Blind and partially sighted people could become ill from medicines and medical devices, because they are not being listened to when it comes to designing, prescribing and administering treatments. The Safety Gap’ report commissioned by the Patient Safety Commissioner, Prof...
Moorfields patient Ellie Irwin’s stubborn and debilitating eye inflammation was successfully treated as a result of a new metagenomic service identifying the cause of this as a rare infection. In 2019, Ellie first got symptoms of uveitis, a condition characterised...
A single cataract procedure in the UK has been estimated to have a carbon footprint equivalent to driving a typical non-electric car for 310 miles. Surprisingly, very few centres around the world have worked out the environmental cost of cataract...
The first time I attended the Congress of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists was now more than 10 years ago, though I still remember the excitement of wandering down the aisles in the exhibition hall marvelling at the stands and...
I took a picture of my new identity badge and sent it to everyone I knew. In fact, I put it up on Facebook as well. The two key words were ‘Consultant Ophthalmologist’ and let us ignore for now that...
1 February 2018
| Gwyn Samuel Williams
|
EYE - General
Until a few years ago doctors were exempt from jury duty. I am glad that this exemption was lifted as the stint I did at the crown court in Swansea recently was one of the most illuminating two weeks I...
I asked to do theatre lists at Moorfields as part of my timetable. The medical retina fellow jobs are a bit odd in that the vast majority of the different rotations lack a regular theatre session. This might suit some...
The Medical Defence Union (MDU) runs courses on various medicolegal topics. I would guess people only ever attend these courses if they have an exam or an interview approaching as the subject matter is exceedingly dry for clinicians. I myself...
There is a restaurant in London where dinner is served in the dark. Not dim light or occasional infrequent light, but absolute pitch black darkness. Apparently the aim is twofold; to better appreciate the quality of the food as the...
1 August 2018
| Gwyn Samuel Williams
|
EYE - General
I attended a morning seminar at the recent College Congress in Liverpool about how to properly and legally consent a patient for a procedure. There has been a lot of interest in this of late following the Montgomery ruling, in...
There she was. Sitting in the waiting room with her arms crossed, tut-tutting to herself and shaking her head mournfully every few minutes. We gazed at her from a safe distance while one of the nurses confirmed what we already...
“How do I apply for expenses?” I asked one of the secretaries. The Royal Gwent Hospital was so far from home that I had been forced to rent one of their spartan on-site rooms in order to avoid a crippling...