Robert Lloyd reflects on three months working in South Africa and the effect of acute stress on his clinical performance. He describes how repeated practice, mental rehearsal, preparation, self-talk and breathing helped him cope, then considers how simulation might prepare others for pressure.
Can clinicians be both assertive and respectful? Natalie May challenges the gendered labels applied to women in emergency medicine, explores the harm of polarised assumptions and argues for mutual respect and a shared commitment to patient care when colleagues disagree.
Why does a diagnosis seem to appear everywhere just after we learn about it? This exploration of the Baader–Meinhof phenomenon connects selective attention and confirmation bias with history-taking and investigation, asking clinicians to test alternative explanations and seek another perspective when needed.
What makes a career in emergency medicine feel fulfilling? Drawing on Maslow’s ideas, Simon Carley explores personal growth, the conditions needed to thrive at work and the satisfaction of helping others develop, while acknowledging the pressures that can undermine those ambitions.
As UK emergency medicine approached its fiftieth anniversary, Simon Carley used a midlife-crisis analogy to reflect on the specialty’s development. This 2016 essay considers professional identity, external pressures, career choices and the search for a satisfying working life, with a deliberately humorous edge.
Does repeating a skill make us better, or simply more practised at doing it the same way? Simon Carley explores deliberate practice through clinical, musical and sporting examples, emphasising focused tasks, feedback, reflection and coaching when time for learning is limited.
Practical perspectives on trauma care and team leadership.
Explore the series →