Case studies

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Notifiable or not? Reporting safety incidents

2 July 2021

A delay in acting upon blood test results resulted in a patient being rushed to A&E. The GP called the MDU for advice on what steps to take following the incident.

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Upsetting comments on social media

2 July 2021

A GP wondered whether the practice should remove a patient from their list after disparaging remarks were left on social media.

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Criticism at a coroner’s inquest

2 July 2021

A GP, who had forgot to attach a patient’s medical history as part of an urgent referral, contacted the MDU for help following criticism during a coroner’s inquest.

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Remote consultations and delayed diagnosis

2 July 2021

A GP called the MDU for advice after receiving a patient complaint. They alleged that a lack of available face-to-face appointments led to a delay in diagnosis.

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Patient’s refusal to wear a face mask

2 July 2021

A GP sought advice on how to deal with an adult patient who refused to wear a face mask during the pandemic but needed treatment for an ingrown toenail.

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Assessing capacity for COVID vaccine

2 July 2021

A GP was contacted by a local care home as the daughter of one of their residents objected to their mother receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

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Social media slip

13 May 2021

A foundation doctor had just completed a difficult shift in which he'd treated a trans rights activist who had been attacked on the way home from college and left with cuts and bruises.

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Second thoughts

13 May 2021

As a rugby fan, an FY1 was delighted when a friend asked him to act as match day doctor at an amateur fixture the following Saturday. There was just one problem – he was supposed to be on call that weekend.

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Off the record

13 May 2021

It was a foundation doctor's turn to record the consultant’s morning ward-round. After listening to the chest of a patient with acute severe asthma, the consultant noted he could hear a wheeze on both sides and recommended nebulised salbutamol, oxygen and steroids, and a review in two hours.

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A painful experience

13 May 2021

An FY2 was sharing a house with several friends from university. One housemate had been taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatories for several weeks after sustaining a knee injury. She pleaded with the doctor to prescribe her something stronger to address the pain as she could not take time off work to attend a GP appointment.