Between 1733 and 1980, St George’s Hospital and its medical school were located at Hyde Park Corner, one of the best sites in Belgravia. The building was grand but neglected. In 1980, just before I sat medical school finals, we were allocated our pre-registration house jobs. I was not looking forward to working as a […]
Archive | Alcohol
Carthage must be destroyed
Back in July 2017, the Welsh Government announced that the introduction of a minimum unit price for alcohol would be part of their legislative programme in the coming year. Today, the Public Health (Minimum Price for Alcohol) (Wales) Bill has been put before the Welsh Assembly. This is really good news, but minimum unit pricing […]
A Public Health Disaster
I have mentioned my grandfather, Arthur Poole, in this blog more than once before. He was a plumber (“an artist in lead”), autodidact, raconteur and trade union activist who taught me to appreciate a pint of well-kept bitter. He would be irritated and amused that I was co-author of this report presenting evidence for a […]
Charles Kennedy is dead
Charles Kennedy’s funeral has passed and so has the intensive press coverage. The sheer volume of comment about him was astonishing. Much of it was repetitive, and it has left me feeling uncomfortable. Even for those of us who didn’t like Charles Kennedy’s politics, he always seemed personable and decent. He was once the youngest […]