‘Unless you change your habits, you’re not solving the issues’: Weight-loss drugs to beat diabetes is a quick fix – but not a long-term solution
In the first of a two-part series examining the growing trend for using weight-loss drugs to tackle diabetes Type 2, Sarah Stacey reports on the serious potential risks for patients – and a safe, long-term alternative… The slew of hopeful…
Dr Michael Dixon, our chair, says paper written on Integrated approach to health by King Charles III in 2012 was ‘ahead of its time’
The College of Medicine’s Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, has praised a paper written by our patron, King Charles III, in 2012 on Integrated Health as ‘forward thinking’ and has invited our members to re-read it. The paper, entitled ‘Integrated health…
‘Getting research money for plant medicine is extremely difficult’: Simon Mills in conversation with herbalist Michael McIntyre
The College of Medicine’s Self Care Lead, Simon Mills, first encountered herbalist and acupuncturist Michael McIntyre around 45 years ago as the pair met as practitioners trying to drive forward plant medicine in the UK. In 2022, the College of…
English National Opera tells IPM Congress 2023 how singing techniques can help respiratory problems
The English National Opera (ENO) addressed the Integrative and Personalised Medicine Congress in London last month, offering a fascinating discussion on how research has found that singing techniques can help those with respiratory problems. The four-strong panel included ENO Chairman…
‘For 50 years, we haven’t used a single kilo of pesticide’: Patrick Holden responds to Times article on the future for sustainable farming
An article, Farming today means thinking of tomorrow, by journalist Alice Thomson published in The Times newspaper this month examined future farming methods, discussing the ongoing conflict between those who produce food and environmental campaigners. Here, Patrick Holden, CEO of…
Beyond Pills Campaign: Dr William Bird on the impact Green Social Prescribing can have
Reading GP Dr William Bird, the College of Medicine’s Nature Lead and a pioneer of Green Social Prescribing, talks to Sarah Stacey about the healing power of nature for every age group… Think of the shapes, colours and sounds of…
Blog: How arts and creativity can help young people deal with difficult transitions
This week, Professor Chris Drinkwater, Executive Lead for Arts and Creativity at the North East & North Cumbria Child Health and Wellbeing Network, wrote a blog for theatre company Damn Cheek on the benefits of drama for helping children to cope…
Professor Sir Sam Everington urges Government to ‘put nurses in schools’, in RSA article
The College of Medicine’s Deputy Chair, Professor Sir Sam Everington, has called for every school to have access to a qualified nurse, in a passionate article for the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) magazine. Sir Sam, who is a GP…
EXCLUSIVE: NHS Prescribing Director Professor Tony Avery on why unnecessary prescribing must stop – for the sake of both patients and our healthcare system
To mark Social Prescribing Day 2023, Professor Tony Avery OBE, GP and National Clinical Director for Prescribing at NHS England, writes for The College of Medicine on the system approaches needed to optimise medicines to better care for people living…
Herbs that heal: Watch Simon Mills’ discussion with Dr Rupy Ajula on The Doctor’s Kitchen podcast
A podcast discussing how herbs can help health, released in November on Dr Rupy Ajula’s The Doctor’s Kitchen podcast, and featuring herbal practitioner Simon Mills, who is The College of Medicine’s Self Care Lead, has now had more than 80,000…
‘Complementary medicine radically altered my views on how to heal’: Dr Michael Dixon’s blog for the British Association for Holistic Medicine
In a 2018 article for the Journal of Holistic Healthcare – republished last month by the British Association for Holistic Medicine and Health Care (BHMA), our Chair, Dr Michael Dixon (pictured below), recounts how, in his own career as a…
Beyond Pills Campaign: A message from our Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, on how The College of Medicine is at ‘the forefront of reducing overprescribing’
In his latest blog post, ‘Reflections from the Bridge’, Dr Michael Dixon, The College of Medicine’s Chair, looks at how social prescribing is changing the landscape of health for the better… Change is as inevitable as death and taxes. As…
How to stop NHS overprescribing? Key voices in healthcare call for longer GP appointment slots, improved sharing of medical records and patients being empowered to make better decisions on their own health
Some of the leading voices in UK health are calling for better support of healthcare professionals in tackling overprescribing that is crippling the NHS, saying GPs currently receive ‘lots of guidance on when and how to prescribe – but much…
Food on Prescription: Ahead of a stark winter, key voices at The College of Medicine unite on why healthy food must be accessible for everyone
Back in early summer, eight of the most progressive minds on how healthy eating and food impacts our societies in the 21st century set out their views on the seismic shift needed to protect our health and healthcare systems. Eight…
WATCH: Dr Michael Dixon appears on The Doctor’s Kitchen podcast
NHS doctor Dr Rupy Aujla founded The Doctor’s Kitchen after he was diagnosed with a significant heart condition, which he subsequently reversed using a food and lifestyle approach. Sharing his knowledge on The Doctor’s Kitchen, which has nearly 300,000 followers…
The College of Medicine in HSJ: “Patients are being deprived of better outcomes because of a lack of awareness of social prescribing”
Patients are potentially being prevented from accessing beneficial non-medical treatments simply because healthcare providers don’t know about them, two leading voices from The College of Medicine have said in an article for the Health Service Journal. Promoting The College of…
“Current medicine is failing spectacularly”: Dr Michael Dixon’s opening address at the IPM Congress
On June 17th, The College of Medicine’s Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, took to the stage at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in central London. Moments earlier, attendees had been played a rallying video message by our patron, HRH The Prince…
Face to face once more! The College of Medicine’s Food on Prescription conference takes place in London
The College of Medicine enjoyed a hugely successful return to in-person conferences at the Integrative and Personalised Medicine Congress on June 16th to 18th, which took place at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in central London. Our own Food on…
“Prioritise children and value primary care”: Sam Everington pens an open letter to new NHS England chair Richard Meddings
The College of Medicine’s Sir Sam Everington has penned an open letter, published in the Health Service Journal, to the new NHS England chair Richard Meddings on the future of the NHS and how the healthcare system can be improved. You…
Dr Michael Dixon tells the Westminster Health Forum that GPs need to re-build patient relationships that were lost to the pandemic
Dr Michael Dixon, Chair of The College of Medicine and Co-Chair of the National Social Prescribing Network, delivered the following speech in his opening address at the Westminster Health Forum on March 9th 2022… ‘General practice is on the edge…
Dr Toh Wong, co-organiser of February’s Integrative Health Convention, on how a life-changing illness changed his approach to health
Dr Toh Wong, a GP living and working in Devon, tells the College of Medicine how a Bell’s Palsy diagnosis – and a course in neurolinguistic programming – made him realise that health and healing requires an Integrative Health approach. On February…
“How much does evidence matter when driving health policy?”
Speaking at the European Congress for Integrative Medicine (ECIM) in November 2021, our Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, debated how much evidence should drive health policy in modern healthcare. Here, Dr Dixon expands on that debate… “I am sure that everyone…
‘We’re on the verge of breaking the glass ceiling on conventional medical thinking…’ Dr Michael Dixon tells European Congress for Integrative Medicine
Dr Michael Dixon, the College of Medicine’s Chair, addressed the European Congress for Integrative Medicine (ECIM) on November 4th 2021, telling those attending that the conference marked ‘a new dawn for integrative medicine and the beginning of a new age…
A lockdown success! How a team of healthcare professionals is transforming mental health support in their region
Two GPs who helped to create a mental health referral team during the height of the first lock-down have shared with the College of Medicine the challenges and successes of its first year in operation. The Andover Primary Care Mental…
Beyond Pills All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) launches to stop over-prescribing
In June 2022, the College of Medicine launched the Beyond Pills Campaign – calling for urgent Government intervention on over- prescribing in the NHS. The Campaign was established in the wake of the Government’s National Overprescribing Review, published in September…
World Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Awareness Week: Access the TARGET toolkit
The third week in November marks World Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Awareness Week, a global annual campaign to improve awareness and understanding of Antimicrobial Resistance amongst patients and healthcare professionals. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared AMR one of the…
Hot yoga could help beat depression, new trial finds
Practising hot yoga regularly could help alleviate symptoms of depression, a new clinical trial has found. Just one class a week in temperatures of 40.5C (105F) could be enough to have a positive impact on mental health, according to the…
Barnardo’s urges government to invest in social prescribing to help mental health of young people
Social prescribing could help young people suffering with mental health problems, new research says. Children’s charity Barnardo’s says referrals for non-clinical treatments could help to ease current pressure on child and adolescent mental health services (Camhs) and help young patients…
Coming up in autumn: College of Medicine events and classes
Autumn equals lots of great events for our members – from free online sessions with our experts to knowledge-giving weekend retreats. Keep up-to-date with all that’s coming up at The College of Medicine in the next few months at collegeofmedicine.org.uk/events……
RCGP Chair says social prescribing could offer ‘vital lifeline’ to vulnerable, after survey finds GPs are prescribing nappies to patients in poverty
Doctors in the UK are increasingly being asked to ‘prescribe’ basic welfare items such as shampoo and nappies by patients living in poverty, a new survey by the Royal College of General Practitioners has found. The Times reported that the…
Nine holes for health? Social prescribing pilot offering free golf proves a big hit in Scotland
Social prescribing comes in many forms, as a pilot scheme offering games of golf to help boost health and wellbeing has proved. The Golf for Health pilot took place recently in Fife, Scotland and saw patients with varying health conditions…
‘Dismissive attitudes’ towards ME must improve, say DofH, as it launches new plan to overhaul care
NHS healthcare professionals are to get more training to improve the treatment of patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), as part of a new government strategy. The Department of Health’s interim plan, writes The Times, will see medical students, nurses and…
The six questions you should ask your GP: Read Professor Sir Muir Gray’s advice
Professor Sir Muir Gray, who’s on The College of Medicine’s Scientific Advisory Council, has revealed his advice on what patients should be asking their doctors to make the most of a short appointment time. Sir Muir, who is a…
Beyond Pills Campaign: Actress Jenny Seagrove tells IPM Congress 2023 how ‘polypharmacy’ negatively impacted her mother’s health
Actress Jenny Seagrove told audience members at the Integrative & Personalised Medicine conference 2023 in London last week that her own approach to health was radically impacted by watching her mother being prescribed ‘pills, pills and more pills’ when she…
Introducing our Food for Mood Campaign
What we eat affects not only our physical wellbeing but also how we operate emotionally. The College of Medicine has collaborated with Harvard-trained nutritional psychiatrist and professional chef Dr Uma Naidoo, our US Ambassador of food and nutrition, on a…
‘Loneliness is as bad for our health as 15 cigarettes a day’, says US Surgeon General
Social isolation can be as damaging for health as a smoking habit, a top US health official has warned, saying loneliness can potentially hasten death by nearly 30 per cent. Speaking to BBC News, Vivek Murthy, Surgeon General, said that…
‘Social Prescribing can change lives – and the Government is backing it with money’, says Health Secretary
The UK minister for Health and Social Care, Steve Barclay, has said the Government is committed to Social Prescribing, following last week’s Social Prescribing Day, saying funding of £3.6million will be poured into it over the next two years. Writing…
‘NHS launches healthcare revolution to ditch drugs’: Beyond Pills Campaign features in The Sunday Express
Social prescribing and The College of Medicine’s Beyond Pills Campaign made the headlines this weekend, with a detailed article in The Sunday Express highlighting our call for urgent reform on unnecessary prescribing within the current healthcare system. The article, written…
Beyond Pills Campaign: BMJ article examines how use of medicine for treating chronic pain is changing
An article in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) this month debates how recent research on the treatment of chronic pain suggests social prescribing – including exercise and psychological and social support – could have a positive impact for patients living…
Beyond Pills Campaign: ‘Pain Cafes’ launch at 15 locations across Cornwall
Support groups for people suffering from chronic pain, dubbed ‘Pain Cafes‘, have opened across Cornwall in a bid to help people manage their pain without relying solely on prescription painkillers. The Pain Cafes, led by Chronic Pain in Cornwall (CPIC),…
Beyond Pills Campaign: The UK football clubs using the power of sport to help fans with mental health problems
If ever the phrase ‘It’s not the winning, it’s the taking part that counts’ was applicable, then it’s in the growing arena of football teams for mental health. In the last decade, new clubs dedicated to helping those who love…
The College of Medicine reflects on our achievements in 2022 – and looks to 2023
As we welcome a new year, our Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, looks back at what The College of Medicine has achieved in the last 12 months, and what the year ahead looks like for our organisation… ‘2022 was a mix…
‘Every day, healthcare professionals see the impact of hunger and malnutrition’: New campaign calls on Government to offer more free school meals
The Government should offer more free school meals to help more than four million UK children living in homes affected by food poverty, campaigners have said in a letter to the Chancellor and Health Secretary. Leaders representing more than 150,000 doctors…
Beyond Pills Campaign in Saga Magazine: Writer Patsy Westcott examines the power of Social Prescribing
The latest issue of Saga Magazine includes an article by Patsy Westcott on Social Prescribing and our Beyond Pills Campaign, highlighting how an integrated approach to health can hugely benefit both patients and prescribers. Reproduced with permission from Saga Magazine,…
REPORT: Social Prescribing, The Evidence Base
Key figures from The College of Medicine and Social Prescribing Network have come together to produce the article below on social prescribing, offering clarity on everything from current research, to the role of link workers and how effective social prescribing…
“Social prescribing is still prescribing”: Dr Laura Marshall-Andrews on how patient-focused integrated care is helping Brighton’s most vulnerable communities
Practice learning days at The Brighton Health and Wellbeing Centre used to be ‘pretty dry affairs’, according to Principal GP and founder Dr Laura Marshall-Andrews. Then she invited dance teacher Rachel Pittman to get the group throwing around some mood…
Beyond Pills Campaign: “We celebrate every small step forward with a tea party” – how a North London GP’s own burn-out led to the creation of a community-led therapeutic garden
North London GP Dr Jane Myat tells The College of Medicine how the things that helped nourish and restore her during her own burn-out helped her to transform a ‘corporate’ courtyard garden into a healing space for the local community……
The College of Medicine announces new Chief Executive Officer appointment
The College of Medicine has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer. Amanda King, formerly Chief Officer, will take on the new role with immediate effect. The College of Medicine’s Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, said of the appointment: “Over the last…
Dr Michael Dixon discusses Beyond Pills Campaign on UK Health Radio
More than a year on since The College of Medicine launched our Beyond Pills Campaign, we’re shouting louder than ever about the need for intervention on over-prescribing in the NHS. Earlier this month, our Chair, Dr Michael Dixon joined UK…
Behind the blue label on your can of sardines: Can you really eat fish that is truly sustainable?
Overfishing the earth’s waters for food can make our pursuit of a healthy, Omega 3-rich diet feel less appetising – but there are ways to ensure what goes on your plate is sustainably sourced. Here, Ishbel Matheson of the Marine…
IPM Congress 2023: We share some of our highlights
Between 29th June and July 1st, the Integrative and Personalised Medicine Conference 2023 took place at the QEII Centre in the heart of Westminster. As partners at the event, we were thrilled to see so many in attendance for what…
A Social Prescribing success story: Burnley’s Fresh Food Initiative helps people access locally-grown organic food – and teaches them how to cook it
The Green Dreams Project CIC in Padiham, near Burnley, started back in 2009 when College of Medicine Council member Dr James Fleming decided not to pursue a PHD in favour of using his free time and energy to make a…
Chair’s newsletter: What’s ahead for The College of Medicine?
Dr Michael Dixon, The College of Medicine Chair, reveals a busy summer calendar in his latest address… “Our cold spring is struggling to get to summer but we can look forward to warmer days with the Coronation of our Patron,…
WATCH: A College of Medicine Young Fellow, Hamaad Khan, addresses students on Social Prescribing for the future
One of The College of Medicine’s Young Fellows, Hamaad Khan, delivered a powerful speech to students on Social Prescribing Day 2023, which took place on March 9th, about how Social Prescribing is vital to the future success of the NHS.…
Beyond Pills Campaign: “GP surgeries should operate like ‘mini hospitals’ to save money and time”, says Professor Sir Sam Everington
GP surgeries in the UK should evolve to be more like ‘mini hospitals’ to help the whole NHS system run more effectively, The College of Medicine’s Vice President, Professor Sir Sam Everington, has said. Speaking to the Sunday Express, Sir…
Beyond Pills Campaign: From helping with finances to finding local activities, a former nurse turned link worker reveals how her role is making a difference to one London community
Sarah Stacey meets Gay Palmer, a Social Prescriber Link Worker Team Lead in South Southwark, who explains how her work successfully went online during the pandemic – and how the power of community can help transform individual lives… Until autumn…
Blog post: ‘Healthy communities can be created if we invest in places, homes and people, as the Bromley by Bow Centre proves’
In this fascinating read, Listentolocals.co.uk blogger Clare Delmar recounts her recent visit to the Bromley by Bow Centre in Tower Hamlets, London, where The College of Medicine’s Vice President, Sir Sam Everington, works as a general practitioner. The health centre…
Beyond Pills Campaign: How music can be a vital tool for dementia patients and their carers over the festive period
In April this year, Music for Dementia and UK Music released the Power of Music report, which examined how music can help communities come together, potentially easing isolation and loneliness, and also exploring the impact melody can have on dementia…
Beyond Pills Campaign: Could you Share a Meal this winter to help others?
With inflation at its highest level in the last 40 years, interest rates looking set to continue to rise until the summer at least and energy prices significantly higher than in recent years, the UK is bracing for a stark…
‘Doctors should acknowledge the power of The Placebo Effect and use it to benefit patients’, NHS pharmacist writes in ‘important’ new book
Beyond Pills Campaigner Sarah Stacey speaks to NHS pharmacist Ranjeev Sidhu about his new book, Our Secret Super Power, which looks at how the placebo effect can be used as a practical tool for everyday life. The College of Medicine’s…
Beyond Pills Campaign: The community hubs – with walk-in health checks and funded by local businesses – that are helping a Cornish region
Community psychologist Kevin Feaviour is Director of the Imagine If… Social Prescribing Team in North Cornwall. The team supports the development of Community Connect Cornwall, an innovative approach to social prescribing and community development. The aim? To reduce isolation, improve…
Beyond Pills Campaign: Dr David Unwin on beating diabetes with diet – and how his own Merseyside practice has saved £68,000 a year on drugs
A decade ago, Dr David Unwin, a GP ambassador for our Beyond Pills Campaign, discovered the potential of reversing Type 2 diabetes through following a low carb diet. Last month, his practice in Norwood, Merseyside celebrated its 120th case of…
Is an ‘unusual coalition’ between vegans and farmers the only way to achieve sustainable food – and better health?
Vegans and farmers can find common ground and work together to achieve better health, the founder of the Sustainable Food Trust has told The College of Medicine. Speaking in an exclusive interview at the Food on Prescription Conference in London…
“Left bedbound by mental illness, my health was transformed by social prescribing…” Debs Teale on why she’s backing our Beyond Pills campaign
Debs Teale, Trustee for The National Centre for Creative Health and steering committee member for the Social Prescribing Network, is an advocate of creativity in health following her own remarkable journey. Debs has gone from being heavily medicated, bedbound, and…
Making headlines! Coverage of Social Prescribing in the news
This month, The College of Medicine launched its Beyond Pills campaign – calling for strong Government intervention on over-prescribing in the UK. The campaign – and how social prescribing can help an overburdened NHS – has been covered by UK…
Introducing the pilot edition of our new e-magazine, featuring an interview with The Doctor’s Kitchen founder Dr Rupy Aujla
The College of Medicine is delighted to announce that we’ve launched the pilot edition of our new e-magazine, focusing on the upcoming Food on Prescription Conference… Our first issue contains everything you need to know about the conference, which takes place…
Member feedback: What you told us about our Thought Field Therapy masterclass
In March, The College of Medicine offered an online Thought Field Therapy & Dynamic Energy Masterclass, hosted by clinical therapist, life coach, & trainer Janet Thomson. WHAT IS THOUGHT FIELD THERAPY? Thought Field Therapy is described as an “energy medicine”…
The lockdown class that’s still going strong! Retired NHS physio reveals how her daily online exercise sessions see fans join from across Europe
A former NHS physio and College of Medicine Trustee and Council member who decided to give free online exercise classes in March 2020 to help people struggling to keep fit during the strictest Covid lockdown has revealed how her classes…
The College of Medicine reflects on the year that was – and looks ahead to an ‘ambitious’ 2022
The College of Medicine’s Chair, Dr Michael Dixon, has reflected on a ‘positive’ year in his seasonal address to members, saying that despite the challenges the pandemic has continued to bring in 2021, there is hope for an ambitious and…
The Food Manifesto: The College of Medicine partners with ITN Productions to highlight importance of healthy lifestyle, community and self-care
Last year, The College of Medicine partnered with ITN Productions Industry News to make The Food Manifesto, a series of short programmes that focus on the importance of having a healthy lifestyle. The resulting programmes were subsequently shown on the…
Dr Michael Dixon: “The loss of continuity of care is the biggest unseen in General Practice at the moment…”
The effect of patients seeing GPs they’re not familiar with could lead to diseases being left undiagnosed, Dr Michael Dixon has said. Speaking on talk radio programme LBC earlier this month, the College of Medicine’s Chair spoke about the rise…
Overprescribing must stop, says new Government report
The College of Medicine’s Chair has welcomed plans by the Government to reduce the overprescribing of medicines. A report published this week announced action to prevent medicines being prescribed unnecessarily, following a new review led by the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer…
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