Clinical Update

In this episode, Professor Carolyn Chew-Graham OBE talks to Dawn Liz Powell about how to support people with severe mental illness in primary care. She discusses how severe mental illness might present in primary care, how to take a comprehensive history, and how to build a good relationship with a person with severe mental illness. Professor Chew-Graham also looks at the physical health needs of...

Consultations for neurological conditions and for headache are very common in primary care. In this episode the MIMS learning editors focus on blackouts, dizziness and vertigo, facial pain, gait disturbance, and alterations in taste and smell.  They also highlight the recommendations of NICE and SIGN on migraine prophylaxis, including drug therapies, acupuncture, botulinum toxin and oxygen th...

In this episode, Dr Pipin Singh talks to MIMS Learning editor Pat Anderson about how to provide care for nursing home residents that meets their needs and enables them to have the best possible quality of life. His practice’s approach makes best use of time and draws in the support of pharmacists and nursing home teams to plan and deliver care and to plan ahead so that frail, older residents are t...

In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, the MIMS Learning editors discuss the potential causes of chest pain, with a focus on diagnosis and management in primary care, including cardiac causes, gastrointestinal causes, and psychosocial causes. This episode explores how misconceptions about coronary artery disease in women can lead to its underdiagnosis, how changes to diet and sleep can he...

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, accounting for 15% of all new cancer cases. In this episode, MIMS Learning editor Sangeeta Krishnan speaks to consultant medical oncologist Dr Jay Naik about the GP’s role in breast cancer screening and red flags, and the management breast cancer.  Discussing a memorable case, Dr Naik touches upon the importance of team effort in dealing with...

What are the symptoms of hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism? Are some persons at a higher risk of thyroid disorders than others?  This week, the MIMS Learning editors discuss symptoms and risk factors for various thyroid disorders, the physiology of the thyroid gland, and how to interpret thyroid function tests. They also discuss NICE guidelines on management, as well as the latest consensus...

In this episode, Dr Sundhya Raman speaks to Dawn Liz Powell about how to ensure that lifestyle advice is culturally appropriate, specifically for people who are South Asian. She says that while white European people tend to eat more ultra-processed food, South Asian people are more likely to cook with the ‘wrong sorts of fat’. Therefore, lifestyle advice should take account of these cultural diffe...

How might the all-party parliamentary report on birth trauma impact primary care? What red flags should clinicians look for in pregnant patients? Are you confident in managing diabetes in pregnancy? And what are the latest recommendations on diagnosing hyperemesis gravidarum? Join the MIMS Learning editors for this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, in which we consider the all-party parliame...

Join us for this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, in which our guest, GP Dr Farzana Hussain, talks about the insights she gained from talking to patients who declined COVID vaccination, how these lessons can be extrapolated to other vaccination programmes, and what primary care professionals can do – on a practical level – to tackle vaccine hesitancy.  You can access the website versio...

Is this child’s rash an infectious disease, or something else? It can be hard for GPs to tell. Infectious conditions affecting children are the topic of this Clinical Update podcast, with our presenters, the MIMS Learning editors, passing on expert clinicians’ tips on diagnosing paediatric pertussis, measles, skin rashes, and scarlet fever. They also discuss the MIMS Learning campaign on heal...

What clinical features set hayfever apart from COVID and/or asthma? What are the major risk factors for developing melanoma? And what key conditions do you need to be aware of in the hotter months? In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, MIMS Learning editors Rhiannon Ashman and editor Pat Anderson will discuss how to distinguish hayfever from COVID-19, red flags of more serious conditions...

Why do GPs have to take a more active role in lipid management? How was a GP able to support a patient with an overwhelming fear of vomiting? And what’s important to know about latest osteoporosis guidelines? In this episode we interview Dr Pipin Singh to find out why statistics on heart disease, and the availability of more therapeutic options, make a compelling case for GPs to be more proactive...

How can GPs minimise health inequalities in cancer diagnosis? How can care for transgender patients be improved? What simple, practical changes can improve outcomes for pregnant and postpartum people? In this episode we hear from guest Dr Anthony Cunliffe, GP and National Lead Medical Advisor for Macmillan, on health inequalities in cancer diagnosis. Also, the MIMS Learning editors discuss issues...

What can GPs do to manage a woman with chronic pelvic pain? What do you need to know about hearing loss? How can heart failure be diagnosed early in primary care? Medical editor Dawn Powell interviews our guest for this episode, Professor Clare Taylor, on red flags that a GP might see in a patient with heart failure and how GPs can diagnose this condition early. The MIMS Learning editors discuss t...

In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, the MIMS Learning team review the diagnosis and management of painful diabetic neuropathy and outline three things GPs need to know about delirium. Also, MIMS Learning editor Pat Anderson speaks to award-winning resilience trainer Dr Farnaaz Sharief about what GPs can do to improve their own and their colleagues' wellbeing.  You can access the w...

What’s the difference between ordinary worry and excessive worry, and how can healthcare professionals help people for whom anxiety has an impact on their everyday life? In this episode, the MIMS Learning editors discuss key points from a learning module on generalised anxiety disorder. Our guest for this episode, MIMS Learning contributor Dr Ivan Koay, discusses the impact of research on clinical...

How can you improve symptoms of breathlessness in a patient with chronic respiratory disease? What's the link between diabetes and frailty? How long is a child with measles contagious for?  In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, MIMS Learning editors discuss pulmonary rehabilitation – who it is suitable for and what it entails. Our guest for this episode, MIMS Learning’s diabete...

What impact has the HPV vaccine had on cervical cancer rates? How does stigma affect people with HIV? And what do GPs need to know about depression?  In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, we discuss how both the cervical cancer screening programme and the HPV vaccine have led to dramatic improvements in cervical cancer rates.  Also, our guest speaker Professor Mark Nelson expla...

What do clinicians need to know about diagnosing skin cancer in a person of colour? Why is it important for clinicians to address fear of cancer recurrence? What are some key points from the latest consensus statement on hypothyroidism? In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, MIMS Learning editors look at important considerations for diagnosing skin cancer in people of colour. Our guest fo...

In the first episode of season 3 of the Clinical Update podcast, MIMS Learning editor Pat Anderson meets Dr Susru Sukumaran, a GP providing essential support to members of the LGBTQ+ community who are struggling with drug addiction.  MIMS Learning editors also discuss the latest learning modules on the mental health needs of displaced people, and on the management of premature ejaculation - s...

What is the ‘elephant in the room’ for healthcare professionals? What do clinicians need to know about colorectal cancer screening? What are three key facts related to bronchiolitis? In this episode of the Clinical Update podcast, consultant geriatrician Dr Anna Steel  speaks to MIMS Learning managing editor Pat Anderson about the ‘elephant in the room’, which is end of life care planning in...

0.5 CPD hours In this episode of the MIMS Learning Clinical Update podcast, contraception expert Professor John Guillebaud explains why he believes the 7-day contraceptive pill break should be consigned to history. It also features a case-based discussion on complex contraception scenarios and provides three key points on prescribing emergency contraception. You can visit the website version of th...

0.5 CPD hours The term ‘TikTok tics’ has been used to describe the tic-like behaviours, seen in young girls, that have been linked to the social media platform TikTok. However, according to consultant paediatric neurologist Dr Tammy Hedderly, this term is unhelpful because it undermines what can be a sign of ‘quite significant mental health needs’. In this episode, Dr Hedderly talks about the diff...

0.5 CPD hours Abnormal liver function tests are very common in general practice, so what action do GPs need to take? Dr Pipin Singh discusses the options with Pat Anderson in episode 5 of the second season of the Clinical Update podcast.  Also in this episode, our medical editors talk about the relationship between lung cancer and COPD, and finish up with three key points about managing gout,...

Dr Daisy Lund, plant-based GP, talks to Sangeeta Krishnan about plant-based nutrition and Plant Based Health Professionals UK. Dr Lund describes research into the effect of a plant-based diet on some chronic diseases as ‘astonishing’ and considers how GPs could discuss nutrition with their patients during the 10-minute consultation.   Also in this episode, Rhiannon Ashman and Sangeeta di...