Social media and professional identity: Pitfalls and potential.

Introduction: Social media developments have completely changed how information is accessed and communicated. While great potential exists with these platforms, recent reports of online unprofessional behavior by doctors has threatened the medical professional identity; a matter of critical importance for clinicians and medical educators. This paper outlines a role for social media in facilitating support for clinicians and medical teachers; it will raise awareness of pitfalls and explain ethical and legal guidelines.

Impact of vagus nerve stimulation on secondary care burden in children and adults with epilepsy: Review of routinely collected hospital data in England.

Purpose: We evaluated the long-term medical and economic benefits of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy for 704 adults and children with epilepsy. A pre-post analysis was conducted using Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data (April 2008-July 2014). Seven hundred and four patients with epilepsy diagnoses (ICD-10 G40.

Using professional interpreters in undergraduate medical consultation skills teaching.

The ability to work with interpreters is a core skill for UK medical graduates. At the University of Sheffield Medical School, this teaching was identified as a gap in the curriculum. Teaching was developed to use professional interpreters in role-play, based on evidence that professional interpreters improve health outcomes for patients with limited English proficiency.

Recurrence risk of congenital malformations in infants exposed to antiepileptic drugs in utero.

Purpose: Use of antiepileptic drugs in pregnancy is associated with congenital malformations and developmental delay. Previous studies have suggested that women who have had one child with a congenital malformation are at increased risk of having other children with malformations. We sought to confirm the magnitude of risk in a large cohort drawn from the United Kingdom Epilepsy and Pregnancy Register.