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The article discusses the effect of the planned overhaul of the medical register by the General Medical Council (GMC) on general practitioners in Great Britain. The aim of changing the tradition of the medical register is to make registration more meaningful and the register itself more accessible and relevant for users according to the GMC. The council concluded that limited registration for international medical graduates should be scrapped and the process of registration simplified. It was decided to introduce a new single structure for registration.

Discusses issues related to the provisions of the British government's Agenda for Change, a reform measure which seeks to transfer the responsibility of providing nurses' wages to general practitioners (GP). Claim that a significant number of GPs refuse to transform their grading system to the rules; Argument of the Royal College of Nursing that GPs should award practice nurses for their services; Evaluation of the attitude of GPs towards the reform measures.

The article assesses the impact of the launching of Agenda for Change (AfC) on general practitioners in Great Britain. AfC is designed to boost the motivation and productivity of staff with a competency-based knowledge and skills framework, a job evaluation scheme, and a training and personal development plan.

The article discusses the health needs of children and adolescents in young offenders' institutions in Great Britain which are emphasized in a government framework for commissioning mental health services. The new commissioning framework, published in March 2007, is part of a strategy for helping vulnerable children and families, tying in with the Every Child Matters program and the national service framework for children.

The article looks at a new system of co-payments to address a funding shortfall experienced by the British National Health Service (NHS). NHS funding shortfall is expected to reach £11 billion by 2015. According to a report by BUPA Health Insurance, NHS will need real-term increases of 4.9 percent a year after 2008. The government has rejected the findings of a Commons Health Committee study emphasising that the NHS charges was a failure.

This article assesses the effort of the British National Health Service to measure the risk of heart disease in 2006. Medical practitioners give a number of ways to tackle heart disease. Obesity experts assert that measuring waist circumference should be the first step towards tackling heart disease. The barriers to acceptance of the use of waist circumference to measure obesity are stated. Moreover, this article cites smoking as one of the risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Focuses on the advantages of offering nurses a partnership to general practice. Role of nurses in the hospital environment; Challenges facing nurses in performing their duties and obligations; Importance of partnership with nurses to physicians.

Presents information on the Identicom device developed by Connexion2 Ltd. in Great Britain to protect general practitioners (GP) and other National Health Service staff from violence when visiting patients alone. Estimated number of incidents of violence against health care workers from 2002-2003; Number of GP from the Shropshire Doctors Co-operative in England that has already trialled Identicom; Cost of the device; Views of Co-op quality manager Carol Lawrence on the Identicom.

Comments on the decision of the British government to make low-dose statins available over the counter. Reaction of the "Lancet" journal on the decision; View of Doctor David Wrigley, a member of the British Medical Association's prescribing committee, on the decision; Result of reclassifying simvastatin.

The article features Hamid Ghodse, medical director of the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards (CEA) in Great Britain. He is fervent about promoting fairness, clarity and transparency, and determined to attract a wider range of applicants from across the profession. He is a firm believer in the merit of the CEA scheme, established in 1948 at the inception of the health service. One of Ghodse's key concerns is that many deserving doctors do not apply.

This article focuses on the plan of the British General Medical Council (GMC) to require high-risk doctors to undergo more intensive revalidation and the impact of the plans on general practitioners (GP). GP locums fear they will be unfairly targeted by new GMC proposals to introduce a risk-based approach to regulation. GMC president Sir Graeme Catto estimates up to 30,000 doctors could face stricter assessment. These are most likely to be locums, isolated single-handers and doctors working privately.

Profiles several general practitioner entrepreneurs in Great Britain. David Berger; Rory McCrae; Peter Tyerman.

Offers a look on the public-private finance project known as LIFT which is set to invest in upgrading general practitioners' premises in Great Britain by 2010. Significance of the scheme to the British National Health Service according to the National Audit Office (NAO); Number of new primary care buildings due to open in 2005; Views of Sir John Bourne, head of the NAO, on the initiative.

Presents opinion on the appropriate dress codes for general practitioners in Great Britain. Importance of the doctors' appearance to establish trust with patients; Uniforms preferred by various doctors; Tips on improving one's image.

Focuses on issues regarding the revalidation of the quality and standard of clinical care being provided by general practitioners in Great Britain. Certifications that a general practitioner must submit for revalidation according to High Court Judge Dame Janet Smith; Risk-based approach to regulating general practitioners preferred by the General Medical Council; Potential impact of the revalidation on both the public and doctors.

Focuses on the accusation of the Auditor General for Wales against general practitioners (GP) in prolonging the waiting times of patients. Impact of GP referral rates on outpatient waiting times; Factors that contributed to an increase in medical referrals of Welsh GP according to the National Audit Office Wales; Responsibility of local health boards in managing and monitoring GP referral rates.

Presents the views of a diabetic patient and several healthcare workers regarding the impact of physician services utilization on continuity of care. Paul McArdle, dietitian at Eastern Birmingham, England; Sue Bodgner, general practitioner at Surrey, England; Gillian Hawthorne, head of clinical diabetes service at Newcastle General Hospital.