23rd September 2016
I was totally intrigued by Dr Chris van Tulleken’s programme last night – this guy is exactly the sort of GP who should be cloned and made available to all consenting NHS patients!
Whilst recognising the need for medicines to be prescribed when needed, Dr van Tulleken was on a mission to help patients reduce the medication they were taking, particularly those on long term medication such as painkillers. However, more importantly he really wanted his patients to succeed, so he became their mentor over a few weeks.
Whilst I recognise that this is a TV programme made for entertainment purposes, it may therefore have chosen to omit details of unsuccessful patients, nonetheless, of those featured, there was no doubting the results obtained (not a placebo in sight). The patients were really able to reduce their prescription medication over a period of several weeks. One lady was able to reduce her painkillers for back pain by attending a martial arts club, another was able to control her depression by swimming in a local lake (in a wetsuit I must add, but even so – total kudos to her!)
Getting out of the office/house and having a brisk walk for half an hour five or more times a week resulted in a lowering in cholesterol and diabetic marker levels as well as weight loss. No expensive gym memberships or special clothing were required, dog ownership appeared to make this easier to follow! The data on physical activity is supported by 2 recently published articles in Diabetologia. In particular, one study revealed that taking 10 minutes of physical activity after eating 3 times a day no more than 5 minutes after each main meal provided additional beneficial effect.
Separately, he was also successful in getting the surgery he was working with to stop accepting free lunches (and 10 minute drug presentation) from a pharmaceutical rep during their regular meetings with other practices. Another Result!
Yes this programme could have been made to try and make use cut down on our prescription requests to the NHS, but if it works, surely this has got to be a positive! For anyone considering looking into this, please remember never to reduce or stop any medication without speaking to your GP or pharmacist.
This care is in significant contrast to a colleague’s consultation with the oncologist department at 2 local hospitals (one of which is a centre of excellence) during and following several months of chemo and radiation; whilst assigned to a specific consultant, he has often been seen by locum or ad hoc doctors whose patient care and professionalism have shocked all who have seen this at first hand. “It’s bad news, the primary has grown” said the doctor yesterday. “What do you mean?” asked my friend “No one has mentioned there were other growths before”. Well I’ll tell you about that later”. “No!” replied my friend “I’d like to know now!”. “Don’t interrupt me” said the doctor putting her hand up in front of her patient’s face. No wonder one of my friend’s sisters, who had gone with him, went out of the room to ask a nurse to find them a real doctor. In her absence, the doctor put her head into her hands and said “I need to get my head around this”. “You need to get your head around this?!” asked my friend’s other sister. “It should be her with her head in her hands crying, not you!” Enough said.
I’m pleased to say my friend did get seen by the consultant who had been treating him and whose explanation of the latest CT scans was done with all due care and consideration. The same consideration that Dr van Tulleken was putting into his patients in order to help their health. I truly wish him well and hope that the continuing weeks will see an increasing number of patients making an appointment with their GP to see if they too can stop rattling everywhere they go.
#novanutri
#thedoctorwhogaveupdrugs