On War and Medicine

The BMJ blog marches on:

My practice recently revamped its provision of short-notice medical appointments by transforming the Emergency Surgery into the (so far so good) Rapid Access Surgery. In essence, patients can now no longer pitch up to the practice between 11 am and 12 noon and definitely see a doctor regardless of their complaint, or lack thereof. This apparent erosion of choice has in fact seen the replacement of the dichotomous old system, which offered only routine and emergency appointments, for a myriad of appointment options: 24-hour access, 48-hour access, minor ailments being addressed by the nursing team and routine appointments. There are now more ways to see the doctor than means by which senior bankers can avoid saying sorry.

Read more here.