Case studies

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Upsetting comments on social media

2 July 2021

A GP wondered whether the practice should remove a patient from their list after disparaging remarks were left on social media.

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Criticism at a coroner’s inquest

2 July 2021

A GP, who had forgot to attach a patient’s medical history as part of an urgent referral, contacted the MDU for help following criticism during a coroner’s inquest.

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Remote consultations and delayed diagnosis

2 July 2021

A GP called the MDU for advice after receiving a patient complaint. They alleged that a lack of available face-to-face appointments led to a delay in diagnosis.

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Patient’s refusal to wear a face mask

2 July 2021

A GP sought advice on how to deal with an adult patient who refused to wear a face mask during the pandemic but needed treatment for an ingrown toenail.

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Assessing capacity for COVID vaccine

2 July 2021

A GP was contacted by a local care home as the daughter of one of their residents objected to their mother receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

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Second thoughts

13 May 2021

As a rugby fan, an FY1 was delighted when a friend asked him to act as match day doctor at an amateur fixture the following Saturday. There was just one problem – he was supposed to be on call that weekend.

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A painful experience

13 May 2021

An FY2 was sharing a house with several friends from university. One housemate had been taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatories for several weeks after sustaining a knee injury. She pleaded with the doctor to prescribe her something stronger to address the pain as she could not take time off work to attend a GP appointment.

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A near miss

6 May 2021

A stressed and anxious foundation doctor was increasingly resorting to several glasses of wine to help her unwind and get to sleep after shifts, although she’d noticed this was starting to affect her performance.

Litigation Privilege
Litigation privilege

16 October 2020

A consultant radiologist member called the MDU advice line to discuss a recent opinion he had been asked to provide for a patient's solicitor in the context of a clinical negligence claim.

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Post mortem declined

9 October 2020

Can a patient request not to have a post mortem?