Media release archive 2002





2002
5 December 2002 Breast cancer: fears and future progress

The Royal Society of Medicine's Key Advances in Breast Cancer meeting takes place on 10 December.

2 December 2002 Patients and surgeons disagree on waiting lists

New research in the December Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine shows up a dramatic difference between consultant surgeons, GPs and patients in their attitudes towards NHS waiting list delays.

2 December 2002 Why doctors have less time for patients

A new study of delays in a London outpatient clinic has found that over 40% of time was lost in "administration and inefficiency"

2 December 2002 Is sleep 'hard-wired' into the brain?

Falling asleep is usually thought of as something we can control ourselves as part of our behaviour patterns.

1 November 2002 Unhealthy teens "less likely to commit crimes"

A unique new study of teenage boys' behaviour has found that those who get colds, flu, bronchitis and asthma are significantly less likely to be convicted of a crime than healthier boys of the same age.

31 October 2002 Winners Announced of The Society of Authors and the Royal Society of Medicine Book Awards 2002

Winners of the Society of Authors and the Royal Society of Medicine Book Awards 2002 were presented with their prizes by Rabbi Julia Neuberger at a ceremony on 30th October 2002 at the Royal Society of Medicine.

20 October 2002 Eczema - are we getting the right treatments?

Atopic eczema affects a fifth of schoolchildren and one in twelve adults. How much is caused by the environment someone is in, their ethnic origin, or the job they do?

1 October 2002 Makeshift medicine at a distance

In the October Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare Australian doctors describe a unique case study of a boy in a remote part of Queensland who was badly burnt and needed specialist care from a burns centre over 1100km away.

1 October 2002 What should your 'quality of life' score be?

In a controversial article in the October Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine Dr Michael Koller and Dr Wilfried Lorenz publish their new 'quality of life profile' which they argue can be used alongside other medical tests.

28 September 2002 How to cope with war

Civilians living in a war zone are not just at risk from bombs and landmines.

28 September 2002 Smallpox, self-defence and stress: worries for GPs

The Royal Society of Medicine's annual GP Forum once again brings experts from varied disciplines to report on their latest research.

1 August 2002 Could Viagra cause nosebleeds?

If you have had a bad nosebleed recently, think back over the last few days. Have you been taking Viagra?

1 July 2002 GPs are better at breaking bad news

A survey of the way doctors tell patients bad news is to be published in the July Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

1 July 2002 Autopsies on the decline after Alder Hey

We could be losing valuable data on deaths in hospitals because of a decline in the numbers of autopsies performed in England and Wales,

 31 May 2002 Patient 'apathy' could cost NHS £300m a year

New research published in the June Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine suggests that up to 62% of missed outpatient appointments are due to 'apathy'

20 May 2002 What we might have in common with aliens

Do aliens exist, and if so, what common culture might we share with them? What is special about our universe that life has been able to evolve in it?

1 May 2002 Was Frankenstein a Scotsman?

An article in the May issue of the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine suggests that much of the medical inspiration for Mary Shelley's legendary novel Frankenstein came not from central Europe, but from a retired Scots physician living in Windsor.

4 April 2002 Should dentists worry about vCJD transmission?

Existing guidelines on treating patients with diseases such as Creutzfelt-Jakob disease (CJD) do not cover dental health in any detail.

10 April 2002 What we can do about looking old

A regional conference which highlights include:
- What really works: avoid the sun, no cigarettes, use the right creams
- Cosmetic surgery obsession
- New combination treatments "have revolutionized" anti-ageing therapy
- Patients now demand the 'natural' look

1 March 2002 Change in 999 procedure could save more lives

New research to be published in the March Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine suggests that there may be a more effective and safer way of managing emergency calls than the first-come, first-served system used by most UK ambulance services.

25 February 2002 Violence & Children

RSM conference, highlights include:
- New findings on teenage violence
- "The press would be horrified if they could see what's happening in the family courts"
- When A&E staff have a duty beyond treating broken bones
- Domestic violence: "one case reported every six minutes"
- How can GPs help?
- How changes in primary care could root out hidden violence

25 January 2002 Telemedicine: New research and technology

Conference highlights include:
- New study suggests telehypnosis can be better than the 'real life' version,
- Digital TV, 'memory' pagers and the internet could keep the elderly healthy
- How Lithuanian technology could help patients with severe disabilities
- 'Telemedicine in the service of peace'
- New research shows better outcome for tele-patients in remote Australia
- Telemedicine: why the UK delay?

20 January 2002 Why trying to avoid risks can put us in danger

Every day we make decisions based on our judgement of what is safe and what is dangerous, but our perception of what will harm us can be very wrong.

15 January 2002 All the health risks of air travel

How dangerous is air travel these days? How much should we really worry about thrombosis, air rage, the spread of infectious diseases, even terrorism?

3 January 2002 Women injured because of equality law

When female army recruits are trained in the same way male recruits, the percentage of women injured more than doubles, according to new research in the January Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

Further information

For further information contact:
Media Office
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7290 2904
Email: media@rsm.ac.uk