BMA Scotland Briefing: Dispensing Practices

We meant to post this link sooner… the BMA’s have recently outlined their position on dispensing practices in Scotland.
It appears that the situation may be reviewed by the Scottish Government.  A transcript of a recent debate on the subject is available from the “They Work for You” website.

Marmot Review on Health Inequalities in England

The Government is currently consulting on a review of health inequalities in England, and how to reduce them – as part of the “Marmot Review“.  The RCGP Rural Forum recently noted that there is no mention of rural/remote health services in the supporting documents, and how populations in these areas are frequently subject to health [...]

Rural innovation by consultants in Scotland

This month, the BMA have published an interesting report, highlighting some key innovative projects led by seventeen consultants around Scotland.
The report includes examples of innovations in rural & remote practice, particularly in terms of improving access to services by patients.
Of particular relevance to R&R practice are:
Dr Andrew Inglis – setting up the Emergency Medical Retrieval [...]

Conference Focus: Clinical Skills Unit

The Rural Forum are pleased to confirm that the Clinical Skills Unit will be in attendance at the RCGP Annual Conference, in Glasgow on November 5th-7th.  The unit comes in the form of an articulated lorry, containing a clinical environment where resuscitation and surgical procedures can be practised.

It carries an impressive range of simulation models, [...]

e-GP: online learning for GPs

If you haven’t already visited the new e-GP online learning site, this one’s well worth bookmarking.
Shaped around the ever-evolving RCGP Curriculum, the site has been developed by the Department of Health and RCGP.  Over the next two years, more and more content will be added – and the uniqe aspect of this resource is that [...]

Rural WONCA Conference – happening now

Hundreds of rural practitioners from all over the world are gathering today in Heraklion, Crete for the 9th WONCA Rural Health Conference.
There’s a focus on four key themes – health inequalities, technology, island medicine and health services for immigrants.  The full programme is available from the conference website, and we are hoping that some of [...]

RCGP Annual Conference

A reminder that the Early Bird rate for the RCGP Annual Conference is available up until July 27th.
The event, happening in the SECC in Glasgow on 5-7 November, is offering a comprehensive programme over the Thursday-Saturday… spanning topics including revalidation, GP training,  innovation in practice… and loads more.
You can view the full programme at www.rcgpannualconference.org.uk.
Rural [...]

UK RCGP Council Election Results

A report by Malcolm Ward
I regret to report that I failed to gain enough votes to be elected to UK Council.  Riding on the rural ticket I only managed to attract 215 first preference votes.  I wish to thank all those of you who took the trouble to vote for me and to the DDA [...]

Feature Link: Rural Services Network

This website offers a clean, well-organised resource for rural issues in England.
“The Rural Services Network is a membership organisation devoted to safeguarding and improving services in rural communities across England.
Already 250 organisations across the complete range of rural services are in membership, including local authorities, public bodies, businesses, charities and voluntary groups across the spectrum [...]

Feature Article: Challenges & Rewards of Rural Practice

An up-to-date look at the challenges (and better sides) of rural practice, published two weeks ago in the Journal of Rural & Remote Health.   In particular, they find that the biggest challenges lie with “soft issues” such as privacy and defining the boundaries of professional practice.
Miedema B, Hamilton R, Fortin P, Easley J, Tatemichi [...]