Contents: December 2005
Front cover (large)
Contents page (PDF)
Editorials
Shamefully silent
Social stigma is the main reason for the rapid spread of HIV infections in India, argue
Balaji Ravichandran and Suniti Solomon
Human resources for health in
Africa
Thousands of doctors are leaving Africa, but the continent will need a million
extra healthcare workers to meet the millennium development goals.
Adetokunbo O Lucas thinks that better training and national
policies might manage the brain
drain
News
Newsbites
German
junior doctors are leaving clinical medicine
Education
From medical
student to junior doctor: how to approach the interpretation of investigations
In the third article of the series, Richard Beasley and coauthors
describe a systematic approach to the use and interpretation of diagnostic
tests
A case of
recurrent miscarriage
A 30 year old woman booked
for antenatal care of a much wanted pregnancy at nine weeks’ gestation
To
abstain or not to abstain Snoring
Ozge Tuncalp considers
whether abstinence-only sex education programmes are really the best method
to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections
10 Minute consultation - Snoring
An overweight, 49 year old
male smoker attends your surgery with his wife
Erectile
dysfunction
Careers
Stairway to New
Zealand
If you liked last month’s article about
working in Australia, then read on. This month we focus on its
Oceanic neighbour, New Zealand. Irina
Haivas tells you all you need to know to
start working in the Kiwi way
Tips on: Surviving
an intercalated year
Intercalated degrees are compulsory in many
medical schools, and remain a popular option in institutions in
which they are not mandatory, even in the current situation of
rising student debt and top up fees. Here are some pointers from
someone who has just completed an intercalated year on how to make
it worth the while.
Three’s
a crowd
In an increasing litigious society, do
chaperones have a role in medical practice? Kunal Kulkarni looks
at the arguments for and against
Tips on - Performing a speculum examination
A vaginal examination is a very intimate and
personal examination. It’s also an essential skill for
medical students doing obstetrics and gynaecology. Here’s a
look at how to make sure that all goes smoothly.
A
doctor-poet
Ozge Tuncalp catches up with Michael
Berman, clinical professor of obstetrics
and gynaecology at Yale School of Medicine, where he also serves as
the president of Yale New Haven Physician Hospital Organization.
Do we need
interviews?
Interviews are a widely used method to gauge
applicants for medical school. But are they managing to help find
the best candidates? Hamed
Khan investigates
Tips on:
Testicular self examination
Unlike many types of cancer, testicular cancer
most often affects young adults.
A pioneer
in AIDS prevention
Marcus Conant graduated from Duke University in 1961 and is a pioneer in
the field of HIV and AIDS. His practice in the field led him to
acknowledge the first link between Kaposi’s sarcoma and the
transmission of HIV. Klaus Morales and Christiane Rehwagen talked
to him about his personal experiences and perspectives regarding
HIV/AIDS
Papers
Innate left
handedness and risk of breast cancer:case cohort study
Left handedness does not cause breast cancer, but that doesn't mean
that the two factors are not related. Kristina Fister explains
why a case-cohort study provided strong evidence of a robust
association between left handedness and the risk of breast
cancer
Life
PLAB: key to the
kingdom?
Many doctors from
around the world want to pursue postgraduate medical training in the United
Kingdom, but first they need to overcome many barriers, including the
Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board (PLAB) examination. Even after
passing all the exams, however, the market still might not have a job for them.
Katherine McGinn and Irina Haivas find out why
PLAB:
perspectives from the Indian
subcontinent
Most doctors sitting the PLAB (Professional
and Linguistic Assessment Board) exam come from the Indian
subcontinent. Sabina Dosani finds out what it’s really like for them
Understanding
the medic brain drain
The migration of doctors to developed Western
countries is a stark reality in countries like India. Sandeep Kumar Goyal
helps us understand why this is happening
Neither home nor away
Leaving your home country to pursue
undergraduate medical training is worth it. But you might end up
living between two worlds and not feeling fully integrated in
either, say Elena Karampini and colleagues
Disaster and emergency
response training
Medical students haven’t traditionally been trained to respond
in disaster situations. Now a university in Canada is trying to establish an
ambitious training programme that will cater for their training needs.
Amy Cheng finds out if medical students are entering a new era of
emergency response
The
Global Fund for AIDS,
tuberculosis, and malaria
The Global Fund for AIDS, tuberculosis, and
malaria seemed like a major player in the fight against these
diseases from the outset, but its implementation to date has faced
many criticisms. Jenny Hall explains
Letters
Ancient principles are useful to modern medicine
More tips on presentations
Indian kidney donors are exploited by intermediaries
Scrub clothes don't cover enough
Foundation programme jobs lack essential information
Reviews
NorthSouthEastWest—a360° view of climate change
Sitting on an interview panel is a privilege
Female genital mutilation is awful
Professional yet comfortable
Obstetrics and gynaecology
Eyespy
