Eight in ten commissioning boards in England cut or froze funding for services such as heart monitoring and minor surgery as a proportion of their overall spending Many general practices are facing financial ruin, says BMA committee chair Budgetary decisions by commissioners across England are affecting GPs’ ability to offer ...

Effect size is small, but improvement still meaningful given high levels of these disorders, say researchers Remote video consultations between patients and mental health specialists show a small but significant improvement on symptoms of depression and anxiety, finds a trial published by The BMJ today. Although the effect size is small, the ...

Landmark WHO resolution marks an important step towards a healthy world For the first time in the World Health Organization’s 76 year history, world leaders have unanimously committed to put social participation - people, communities and civil society - at the heart of health decision making processes. This landmark pledge ...

Patients’ concerns too often go ignored, says England’s first patient safety commissioner “The NHS’s relentless focus on finance and productivity is failing patient safety,” argues patient safety commissioner Henrietta Hughes in an interview for The BMJ today. “The patient’s anecdote is the canary in the coal mine,” she says. It’s the thing ...

Practice highlights “critical loophole” in the revolving door between the FDA and industry The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tells staff leaving for industry jobs that, despite restrictions on post-employment lobbying, they are still permitted to influence the agency, reveals an investigation by The BMJ today. Internal emails, obtained under a ...

One obesity service reached its three year quota of patients in less than 17 weeks Experts blame lack of consistent government policy and say next government needs to act decisively One in six integrated care boards (ICBs) in England have stopped accepting new patients for specialist weight management services as ...