t_167087_133_f&fid=35127&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthefamilyvoyage.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F01%2Fguest-post-by-gordon-medical-experts.html Pure, refreshing, and lacking all medicinal properties.Oh this is delicious. I had another comment from the person who was unhappy with my assessment of homeopathy recently, and whose contribution was so hilarious that I dedicated a post to answering her/him.Well s/he came back and it's beautiful. I showed Gordon what this person wrote and he decided that he wanted to leave a comment. But I don't want his words of wisdom buried away as a comment on a post written last year so I offered him the opportunity to write a guest post for my award winning (snarf) blog. He has agreed.So, I take great pleasure in introducing the first even contribution to the blogosphere (he's not written so much as a comment before; too busy doing properly useful stuff like trying to cure cancer and that) from the ... The Voyage blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2096043 Sun, 11 Jan 2009 09:54:00 +0100 2096043 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2061067&cid=t_167087_133_f&fid=35096&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.b5media.com%2F%7Er%2Fb5media%2FAutismVox%2F%7E3%2FYuQqRDrcXHw%2F So, you’re reaching for the eggnog or another piece of gingerbread and Great Uncle W says to you, “Now what is all this I hear about autism and vaccines?” Or, some friendly step-relatives happens to end up next to you while the Christmas carol sheets are being handed out and, just as you’re trying to sneak out of the chair to sit by your child who already has his hands over your ears while your musician second cousin starts playing something from Jersey Boys on the piano to expressions of delight, said step-relative says, with a concerned smile, “Does he have this thing called sensitive-processor disorder too? A friend says her nephew has it.” Now don’t get me wrong. After the initial incredulity that Charlie “had” something, my extende... Autism Vox blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2061067 Tue, 23 Dec 2008 22:26:30 +0100 2061067 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2055804&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F12%2Ften-reasons-why-gordon-brown-must-go-as.html Two weeks ago, I listed 50 fairly recent videos, all in the public domain, each illustrating a reason why Gordon Brown should go. Which best showed our beleaguered prime minister in his true light? Which were the most telling? Which were the most amusing? I asked readers to vote for their ten favourite videos. You may review all fifty here, but the decision has now been made. The results are now in. The votes have been counted. Perhaps not surprisingly the top two positions went to recent videos. I was sad that my own favourite, Gordon’s Presidential Nightmare, only came in at Number 7. Perhaps it is a little too long but I still find it a source of joy; our best Parliamentarian on sparkling form. And so, here are the “Top Ten reasons why Gordon Brown must go” chosen by the readers ... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2055804 Sun, 21 Dec 2008 09:35:00 +0100 2055804 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2033054&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F1999%2F12%2Fchristmas-competition-ten-reasons-why.html As if this wasn't enoughWe are in the midst of the greatest financial crisis since the 1930s. Soon there will be three million unemployed. Labour have been in power for eleven years and must take some responsibility for the crisis. The Prime Minister behaves like Flash Gordon, on his mission to save the World. The World’s verdict is clear. The value of the pound plummets and our children are to be handed a lifetime of debt. And yet, somehow, the Prime Minister’s popularity seems to be increasing. It beggars belief.I was composing an illustrated post entitled “Ten reasons why Gordon must go”. In a matter of minutes, I came up with fifty. But which are the most telling? Which are the most amusing? Which best show our beleaguered prime minister in his true light?The NHS BLOG DOCTOR Ch... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2033054 Thu, 11 Dec 2008 16:48:00 +0100 2033054 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027198&cid=t_167087_133_f&fid=35096&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.b5media.com%2F%7Er%2Fb5media%2FAutismVox%2F%7E3%2FmNvwhs2L-t8%2F On October 12, while presiding as the honorary chair for an Autism Speaks walk on the campus of Ohio State University, President Gordon Gee made remarks including the statement that “‘It [autism] should not exist.’” Melanie Yergeau, a 2nd-year Ph.D. student in English, wrote this letter, which is posted on the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network blog. As Yergeau, who notes that she has Asperger’s Syndrome, writes: Until very recently, I have felt incredibly welcome at Ohio State—due to the interdisciplinary work of the Disability Studies Program and the Department of English, the Office of Disability Services, and the programs for high-functioning/Asperger’s adults at the Nisonger Center. I would urge you, as you continue in your autism advocacy, to consider wh... Autism Vox blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027198 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 02:30:50 +0100 2027198 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2022310&cid=t_167087_77_f&fid=37259&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.horizonpress.com%2Fblogger%2F2008%2F12%2Fconference-update-gordon-conferences.html The following conferences have been added to our list of Microbiology ConferencesJanuary 25 - 30, 2009 Molecular Approaches for Emergent/Re-Emergent Tropical DiseasesGalveston, TX, USA Further informationGordon Research Conference. The first part "Molecular and Cell Biology of Host-Pathogen Interactions" will be devoted to basic research involving different aspects of invertebrate / vertebrate host interaction, such as invasion, homing/latency and transmission. The second segment will focus on "Strategies for Disease Control" as they relate to possible testing in the field.Suggested reading: Molecular Biology BooksMarch 1 - 6, 2009 Antimicrobial PeptidesVentura, CA, USA Further informationGordon Research Conference. Understanding health and disease through antimicrobial host defense peptid... Microbiology Blog: The weblog for microbiologists. blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2022310 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 17:39:00 +0100 2022310 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1998876&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F11%2Fofficer-arrest-this-smirking-crook.html source : guidofawkes (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1998876 Sun, 30 Nov 2008 13:20:00 +0100 1998876 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1990666&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F11%2Fencouraging-lower-standard-of-care.html The Jobbing Doctor talks, with frustration, about doing a “Gordon Surgery”. In other words, his practice has jumped through the hoops to get the extra money from the government for doing extended hours.I have been doing what I will call a “Crippen” surgery for several years. I started when Gordon was ensconced in Number 11 spending his day telling the inhabitant of Number 10 how to do his job. Now Gordon is in Number 10 spending his working day telling the inhabitant of Number 11 how to do his job.Nothing changes.My “Crippen” surgery runs from 6.00 pm until 8.00 pm, usually on Wednesday evening. I book 16 patients at seven and a half minute intervals. When I started in my current practice, the elderly partners (three over 65) all offered five-minute appointments. With all the e... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1990666 Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:44:00 +0100 1990666 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1981236&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36069&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffrankiespeakingfrankly.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F11%2Fgetting-excited-about-global-enterprise.html I never imagined I might feel some kind of connection with a speech given by Gordon Brown, but then I also never thought I would get excited about the president of the United States. Hey, just goes to show that even politics can turn up pleasant surprises!Here Gordon states that:- the principals of social action and enterprise should be linked;- 'free markets' should not mean 'value free markets';- markets should be underpinned by social purpose;- due to emerging markets the global economy will inevitably double over the next 20 years;- there will be massive oppotunities for enterprise and social action due to communication through the Internet, email and other such technologies.I couldn't agree more. In a time full of 'doom and gloom' I have my eyes completely focused on the future. Yes i... Frankie Speaking Frankly blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1981236 Sun, 23 Nov 2008 08:38:00 +0100 1981236 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1947088&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F11%2Fanother-barrier-to-social-mobility.html I really do not understand what is going on.This government, this Labour government, is introducing policies that David Cameron’s Tories would not dare suggest. Last week, it was the authorisation of “top up” payments for health care. Now it is an attack on the security of tenure traditionally enjoyed by council house tenants and it will be the underprivileged, the physically and mentally ill in particular, who will suffer in the name of weeding out the scroungers.So many of my patients live in the twilight world of benefit traps. Ben Goldacre will be taking a look at some of them on Radio 4 tonight at 8.00 pm. Some of my patients are unemployed and looking for work. A larger number of them are on incapacity benefit (full details of Incapacity Benefit here) . Some of those labelled a... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1947088 Mon, 10 Nov 2008 17:13:00 +0100 1947088 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1640246&cid=t_167087_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2008%2F07%2F21%2Fdepressions-many-treatments%2F Therese Borchard over at Beyond Blue wrote about the disconcerting “either/or” artificial dichotomy that some researchers and doctors set up about treatments for mental conditions such as depression. Medications for depression are either evil and the root cause of all of society’s problems, or they are saviors and rescue people from a lifetime of suffering. Depression is either a problem with living and one’s life, or it’s a biological disease we simply don’t yet understand. Psychiatrist James Gordon is the subject of the ire, because he’s promoting his new book over in a Newsweek interview suggesting that alternative treatment methods are the preferred treatment approach for mild to moderate (e.g., most people’s) depression. And that antide... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1640246 Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:30:31 +0100 1640246 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1593775&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F07%2Fgordons-feast.html Families facing spiralling shopping bills were told by Gordon Brown yesterday to stop wasting food, as a government report said that Britons were throwing away groceries worth more than £1 billion a year. The Cabinet Office inquiry into food policy, ordered by Mr Brown soon after he became Prime Minister, accuses families of wasting an average of £420 a year on food, The Times has learnt.Mr Brown reinforced its message yesterday, calling on people to stop throwing food away as he travelled to the G8 summit in Japan. “If we are to get food prices down, we must do more to deal with unnecessary demands, such as by all of us doing more to reduce our food waste,” he said. (The Times)Quite right too, Prime Minister, says Dr Crippen. But what, you may ask, is the Prime Minister eating on hi... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1593775 Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:24:00 +0100 1593775 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1560774&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F07%2Fhow-long-before-british-baby-dies-of.html Greetings comrades and good news as we join together to celebrate the 60th anniversary of our glorious health service. Our esteemed leader is continuing the work of the late Comrade Bevan. Meanwhile Comrade My Lord Darzi has produced a health care plan for the next sixty years. Every local soviet will commission comprehensive wellbeing and prevention services personalised to meet the specific needs of all our comrade patients.We continue to focus on the immunisation of our children. There is no shortage of vaccine. All children will be immunised on time. Appropriate supplies of vaccine have been despatched. Any comrade doctors who have received too many vaccines are free to ask for a reduction in their allocation.Meanwhile, back at the coal face, Dr Crippen is trying to advise the two prac... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1560774 Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:55:00 +0100 1560774 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1481820&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F06%2Fpolitics-of-envy.html My father in law lives in London. He is into his eighties now but still fit and active. He has a bus pass which he uses frequently. Occasionally, when he wants to get somewhere specific in a hurry, he takes a taxi. He has just received a letter from the Mayor of London telling him that as he has paid to use a taxi, he can no longer use the buses.Too silly for words. Equally silly are the cases highlighted in this morning’s papers of NHS patients who, having decided to pay for some private drugs, are being thrown out of the NHS.Jack Hose, 71, from Bournemouth, whose entitlement to health service care was withdrawn by the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust because he chose to pay for a drug that is not normally funded by the state. Hose has been billed by the... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1481820 Sun, 01 Jun 2008 08:56:00 +0100 1481820 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1480639&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F05%2Fpalliative-care-and-polyclinics.html Waiting at the polly clinicAn interesting post from the, as ever, excellent Michelle Tempest, psychiatrist and author of “The Future of the NHS”. She talks of the recent by-election, of the excision of "a necrosing, fungating, pungent mass" and of the fact that Gordon Brown is beyond cure and in need only of palliative care. In “No thank you, Mr Balls” we looked at the absurd top-down micro-management that makes GPs less available to patients, and that is tell us exactly how to spend each minute of each day.Meanwhile, the Polyclinics approach. Designed by a surgeon and a focus group, the Polyclinics are portrayed as offering all things to all people. A Polyclinic will be opening a couple of miles away from my practice. Unlike some of my colleagues I am not in the slightest worried.... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1480639 Sat, 31 May 2008 13:57:00 +0100 1480639 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1451757&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F05%2Fwhat-is-wrong-with-prime-minister.html Teenage train-spotterThere is much medical gossip at the moment as to the correct diagnosis of Gordon Brown's problem. Yes, it has got that bad. Some have suggested an autism spectrum disorder and much consideration has been given to the possibility of Asperger's Syndrome. Well, he would be in good company:Sir Keith Joseph, the father of Thatcherism whose free market principles are still followed to some extent by Tony Blair, had a form of autism that is reflected in his political philosophy, a psychiatrist believes. The former Conservative education secretary, who was Mrs Thatcher's mentor in the 1970s and 1980s, had Asperger's syndrome, a condition that renders sufferers unable to interpret social situations or to empathise with other people, according to Michael Fitzgerald, professor of... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1451757 Sun, 18 May 2008 15:25:00 +0100 1451757 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1409685&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Flies-damn-lies-and-gordon-brown.html I am still trying to recover from the Prime Minister’s brazen effrontery on this morning's Today programme.  I was listening to it whilst reading the Times. You may “listen again” here.   The juxtaposition of Prime Ministerial lies and the real news is breathtaking. Unusually, Gordon Brown did admit to something short of papal infabillity on the question of how the abolition of the 10p tax rate was handled but, for the rest, it was a Panglossian tissue of lies.Secret tax adds £200 to the cost of family carsThe Treasury admitted to The Times last night that it was quietly abolishing the exemption for older cars from the highest rates of vehicle excise duty. This means that owners of larger cars bought since March 2001 will find that their road tax will rise steeply from next Apri... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1409685 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 09:18:00 +0100 1409685 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1375055&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fdumbing-down-out-of-hours-service.html New Labour out of hours HCPOver ten years ago I was heavily involved in setting up a GP co-operative to rationalise and manage the out of hours on call committment. We had active support from the government including access to and meetings with both Norman Lamont and Virginia Bottomley. The co-operatives were a cost efficient method of ensuring that patients received quality out of hours care form local experienced family doctors.We started our co-operative from nothing. I remember when I and one other colleague opened the first bank account with a float of a couple of thousand pounds raised by approaching other local GPs. We drew up a business plan and approached the bank manager for help. We needed to rent premises, buy or rent half a dozen cars, purchase expensive radio equipment and ab... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1375055 Wed, 16 Apr 2008 08:27:00 +0100 1375055 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1356040&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fthree-year-pay-cut-for-nurses.html Silencing the nursesGordon Brown has put an 8% payrise on the table for the nurses. Brilliant. 8% sounds good doesn't it, particularly if you forget to divide it by three.The proposed deal would give over a million staff an increase of 2.75% from April, followed by further increases of 2.4% in 2009/10 and 2.25% in 2010/11.It is a con. In real terms, this is another big pay cut. Gordon Brown will quote figures to prove it is not, but the figures are from the land of Gordon Brown make believe. The REAL inflation rate is higher, well above 3% a year. Wat Tyler has a graph showing the real figures. Take a look here. There is another agenda. Gordon Brown wants to be re-elected in 2010. He does not want bad publicity from angry nurses during the election campaign. DON'T BE FOOLED. Do not accept ... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1356040 Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:55:00 +0100 1356040 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1352710&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fnhs-safe-is-in-gordon-browns-hands.html Half a pound of tuppenny rice,Half a pound of treacle.That’s the way the money goes,Pop goes the weasel.Up and down the City road,In and out the Eagle,That’s the way the money goes,Pop goes the weasel.Every night when I go outthe monkey’s on the table.Take a stick and knock it offPop goes the weasel.Within seconds of arriving in office, Gordon Brown and Ed Balls mounted a stealth raid on UK pension funds. The effects of that are still working their way through.  A little later Gordon went down to the bank vaults and sold off a huge tranche of British gold. The asset stripping is to continue.  Gordon Brown has realised that the NHS owns a lot of real estate, particularly in London.“Don’t worry” said a government spokesman “we will not lose our hospitals because once we have ... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1352710 Sat, 05 Apr 2008 20:28:00 +0100 1352710 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1351998&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fobesity-is-surgery-answer.html The dieter's trousersMany truly obese people are searching for a quick answer to their problems. Sadly, there isn't one. Ultimately, it is all down to calorific balance. Slimming is big business. Very big business. Put "diet" into Google and you get more hits than if you put in "bible". The drug industry has moved into slimming in a big way. In my view, the drugs they produce are rubbish; possibly dangerous rubbish. Bariatric surgery is always an option. Have a band put round your stomach so that it is physically impossible to eat big meals. For the right patient, it can be dramatically effective. But it has to be combined with life-style changes and, in particular, exercise. For the wrong patient it will not work. Banding will not stop the truly determined persevering with booze and li... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1351998 Sat, 05 Apr 2008 08:49:00 +0100 1351998 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1351999&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fgordon-brown-and-anger-management.html Gordon Brown to target anger managementDr Crippen was perplexed when last week, for no apparent reason, the lack of facilities within the NHS for anger management received some unexpected publicity. One always fears another government initiative, another target.One in four says they worry about how angry they sometimes feel and 64% think people in general are getting angrier. But most people would not know where to seek help. Mental Health Foundation chief executive Dr Andrew McCulloch said: "In a society where people can get help for depression and anxiety, panic, phobia, eating disorders and a range of other psychological and emotional problems, it seems extraordinary that we are left to fend for ourselves when it comes to an emotion as powerful as anger. (BBC)The reason for the sudden i... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1351999 Fri, 04 Apr 2008 22:25:00 +0100 1351999 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1349480&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Fgordon-brown-is-not-listening.html The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) is an independent expert body that advises government on drug related issues in the UK. It was established under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and its current Chair is Professor Sir Michael Rawlins.Look at the list of members here. It is an impressive roll call of expertise. The council has deliberated and decided to advise against the reclassification cannabis. It seems that the Prime Minister is going to ignore that advice. He brings no personal specialist expertise to the subject and is acting only on the dictates of his dour, unimaginative personality.He has form on ignoring expert opinions.The debacle of MMC and MTAS last year left thousands of highly trained young doctors demoralised. Some are unemployed. Some are in the wrong jobs.... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1349480 Thu, 03 Apr 2008 22:04:00 +0100 1349480 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1322335&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F03%2Fdemagoguery-and-intransigence.html Difficult to decide which makes me more angry. The demagoguery of the Roman Catholic leaders or the intransigence of Gordon Brown.If the survey in today’s Times is correct over 60% of the population support the government’s embryo research proposals. Current legislation on embryo research is nearly twenty years old and, for that reason alone, needs redrafting. I would not pretend it is an easy area ethically and, where ever the line is drawn, its impact will have a degree of arbitrariness leaving a handful of people on either side of the line unhappy. The line still needs to be drawn.There are many devout Roman Catholics, including some eminent politicians, who cannot in conscience support this legislation and their rights to dissent must be respected. But, as so often with the Catholi... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1322335 Mon, 24 Mar 2008 10:49:00 +0100 1322335 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1314060&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F03%2Flying-bastards.html Patients having non-emergency treatment in England will be able to choose from any hospital in the country from April as the government extends NHS choice. (BBC)Lying bastardsThis is not “extending” choice. It is restoring the choice that we had ten years ago. When New Labour took office in 1997  one of the first things it did was remove my right to refer my patients to any hospital in the country. The only problem now is that the bureaucratic jungle of Choose and Book (have a look on line here, and imagine how your granny is going to cope with that) makes it diffiuclt to get an appointment anywhere.Lying bastards. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1314060 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:31:00 +0100 1314060 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1300283&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F03%2Fsmirking-with-flabbyballs.html Trust Guido Fawkes to get it up on air before anyone else. Cameron's reaction comes over as entirely genuine and so, however Hansard may have been doctored, Dr Crippen believes that Flabbyballs did indeed say "so what"Even more appalling was the contemptuous, complacent smirking on the government front bench, and Brown's rudeness in gossiping whilst the Leader of the Opposition was making his reply to the budget. This is one of the most important Parliamentary occasions of the year and one might expect some courtesy from the Prime Minister.We are witnessing the last days of a time-expired regime that long ago forgot that it serves at the pleasure of the electorate. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1300283 Thu, 13 Mar 2008 13:40:00 +0100 1300283 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1215239&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F02%2Fpromises-promises-promises.html A gem from the delicious Trixy of "Is there more to life than shoes". Gordon Brown is being sued for breach of contract for falling to hold the referendum on Europe that was promised in the Labour Party manifesto of 2005. Brown's barrister has just told the court that"manifesto pledges are not subject to legitimate expectation". (Trixy)Rather strained English for a man of letters but the message is obvious. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1215239 Thu, 07 Feb 2008 15:23:00 +0100 1215239 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1188548&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F01%2Fgordon-brown-and-iain-dale.html On a lighter note - I think we need one today - Iain Dale has unearthed a wonderful example of the subprime minister giving a straight answer to a straight question. Joy. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1188548 Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:01:00 +0100 1188548 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1187112&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F01%2Fchoose-and-book-scam.html Greetings comrades and good news from the health commissariat. The Choose and Book system has simplified and expedited hospital referrals. Comrade family doctors are to be congratulated on so readily giving up their control of the system in order to allow the government to achieve its health care targets and abolish waiting lists.Meanwhile, back at the coal face, Dr Crippen is grateful to a GP colleague who points me towards the excellent eHealth Insider."Hospitals are using Choose and Book to block patients making appointments so they can meet their waiting time targets...(full story here)Brilliant.This beats the queue for the waiting list. In fact, if the commissars blocked all appointments, there would be no waiting lists at all. Yet another benefit of centralised control.Well done, com... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1187112 Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:02:00 +0100 1187112 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1173101&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F01%2Ffunniest-joke-of-year-gordon-brown-does.html From the irrepressible Iain Dale. Gordon Brown meets St Peter for a celestial "Choose and Book". Click on the picture.Brilliant. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1173101 Wed, 23 Jan 2008 21:54:00 +0100 1173101 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1149642&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F01%2Fmy-body-is-my-own.html Gordon Brown invites elderly at-risk woman in for screeningDr Crippen elsewhereAfter sulking for ten years in the Treasury, Gordon Brown has been advised by his spin-doctors that there are votes to be won by improving health care. Barely a day now goes by without a prime ministerial announcement of more "improvements" to the NHS.You will be screened for illness, whether or not you wish to be, and you will be an organ donor.Gordon Brown’s new NHS to offer health MOTs."The tests are to be targeted at middle-aged men and patients vulnerable to disease. Those eligible will be chosen using postcode studies to identify residents in areas with high rates of the conditions." (Daily Telegraph)The NHS does not belong to Gordon Brown nor is it new. Your body does not belong to him either.Continue r... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1149642 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:03:00 +0100 1149642 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1149643&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F01%2Fbrown-appoints-teenager-to-senior.html Deeply clean teenage bedroomHaving inherited her mother’s brains, my 14 year old daughter is precociously intelligent, but even her doting mother would admit to some surprise when the letter from Gordon Brown arrived out of the blue, asking our daughter to take on the role of Cleaning Czar for the NHS. She immediately instituted the Deep Cleaning Programme. The programme worked well for her bedroom, which she deeply cleaned last August, and it will work just as well for the NHS.And only a mere £50 million. (Source: NHS Blog Doctor) NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1149643 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 15:35:00 +0100 1149643 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1093418&cid=t_167087_122_f&fid=36582&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2F%7Er%2FSharpBrains%2F%7E3%2F199433556%2F Quick: say the color in which each word in this graphic is displayed (don't just read the word!): Here you have a round-up of some great recent articles on memory, aging, and cognitive abilities such as self-control: 1) How to Boost Your Willpower (New York Times). - "The video watchers were later given a concentration test in which they were asked to identify the color in which words were displayed. (Note: now you see why we started with that brain exercise...) The word “red,” for instance, might appear in blue ink. The video watchers who had stifled their responses did the worst on the test, suggesting that their self-control had already been depleted by the film challenge."   - "Finally, some research suggests that people struggling with self-control should start s... SharpBrains blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1093418 Fri, 14 Dec 2007 01:35:22 +0100 1093418 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1090784&cid=t_167087_122_f&fid=36582&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2F%7Er%2FSharpBrains%2F%7E3%2F199433556%2F Quick: say the color in which each word in this graphic is displayed (don't just read the word!): Here you have a round-up of some great recent articles on memory, aging, and cognitive abilities such as self-control: How to Boost Your Willpower (New York Times). - "The video watchers were later given a concentration test in which they were asked to identify the color in which words were displayed. (Note: now you see why we started with that brain exercise...) The word “red,” for instance, might appear in blue ink. The video watchers who had stifled their responses did the worst on the test, suggesting that their self-control had already been depleted by the film challenge."   - "Finally, some research suggests that people struggling with self-control should start smal... SharpBrains blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1090784 Thu, 13 Dec 2007 00:09:20 +0100 1090784 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=948412&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F10%2Fcrippen-redux.html The time has come for Dr Crippen to spring back into action. Normal service will be resumed on Monday, 15th October.The planned two month break has stretched to nearly three months - apologies for that, and thank you for all the emails.Patricia Hewitt is no more than an unpleasant memory but the most significant political event of last three months was the resignation of Tony Blair. Or was it significant? What I find most extraordinary about it, is that I hardly noticed. Even allowing for the Iraq legacy it is as though Tony Blair never was. He was airbrushed out of the Labour Party Rally and now barely registers in the public consciousness.So much for ten years as Prime Minister.And now we have Gordon Brown. He is different from his predecessor. It took a while to penetrate Blair's mawkis... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=948412 Sat, 13 Oct 2007 12:58:00 +0100 948412 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=768885&cid=t_167087_125_f&fid=34819&url=http%3A%2F%2Fflapsblog.com%2F%3Fp%3D5353 President Bush, right, and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown participate in a joint press availability at Camp David, Md., Monday, July 30, 2007. Mixed signals on the Iraq War are coming from Britain and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. And, Britain insists that they will remove their troops from Iraq irrespective of the United States. Gordon Brown has [...] (Source: FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog) FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=768885 Tue, 31 Jul 2007 14:06:06 +0100 768885 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=830141&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36069&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffrankiespeakingfrankly.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F07%2Fsuper-casino-rethink-super-news.html Well it's not often politics surprise me, but they did when Gordon Brown announced a rethink to the Super Casino that was planned for Manchester. Will he have the courage to stick his neck out all the way against a project with so much money involved? Only time will tell. How anyone can seriously argue that the development of a super casino is a good way to regenerate a deprived area is beyond me.In support of the rethink, and the report that has been commissioned to look at the social effects of gambling that is due in September, I have put together an 'Addiction Blogs' section on MedWorm.Here you can see the directory of addiction blogs I have included so far - if anyone knows of any more please let me know - in particular I am keen to find blogs by anyone experiencing/recovering from ad... Frankie Speaking Frankly blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=830141 Fri, 13 Jul 2007 13:48:00 +0100 830141 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=716430&cid=t_167087_125_f&fid=34819&url=http%3A%2F%2Fflapsblog.com%2F%3Fp%3D5249 Cox & Forkum: What’s in a Name From the Daily Express: Brown: Don’t say terrorists are Muslims Gordon Brown has banned ministers from using the word “Muslim” in connection with the terrorism crisis.The Prime Minister has also instructed his team – including new Home Secretary Jacqui Smith – that the phrase “war on terror” is to be [...] (Source: FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog) FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=716430 Fri, 06 Jul 2007 08:03:34 +0100 716430 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=830143&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=36069&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffrankiespeakingfrankly.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F06%2Ftribute-to-tony-blair.html Well yesterday Tony finally slipped out of power and Gordon slipped in. Politics generally bores me, or infuriates me, so I wouldn't usually mention it here, but I guess I can't let such a day slip by without comment.What did I think of Tony Blair? Well, I guess quite a 'nice' man, with good intentions, and I think mostly sincere, but I think he became increasingly arrogant due to misconceptions of his self-righteousness, foolish, and stupid to have believed the lies he was fed.Whatever good he may done is completely overshadowed by the atrocity of the Iraq War. Reported civilian deaths as a result of the war are currently between 66,000 and 72,000. An estimate by American and Iraqi epidemiologists in October 2006 estimated that 655,000 deaths had resulted since the invasion in March 2003.... Frankie Speaking Frankly blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=830143 Mon, 25 Jun 2007 08:18:00 +0100 830143 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=611440&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F05%2Fcrippen-diaries-2007-20.html Not quite Emergency Ward 10Monday 14th MayStress at home this week as we start the first day of AS levels and GCSEs.A glass of orange juice and a brief look at The Times. GPs are front page news again. This time we are accused of filling up the customers with Prozac, inappropriately and unnecessarily. Well, that is the implication anyway.Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind, said: “Doctors are guilty of a knee-jerk reaction in prescribing pills, which are commonly long-term prescriptions and have well-known issues with side-effects. The mindset of GPs will have to change so that they consider counselling and other forms of therapy as a frontline treatment.” (The Times)That’s great, Paul. We will send everyone for counselling, for “Talking Therapy”, and then for an all expenses pa... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=611440 Thu, 17 May 2007 16:20:00 +0100 611440 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=611447&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F05%2Fend-of-mtas.html Patricia Hewitt defends MTAS on Question Time++++++++++MTAS has been scrapped.What more can I say? Well, just a few words, maybe. Just a tiny little gloat if I may. But first a word of acknowledgment to RemedyUK which was formed to do the job that should have been done by the BMA.And now back to Hewitt. Still no apology from the bloody woman:Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt said that after the first round of recruitment, the system would only fulfill a monitoring role this year. Instead, the recruitment process will be CV-based, and handled at a local level by medical deaneries. (BBC)Note the characteristic face-saving piece of tosh about MTAS being used in a "monitoring" role. Ha! Ha! Next we will ask that nice Mr Mugawbe to monitor the Electoral Reform Society.One slight concern for some... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=611447 Tue, 15 May 2007 14:06:00 +0100 611447 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=611451&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F05%2Fmedical-training-meltdown-review-is.html Hewitt - the final days"An emergency review of the appointments system for junior doctors is being dominated by government apparatchiks" leading doctors claim in a letter to The Times today.MTAS in a nutshellSo who is in charge? “Nobody is,” said the official who spoke to The Times. “The system was developed in isolation from workforce planning. So it was impossible to find any one person who would ask: ‘Will this work?’ .”The Times – Doctors’ job system fiasco.The letter in The Times this morning, which was not from junior doctors, but from eighteen nationally eminent consultants, says it all. Little has been done by the government. Much could be done:We have put forward several alternatives to the single interview. These were accepted as feasible in a private meeting we h... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=611451 Mon, 14 May 2007 13:25:00 +0100 611451 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=611456&cid=t_167087_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F05%2Fsomething-wicked-this-way-comes.html The King is dead. Long live the King.The seamless transition from Blair to Brown, punctuated only by an unctuous coronation, is about to begin. Behind the scenes, however, it may already have begun.Doctors have long known that that health care in the UK is rationed, and never more than it has been in the last ten years. Waiting lists, post-code lottery, PCT whim, NICE restrictions – sorry, meta-analyses - and so we go on. The government pretends it is not happening; the government talks of healthcare being “free at the point of entry”. But that famous phrase is meaningless if the door is closed. We know that Gordon Brown has imposed numerous stealth taxes on the country. He is now about to start stealthily rationing health care.To pave the way, there has been a subtle change in polit... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=611456 Wed, 09 May 2007 10:50:00 +0100 611456 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=579427&cid=t_167087_133_f&fid=35452&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.graphictruth.com%2F2007%2F04%2Ffunnysignjpg-jpeg-image-600x399-pixels.html Have you noticed how much conservative repositioning sounds like whining? Here's Bill O'Rielly, with a Hail-Mary attempt to save his credibility, with this grouchy (and unfactual) contradiction of his guest, Marvin Kalb.From the April 24 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor: KALB: What was true was that, when the war was being set up, and in the first year or even two after the war got started, Fox and many other people associated with Fox or the Fox point of view -- let's put it that way -- said all kinds of things in support of the war, which were not being borne out by the facts that the two of us -- O'REILLY: No, I didn't. I went on facts and facts alone.Cue Laugh Track, as once again, Media Matters pounces upon his facticious disorder and mocks him publicly. He really, really RE... Graphictruth blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=579427 Sun, 29 Apr 2007 04:00:00 +0100 579427 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=498778&cid=t_167087_131_f&fid=34989&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.b5media.com%2F%7Er%2Fb5media%2FGeneticsHealth%2F%7E3%2F104075988%2F On March 1, Senators Gordon Smith and Edward Kennedy introduced to the Senate the Laboratory Test Improvement Act (S. 736) which will ask that direct-to-consumer DNA tests go through FDA assessment for accuracy and reliability. A public database is proposed that would contain information on FDA approval, laboratory certification, and whether the test has any clinical validity to diagnose or screen diseases or conditions and whether it can be used to make decisions about medical care. Some of the concerns raised about at-home genetic testing: More is UNknown about genes and their function than IS known. But I would counter that to say that for genes, such as BRCA for breast and ovarian, we know enough to predict a person’s risk fairly accurately. Is it fair to lump all genes togeth... Genetics and Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=498778 Sat, 24 Mar 2007 12:22:46 +0100 498778 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=505072&cid=t_167087_99_f&fid=35344&url=http%3A%2F%2Fzackarysholemberger.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F02%2Fmy-favorite-gay-and-lesbian-teshuvah-it.html My favorite gay-and-lesbian teshuvahIt took me this long to read Rabbi Gordon Tucker's teshuvah? It's as if all the questions and problems I have been having, all the points I have been fumbling after (and wasting precious bandwidth on, inelegantly and ineloquently, in this blog) have been encapsulated and justified. Go read. Let's talk. Dov W., are you out there? Come challenge. (Source: Zackary Sholem Berger) Zackary Sholem Berger blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=505072 Tue, 27 Feb 2007 04:38:00 +0100 505072