There’s always one, isn’t there? You know, ‘that’ one. THE one employee. The moaner, the whinger, the one who smiles to your face but complains to everyone else and then smiles to your face again. You may read this and think, ‘Lucky thing! You only have one!’ And I do count myself lucky but I…

What bank holidays mean to the rest of the nation: Time off Lie-ins Gardening Walks Sunshine (hopefully) Beach trips Picnics Take-outs Relaxing Reading DIY Going to the park Enjoying a bike ride Camping A short break away What the public think the bank holiday means for anyone working in a GP practice: NONE OF THE…

Do you ever get asked to do a petty task that really infuriates you? My ‘favourite’ was when a note was left in my tray by ‘Anonymous’. Anonymous had asked me to put together a tea rota for the admin team. A tea rota. Like life is so difficult that even being able to make…

I received a complaint the other day mentioning that I’d seen the patient in a local supermarket and had raised my voice at her (over the bananas, I presume), telling her off for missing an appointment. There were two things here that rang alarm bells. Firstly, I’d never heard of this patient, and we all…

I’m revelling at the moment, revelling in the praise and recognition. Patients everywhere, so happy with the roll-out of vaccines. Sometimes crying with happiness. Patients treating us like heroes. I think I should be feeling sickly about it; I should be being modest. I should be saying, “It’s nothing; you’re our patients. We’re here for…

My stomach lurched last weekend as I prepared myself for ‘getting back to work’. Although I’d actually only had one day off over the holidays, there was a feeling in the pit of my stomach as if I’d chewed up a disposable mask and it was sitting there, churning. In a lame attempt to better…

On the first day of Christmas My receptionist sent to me A sick note as she was poorly. On the second day of Christmas My practice nurse sent to me Two patient tasks, And a sick note as she was poorly. On the third day of Christmas My healthcare worker sent to me Three new…