S
O MUCH absurdity, so few column inches. Welcome back to Diary where we ask for interesting and entertaining medical anecdotes from our readers, get
nothing in reply and so make up our own. But let us not be bitter...
BROWN BEAR BUSTED A Sheffield GP – Dr Catherine Bell – has commented in the BMJ (albeit the Christmas issue) on the questionable practice of a certain ursine cartoon doctor appearing regularly in the popular children’s TV programme Peppa Pig. Having observed questionable prescribing by Dr Brown Bear in three separate cases involving two piglets and a pony, Dr Bell concludes “exposure to Peppa Pig and its portrayal of general practice raises patient expectation and encourages inappropriate use of primary care services”. The GMC has yet to respond.
POWER OF POSITIVITY It’s official – a positive mindset is good for your health. Well, maybe. A British study has found that being in a positive mood on the day of your flu jab can increase its protective effect. It found happy patients developed stronger antibody defences than those who merely feel so-so. Fortunately patients do not have to be in a state of joy at the precise moment the needle is stabbed into their arm – just feeling upbeat that day is sufficient to reap the benefits. For those struggling to raise a smile, Nottingham University researchers said the best method is “a combination of comedy, uplifting music and a list of funny things people say.”
LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED Which? magazine recently interviewed 15 doctors for an article entitled “10 ways to get the best from your GP”. Top of the list: “Love your receptionist”. The authors explained: “The old-fashioned view of receptionists acting as guard dogs to keep you away from your GP is outdated. Try to think of them as your ally in finding the person most skilled to help you… And don’t hate them for asking ‘is it urgent?’”
ELBOW GREASE British rock band Elbow have been unveiled as the latest weapon in the ongoing battle to boost the GP workforce. They have given permission for their hit single One Day Like This to be used in Health Education England’s recruitment campaign, entitled One career, endless opportunities. The song forms the soundtrack to a video in which GPs and trainees talk about their experiences of life in general practice, and why they chose the specialty. As the chorus goes: “It’s looking like a beautiful day… One day like this a year would see me right.” A sentiment many hard- working GPs could no doubt relate to.
SNOW SAVIOURS Cutting nicely through the seemingly never-ending NHS-bashing headlines are some amazing tales of derring-do by practices caught up in the recent “beast from the east” snowstorms. A GP in Essex told Pulse how, with no buses running, one of his receptionists spent more than four hours walking to work, while a practice manager elsewhere slept in her practice to ensure services kept going. Another GP drove half way to his locum booking
before completing his journey on skis. GPOnline reported that many practices had activated business continuity plans, with some closing early, switching to an emergency-only service or arranging for staff unable to travel to provide triage from home. One GP whose car wouldn’t start walked to the nearest main road and hitched a lift in a passing 4x4 before trudging a mile and a half through the snow on foot. Dedication indeed.
CHOCS AWAY Snackers beware: NHS England is after you. New restrictions on the type of food and drink sold in hospitals to staff, visitors and patients are due to come into force in April 2018. A 250-calorie limit will be placed on chocolate bars and other confectionary sold in canteens, stores, vending machines and other outlets. And there’s no use seeking solace in a giant cheese baguette as unhealthy sandwiches and sugary drinks are also on the hit list. Trusts who don’t comply could lose out on additional funding. GP practices may soon be enjoying increased availability of Alpen bars and dried fruit should Simon Stevens’ anti-obesity campaign reach a vending machine near you.
EQUAL OPPS FLU The term “man flu” is so ubiquitous that it has been included in the Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries. Oxford defines it as “a cold or similar minor ailment as experienced by a man who is regarded as exaggerating the severity of the symptoms.” So begins a research paper (published in the BMJ) by the University of Alberta’s Dr Kyle Sue exploring whether
“men are wimps or just immunologically inferior”. He analysed available evidence to determine whether men really do experience worse symptoms and whether this had any evolutionary basis. His findings suggest that men may actually have weaker immune systems than women and that testosterone may act as an immunosuppressant while oestrogen works in the opposite direction. The rather tongue-in-cheek study was given some credence by RCGP chair Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard who said that, while flu “is not sexist”, there is some evidence to suggest respiratory tract infections may present more severely in men than women. “Most people, whatever their gender, will recover completely within a few days,” she added.
THERE WILL BE BLOOD Historical treatments for menstruating women included barber surgeons bleeding them from the ankle to draw the blood down and encourage smooth flow. Chinese medics suggested drinking yellow rice wine to harmonise the blood, while a special tonic laced with cocaine – called Hall’s Coca Wine – was encouraged circa 1916 for “sickness, so common to ladies”. Less appealing was hormone supplement Glanoid, produced from 1867-1930 by a meat-packing business. A more hi-tech solution came in the form of a battery- operated “electropathic belt” aimed at “suffering men and women”. Marketed circa 1893 it was said to be effective for conditions such as nervous exhaustion, neuralgia and “ladies’ ailments”, promising wearers “new life and vigour”. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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