It is hard to review 2012 without resorting to journalist clichés, but this year was - for once - truly momentous for general practice.
The pensions ‘day of action’, the failure of the battle to prevent the health act becoming law or the acrimonious breakdown of talks over the GP contract - all were events that have had a wide-ranging and powerful impact on GPs. Click here to read our top 10 stories that defined the year.
The reverberations of 2012 are likely to continue for many years to come, and we have asked some leading lights of the profession for their views on what GPs should expect for 2013.
Many cited the contract imposition as the event likely to shape the year, but it is likely that the pressure on all aspects of the NHS is going to increase - leading some to say that 2013 will bring a ‘perfect storm’ for the health service. Read all the predictions here.
Here at Pulse we are also undergoing some changes in 2013, which you may be aware of already. We will be doing much more news and analysis online, and also launching a brand-new monthly magazine.
Read full details here, and add your comments about what you would like us to focus on.
Lastly, next year will bring the first ‘Pulse Live’ event. There are only two weeks left to book your free place for the one-stop clinical and practice business update in Birmingham on 30 April to 1 May. Don’t miss out - book now.
Top 10 news stories that defined 2012
1. RCGP calls for health bill to be scrapped
2. Lansley agrees 20% rise in GP training places in radical workforce overhaul
3. Practices waver over BMA’s day of action
4. Don’t rush to repeat day of action, Meldrum warns BMA in farewell speech
5. GPs outnumbered on nearly half of CCG boards
6. Asda to sell salbutamol inhalers over the counter without a GP prescription
7. GPs set for mass drug switch to atorvastatin after analysis shows price could fall by 95%
8. DH threatens to impose contract changes after talks with GPC break down
9. RCGP faces legal threat over international GP trainee failure rates
10. CCG constitutions legally binding whether signed or not
Top 10 Blogs
1. GPs to be: We never repent of having eaten too little
2. Peverley: A pussy-footed sort of protest
3. Dr Nick Ramscar: Cock-up theory
4. Jobbing Doctor: Carving up the NHS
5. Copperfield: Revalidate patients first
6. Editor’s Blog: This is what defeat looks like
8. Dr Margaret McCartney: Breast screening is no better than Reiki
9. Copperfield: What the NHS needs is a ‘Fair Use’ policy
10. Through the K hole: GPs live in diamond houses and wear gold pants all day long
Top 5 Videos
1. Dr Clarde Gerada - Top 50 video interview
2. Dr Mark Porter: ‘We did not take this decision lightly’
4. Dr Peter Swinyard: ‘I’m a happy doctor’
5. Dr Steve Field - Top 50 video interview
Top 5 CPD Modules
1. Hot topics in atrial fibrillation (2 CPD hours)
2. Polycystic ovary syndrome (2 CPD hours)
3. Hot topics in hyperlipidaemia (2 CPD hours)
4. The coughing child: a video module (1 CPD hour)
5. Hot topics is pregnancy (2 CPD hours)
Top 5 Business Articles
1. Special report: Revalidation
2. Insider advice: Our best investment
3. What I learned from an encounter with an angry patient
4. How will commissioning affect my income?
5. Can you remove a patient from your list without complaint?
