RCGP Podcast

In this podcast, RCGP Clinical Champion for veterans' healthcare Dr Emily Brookes meets Andrew, a veteran who is encouraging GP practices to sign up to the RCGP veteran friendly accreditation. Andrew is not affiliated with the Royal College of General Practitioners, and the work that he is doing is voluntary and within his own time, due to his passion for better care for veterans. Become veteran friendly at rcgp.org.uk/veterans Services mentioned in the podcast: Combat Stress - the UK's leading mental health charity for veterans. Op Courage - the NHS Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Service 

In this episode, RCGP Clinical Champion for Women's Health Dr Anne Connolly meets Tanya, a patient representative and volunteer with Endometriosis UK, who shares her experience of living with endometriosis, to find out how GPs can help and support this patient group.

In this podcast, RCGP Clinical Champion for veterans' healthcare Dr Robin Simpson meets Sean Gane, a military veteran and Veteran Support Centre Manager in Herefordshire, and Gary Sell, a military veteran and Peer Support Worker for Op Courage, to give NHS GPs an understanding of the mental health needs of veterans, how they might present to Primary Care, and the available resources that can help. 

In this podcast, RCGP Veterans Clinical Champion Dr Veronica Grant meets Ali Brown, Military Veteran and Co-chair of SESWHISG, COBSEO Female Veteran Cluster, to inform NHS GPs and primary health care teams  about female veterans' health, and potential medical challenges faced by this patient group.

In this episode, Dr Toni Hazell, GP with an interest in women's health, ad Dr Anne Connolly, RCGP Clinical Champion for Women's Health, raise awareness of recommendations on menopause using NICE guideline NG23 The podcast highlights the importance of sensitive history taking, what investigations / examination are required, and management to reduce symptoms and improve long term physical, mental and social wellbeing.

In this episode, Dr Toni Hazell, GP with an interest in women's health, ad Dr Anne Connolly, RCGP Clinical Champion for Women's Health, Raise awareness of premature ovarian insufficiency using recommendations from the British Menopause Society. The podcast highlights the importance of sensitive history taking, describes what investigations / examination are required, and explores management to reduce symptoms and improve long term physical, mental and social wellbeing.

In this episode, Dr Toni Hazell, GP with an interest in women's health, ad Dr Anne Connolly, RCGP Clinical Champion for Women's Health, raise awareness of heavy menstrual bleeding using recommendations from NICE guideline NG88  The podcast highlights the importance of sensitive history taking, describes what investigations / examination are required, and explores management to reduce symptoms and improve long term physical, mental and social wellbeing.

In this episode, Dr Toni Hazell, GP with an interest in women's health, and Dr Anne Connolly, RCGP Clinical Champion for Women's Health, raise awareness of endometriosis using recommendations from NICE guideline NG73 The podcast highlights the importance of sensitive history taking, describes what investigations / examination are required, and explores management to reduce symptoms and improve long term physical, mental and social wellbeing.

In this episode, Niki Murdoch - Independent Chair of NHS England's Armed Forces Public Patient Voice Group, Dr Robin Simpson - RCGP Clinical Champion for veterans' healthcare, and veteran WO1 Colin Brown - RM Corps Drum Major & Buglers Spec Advisor, discuss transitioning from the military and the challenges that leaving can bring to former service personnel and their families.

This podcast provides an overview of the QOF QI module on early cancer diagnosis. It covers the rationale for including early cancer diagnosis in QOF in 21/22, the purpose of participating in QOF and the intended objective and what practices have to do. The RCGP's QOF QI work is funded by NHS England and NHS Improvement and produced in collaboration with experts from various organisations, which include NHSE/I, the Health Foundation, NICE, Hull York Medical School and the RCGP. For more information: https://rcgp.org.uk/qofqi https://qiready.rcgp.org.uk/

This podcast provides an overview of the QOF QI module on learning disabilities. It covers the rationale for including learning disability in QOF in 21/22, the purpose of participating in QOF and the intended objective and what practices have to do.  The RCGP's QOF QI work is funded by NHS England and NHS Improvement and produced in collaboration with experts from various organisations, which include NHSE/I, the Health Foundation, NICE, Hull York Medical School and the RCGP. For more information: https://rcgp.org.uk/qofqi https://qiready.rcgp.org.uk/

Become a veteran friendly GP practice here

Become a veteran friendly GP practice here

GP and RCGP Veterans Friendly Practice clinical champion, Brigadier (Retd) Robin Simpson is joined by Ashley Winter and Dr Matthew Boulter to discuss the healthcare challenges faced by the veteran population in England and what the RCGP is doing to help practices to support their needs.    Visit the RCGP website for more information on the veteran friendly practice accreditation (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/a-to-z-clinical-resources/veteran-friendly-gp-practices.aspx) . 

This podcast has been produced for primary care clinicians who care for patients with deafness and hearing loss. GP Speciality Registrar, Dr Devina Maru, the RCGP Clinical Champion for Hearing Loss (2019-2020), speaks to Dr Graham Easton, a GP with interest in ENT and contributor to NICE guideline development on hearing loss. She also interviews former ENT surgeon, Dr Krishan Ramdoo, now GP Speciality Registrar and clinical entrepreneur, who has developed an innovative product to improve wax removal services. Both discuss better ways GPs can help support patients in the community.     This episode is packed with useful information for clinicians and is a must for anyone who would like to better support the needs of people with hearing loss. These podcasts were recorded in February 2020 in London.    The podcast was produced as part of the 2019-20 RCGP Deafness and Hearing Loss Spotlight Project. (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/our-programmes/clinical-priorities/spotlight-projects-2019-to-2020/hearing-loss.aspx) With thanks to our project partners Action on Hearing Loss, and to our funders British Irish Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (BIHIMA).   

This podcast has been produced for primary care clinicians who care for patients with deafness and hearing loss.  GP Specialist Registrar, Dr Devina Maru, also RCGP Clinical Champion for Hearing Loss (2019-2020), speaks to Linda Parton, a patient who wears hearing aids, about the challenges accessing GP services with hearing loss and how GPs can help support patients in the community.  This episode is packed with useful information for clinicians and is a must for anyone who would like to better support the needs of people with hearing loss.  She also speaks to Frankie Oliver, an audiologist, about the range of services and technology used by audiology services. These podcasts were recorded in February 2020 in London.  The podcast was produced as part of the 2019-20 RCGP Deafness and Hearing Loss Spotlight Project (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/our-programmes/clinical-priorities/spotlight-projects-2019-to-2020/hearing-loss.aspx) . With thanks to our project partners Action on Hearing Loss, and to our funders British Irish Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (BIHIMA).   

This podcast has been produced for primary care clinicians who care for patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).  GP, Dr Charlie Andrews, speaks to Aileen Fraser, an IBD specialist nurse at University Hospitals Bristol, about her role, the sorts of questions she receives from GPs, how she can help support patients and clinicians in the community.  This episode is packed with useful information for clinicians and is a must for anyone who would like to better understand the role of the IBD nurse specialist.     One in three patients with Crohns and Colitis do not have contact with an IBD specialist nurse, however, this role is expanding across the UK. In areas where patients do have contact with a specialist nurse, they are highly valued (94% of patients who had contact with an IBD specialist nurse said that this link with the hospital was important in a 2016 survey).     By working collaboratively with secondary care colleagues, primary care clinicians can have a significant impact on the quality of care provided to these patients, and the IBD specialist nurse can act as an invaluable link between primary and secondary care.    

Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) are very interested in the relationship between their diet and their disease. Up to 85% of patients with the condition suffer from malnutrition for a variety of reasons. In this episode Dr Charles Andrews, discusses the reasons for malnutrition and how to assess for this with Sam Poore, a specialist dietician at Bristol Royal Infirmary.  They talk about topics including ileostomy advice, the role of probiotics in IBD, and dietary modification in IBD, including the role of the low FODMAPS diet in patients with IBD in remission.  

GP, Dr Charles Andrews, speaks to RCGP and Crohns and Colitis UK Clinical Champion for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Dr Kevin Barrett, about flare management in primary care.  They discuss the recently released flare pathway for primary care, which offers clear advice to GPs and those managing IBD in primary care about when it is appropriate to initiate treatment, and what treatment to consider.     The flare pathways can be found on the IBD toolkit online (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/inflammatory-bowel-disease-toolkit.aspx) .   

GP, Dr Charles Andrews, talks to Dr Anthony Wiskin of Bristol Children’s Hospital about Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) in children.   25% of IBD is diagnosed under the age of 18, and when diagnosed in this age group, the disease is generally more aggressive than when diagnosed later in life.  Dr Wiskin gives a superb overview of the disease, some pointers for diagnosis and the role of faecal calprotectin in children.  Dr Andrews and Dr Wiskin talk about the huge impact of the disease on families, the sufferer, and look at the process of transitioning the child from paediatric to adult gastroenterology services.  

Does Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) affect fertility?  Do people with IBD have more adverse outcomes in pregnancy?   Are biologics, for example, Infliximab and Adalimumab, safe to use in pregnancy? How do you treat a flare in pregnancy?  If you work in primary care and you want to know the answer to these questions and lots more, this is the podcast for you.    In this episode, GP, Dr Charles Andrews, discusses contraception, pregnancy and breastfeeding in people with IBD with Dr Aarthi Mohan, an experienced Obstetrician at St Michael's hospital in Bristol, who runs a quaternary level service for pregnant women with concurrent medical conditions.  She shares a wealth of experience with Dr Andrews about all aspects of fertility and pregnancy in patients with IBD.   According to a study by Tavernier et al., infertility rates in people with IBD is mainly due to voluntary childlessness rather than infertility contributed to by the disease itself (Tavernier et al. Systematic review: fertility in non-surgically treated inflammatory bowel disease, Alimentary pharmacology and therapeutics, Oct. 2013).  This voluntary childlessness is significantly higher than those not affected by IBD (14-18% vs. 6%) and this is mainly due to incorrect beliefs about how their disease may affect their fertility and outcomes in pregnancy. Therefore having a good knowledge of these issues is important for both primary care and secondary care clinicians looking after patients with IBD so that these patients can have accurate advice when planning their family.   On this podcast, they discuss: Contraception The effects of IBD on fertility  What to do with various medications in pregnancy How should we approach flare management in these patients IBD and venous thromboembolism risk in pregnancy Folic acid use Mode of delivery in those with IBD The pregnancy pathway for those with IBD IBD and breastfeeding Post-natal depression in patients with IBD. You can access the IBD toolkit (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/inflammatory-bowel-disease-toolkit.aspx) on the RCGP website. The Crohns and Colitis UK website has an excellent patients' guide to IBD and pregnancy (https://www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/about-inflammatory-bowel-disease/publications/pregnancy-ibd) ,    NB. This episode was recorded in a busy maternity hospital, so there is some background noises because of this. 

RCGP and Marie Curie Clinical Champion for End of Life Care, Dr Catherine Millington-Sanders talks to Dr Elizabeth Phillips about developing compassionate communities culture and leadership best practice. 

RCGP and Marie Curie Clinical Champion for End of Life Care, Dr Catherine Millington-Sanders talks to Professor Gunn Grande and Dr Gail Ewing about how to support family and carers in end of life care. 

One in four women of reproductive age in the UK are affected by heavy menstrual bleeding. In this podcast, Dr Anne Connolly, RCGP Clinical Champion for Menstrual Wellbeing, speaks to patient, Jilly, who suffers from heavy menstrual bleeding, about how women experiencing heavy menstrual bleeding can be supported by GPs and primary care teams. 

RCGP Vice Chair for Membership, Professor Mike Holmes talks to RCGP Clinical Support Fellow for Collaborative General Practice, Dr Alka Patel about motivations in general practice, Don Berwick’s Triple Aim (https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.27.3.759) , which includes, improving the experience of care for patients, improve healthcare outcomes and reducing costs. They also support the need for a fourth aim, the Quadruple Aim, which focuses on improving the experience of delivery of care.

RCGP Vice Chair for Membership, Professor Mike Holmes talks to RCGP Clinical Support Fellow for Collaborative General Practice, Dr Alka Patel about his journey of working at scale and what at scale general practice has been able to deliver. Professor Holmes also shares how he envisages Primary Care Networks building on this work.

RCGP TARGET Antibiotics Project Clinical Champion Dr Graham Duce talks to Professor Cliodna McNulty, TARGET Clinical Lead at Public Health England about using antibiotics to treat upper respiratory infections, including evidence based clinical scoring tools and information available for patients. 

RCGP TARGET Antibiotics Project Clinical Champion Dr Graham Duce talks to Professor Cliodna McNulty, TARGET Clinical Lead at Public Health England, about self care measures and using antibiotics to treat recurrent urinary tract infections. 

RCGP TARGET Antibiotics Project Clinical Champion Dr Graham Duce talks to Professor Cliodna McNulty, TARGET Clinical Lead at Public Health England, about antimicrobial resistance and why it presents a risk to public health. 

Chris Lynch, Lived Experience Adviser for Equally Well and Emma Bailey from the Centre for Mental Health join our RCGP Clinical Champions for Physical Activity and Lifestyle in a discussion about Chris’ experience in navigating the health system as a patient with physical and mental health problems.  Equally Well is an initiative from New Zealand which seeks to promote and support collaborative action to improve physical health among people with a mental illness. More than 100 organisations have come together to do their part to address this health inequality and to share intelligence and ideas. The RCGP is a funding member of an Equally Well UK. Visit the web of Equall Well (https://equallywell.co.uk/) to find out more about the initiative. Update Description (https://audioboom.com/posts/7364460-the-rcgp-and-equally-well-episode-1/edit)  

Jonathan Bickford, GP in Oxford and RCGP Rep for Mental Health joins our RCGP Clinical Champions for Physical Activity and Lifestyle in a discussion about the challenges in general practice when identifying and managing patients with Mental Health problems.    Equally Well is an initiative from New Zealand which seeks to promote and support collaborative action to improve physical health among people with a mental illness. More than 100 organisations have come together to do their part to address this health inequality and to share intelligence and ideas. The RCGP is a funding member of an Equally Well UK. Visit the web of Equall Well (https://equallywell.co.uk/) to find out more about the initiative.

In this episode, the RCGP Clinical Champions for Physical Activity and Lifestyle, Dr Andrew Boyd and Dr Zoe Williams introduce the Active Practice Charter. The initiative aims to celebrate GP practices who have taken steps to reduce sedentary behaviour and increase physical activity amongst their staff and patients. The RCGP Active Practice Charter outlines the key principles of what it means for a practice to be ‘active’. Practices will be asked to make changes including, assessing their own level of engagement with physical activity, implementing changes to promote physical activity, healthy lifestyles and sport to patients. The initiative is open to all the GP practices in the country. Be part of a growing movement of healthcare professionals who are making activity the norm for themselves, and inspiring their patients to do likewise. Sign up to become an RCGP Active Practice here (https://r1.dotmailer-surveys.com/b649lxf0-3c3vg1e1) .

The RCGP Clinical Champions for Physical Activity and Lifestyle, Dr Andrew Boyd and Dr Zoe Williams are joined by Dr Jude Marshall at Garscadden Medical Practice in Glasgow in a discussion about examples of physical activity that GPs can apply in their surgeries to increase the well-being of the practice staff.

Every year organisations and communities around the world come together to raise awareness of how we can create a world where fewer people die by suicide. In 2017, in the UK and Ireland alone, over 6,000 people died from suicide. Suicide is among the top 20 leading causes of death globally for people of all ages. It is responsible for over 800,000 deaths annually.   Suicide rates in older women have increased in the past five years, converging toward those of younger women of working age; and the suicide rate amongst men aged 60 years an older is higher than rates for male adolescents and younger male adults.   To mark World Suicide Prevention Day, we’ve a produced this podcast featuring, Dr Elizabeth England, RCGP Clinical Champion for Mental health and Professor Carolyn Chew-Graham, Chair of the RCGP Scientific Foundation Board and RCGP Curriculum Advisor on Mental Health. They discuss a recent paper (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/selfharm-in-older-adults-systematic-review/F8B3EBA9C6032E3E802B4388C464294E) by Prof Chew-Graham and colleagues published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, which looks at the latest evidence and key characteristics around self-harm in older people.   

This is part two of a fireside chat with the RCGP’s Innovators Mentorship Programme (IMP) mentors. Dr Ishani Patel hosts a chat with Dr Neha Tanna, Dr Sandeep Bansal and Professor Ruth Chambers who discuss their innovations and the impact they have had on GPs. This session was recorded at the RCGP’s City Health conference in June 2019, in the ‘Designing digital solutions for the future: the possibilities’ workshop.    The RCGP Innovation Podcast is intended to support clinical teams with an interest in innovative in primary care. We want to bring you updates on a rapidly changing yet fascinating landscape, introduce you to the diverse, passionate and talented people in this space, who talk candidly about their successes and challenges. The RCGP Innovation Podcast is produced by the Clinical Innovation and Research Centre. For more information contact the team at innovation@rcgp.org.uk (mailto:innovation@rcgp.org.uk) .     For more information on and to apply to the Innovators Mentorship Programme: https://www.rcgp.org.uk/imp 

This is part one of a fireside chat with the RCGP’s Innovators Mentorship Programme (IMP) mentors. Dr Ishani Patel hosts a chat with Dr Kartik ‘Tiko’ Modha and Dr Duncan Walling who discuss their innovations and the impact they have had on GPs. This session was recorded at the RCGP’s City Health conference in June 2019, in the ‘Designing digital solutions for the future: the possibilities’ workshop.    The RCGP Innovation Podcast is intended to support clinical teams with an interest in innovative in primary care. We want to bring you updates on a rapidly changing yet fascinating landscape, introduce you to the diverse, passionate and talented people in this space talking candidly about their successes and challenges. The RCGP Innovation Podcast is produced by the Clinical Innovation and Research Centre. For more information contact the team at innovation@rcgp.org.uk (mailto:innovation@rcgp.org.uk) .     For more information on and to apply to the Innovators Mentorship Programme: https://www.rcgp.org.uk/imp 

This episode of the RCGP Innovation Podcast is an informal discussion between three RCGP entrepreneurs who are part of the first cohort on the RCGP Innovators Mentorship Programme (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/our-programmes/innovation/innovators-mentorship-programme.aspx) . They discuss how and why they started their respective innovations, the compatibility of being a GP and an entrepreneur, what the challenges and realities are, and what is rewarding about being clinical and entrepreneurial.    The RCGP Innovation Podcast is intended to support clinical teams with an interest in innovation in primary care. We want to bring you updates on a rapidly changing yet fascinating landscape, introduce you to the diverse, passionate and talented people in this space and talk candidly about their successes and challenges. The RCGP Innovation Podcast is produced by the Clinical Innovation and Research Centre (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research.aspx) .    For more information on and to apply, please visit Innovators Mentorship Programme (https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/our-programmes/innovation/innovators-mentorship-programme.aspx) pages on the RCGP website. To get in touch with the RCGP Innovation Team, please email: innovation@rcgp.org.uk.

Skin conditions are very common with around one in four patients consulting their GP with skin problems each year. Because of increasing levels of skin cancers and dermatology referrals, Dr Emma La Roux, RCGP Clinical Champion for Dermatology and Julie Van Onselen, a Specialist Dermatology Nurse, discuss using a dermoscopy to recognise common skin lesions.

Dr Emma La Roux, RCGP Clinical Champion for Dermatology and Dermatology Specialist Nurse, Julie Van Onselen, discuss eczema, its myths and the problems encountered by patients and carers of the people suffering from the condition.

In this podcast, our panel discuss the role of GP online services in supporting people to manage their mental health condition and comorbid long-term conditions. In particular, the detailed coded record can be used by practices and patients with mental health conditions. We also discuss the need to consider the risks of GP online services in this patient group and how to mitigate some of these risks.

Sepsis affected 123,000 people in England in 2014, resulting in approximately 37,000 deaths. 70% of cases derived from an infection developed in the community. This podcast features Dr Rachel Marsden, RCGP Clinical Support Fellow for Sepsis, who is joined by Dr Alison Tavare, a GP who contracted sepsis after surgery. She shares her experience as a patient and clinician.

This is the second of 2 podcasts around Sepsis and Learning Disabilities, which are the result from the most recent Learning Disabilities Mortality Review Report, which found Sepsis to be the second most prominent cause of death in the cases reviewed, following pneumonia closely as the first. In the past two years the Sepsis Clinical Priority program has discussed the use of National Early Warning Scores and physiology in general when it comes to patients with Sepsis. However, what happens when physiology is not possible? It may be that a patient is unable to cope with observations being taken, is not able to comply, or that staff looking after these patients are not trained in observations. For these patients, Soft Signs of deterioration take on extra significance. Andy Cook, Chief Nurse at Interserve has done some interesting work with Soft Signs in the community and has very kindly agreed to talk about them today.

The average age of women who have a natural menopause is 51 years, although there is wide variation between women. Dr Louise Newson, a GP and Menopause expert in the West Midlands and author of the Essential Knowledge Updates (EKU) module on Menopause: Diagnosis & Management, speaks to Dr Sally Higginbottom about this topic.

Endometriosis is associated with infertility and associated with a lower quality of life with women taking more sick days because of the condition. Dr Anne Connelly, a GP in Bradford with an interest in gynaecology and an RCGP Clinical Adviser speaks to Dr Sally Higginbottom about this topic.

Chronic pelvic pain is common and affects around one in six adult women in the UK. Dr Louise Newson, a GP and Menopause expert in the West Midlands and author of the EKU module on the Initial Management of Chronic Pelvic Pain speaks to Dr Thomas Round, EKU Development Fellow about this topic.

Women with suspected endometriosis can suffer from various symptoms, with some suffering more than others. RCGP Clinical Champion for Menstual Wellbeing, Dr Anne Connolly, talks to Jody Stewart, a patient representative, who works on the Menstrual Wellbeing Spotlight Project, in partnership with Endometriosis UK.  Jody shares her experience of endometriosis and how she has been managed its impact on her life.