The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) has launched a UK wide campaign to raise awareness of sexual misconduct in healthcare.
It comes after research commissioned by the Working Party on Sexual Misconduct in Surgery found that a third of female surgeons reported having been sexually assaulted by a colleague, and two thirds have been the target of sexual harassment.1
RCSEd vice president Clare McNaught said that the culture that had allowed sexual misconduct to happen in surgery must be wiped out. “Our campaign says, ‘Let’s remove it’ we’re all in this together and can unite to eliminate sexual misconduct in surgery.”
The campaign (#LetsRemoveIt) will …
The BMA has urged ministers to put forward an improved pay offer for consultants in England after its members rejected the government’s offer by a slim margin.
Just over half (51.1%) of BMA consultant members in England voted against the offer in a referendum held from 14 December to 23 January. Some 23 544 consultants voted in total, a turnout of 64.8%. Of these, 11 507 voted for the offer, and 12 037 voted against.
The BMA’s Consultants Committee has rejected the pay offer and urged the government to return to the table. Consultants in England belonging to the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association had already rejected the offer.1
Vishal Sharma, chair of the BMA Consultants Committee, said the BMA vote showed that consultants didn’t believe that the pay deal offered a long term solution to the recruitment and retention crisis among senior doctors. “It backs up conversations we’ve had with colleagues in recent weeks, who felt the changes were insufficient
Over half of all surgeons and an even higher proportion of surgical trainees are struggling to access operating theatres, data from Royal College of Surgeons of England show.
In 2023 the college surveyed the UK surgical workforce to identify the key challenges facing surgical teams and to inform workforce planning. The survey, conducted between 2 May and 30 June 2023, received 6348 responses from different members of the surgical team, equating to around 25% of the current surgical workforce.
More than half (56%) of respondents cited limited access to theatre as one of the main challenges facing surgery.1
Speaking …
The BMA has appealed to MPs to carefully consider “ill thought through plans” that would allow the UK General Medical Council to regulate physician associates and anaesthesia associates, as legislation moves through parliament.
The BMA is one of many medical organisations that in recent months have raised concerns about associates being regulated by the regulator of doctors.
Matt Kneale, co-chair of the Doctors’ Association UK, has also called for the government’s plan to be stopped until issues concerning the scope and supervision of these roles are sorted out.
On 17 January the House of Commons Sixth Delegated Legislation Committee discussed the Anaesthesia Associates and Physician Associates Order 2024,1 a statutory instrument that, if approved by parliament, will enable the GMC to regulate physician associates and anaesthesia associates.2
The order having been passed by the committee, MPs will now have an opportunity to raise objections to it when …
After an extreme traumatic event there are things that you can do to help yourself, and your colleagues, to move on, Abi Rimmer hears
Fiona Day, medical and public health leadership coach and chartered coaching psychologist, says, “Extreme events in healthcare can leave lasting psychological scars on team members and those around them. It’s important to understand evidence based approaches, both in the moment and in the longer term, and for team leaders to resource themselves to lead effectively through a challenging period.
“Each person reacts differently to occupational trauma. It’s not possible to predict who will have more adverse reactions, and team leaders are advised to seek advice from their occupational or psychological health services at work before planning any individual or team specific interventions.
“NICE has recommendations regarding helpful and unhelpful actions following acutely traumatic ‘disaster’ events as well as general prevention identification