GPs vs. surgeons with Clara Munro and Sarah Robinson

There is a common perception of surgery that it’s an old boys’ club, and that anyone joining the profession is expected to match the archetypal personality type in order to fit in. Whilst this is starting to change in some specialities, it does still present a challenge, especially to junior staff trying to establish themselves. The relationship between primary and secondary care can be quite remote, and approaches towards patient care can sometimes seem at odds with each other. In this week’s episode, we discuss the paradigm shift that COVID-19 has caused in the management of specialist consultations, as well as the obstacles to having successful open conversations between GPs and specialists, and how we might overcome them in order to provide better care for patients. We also ask, should we refer a patient with a suspected hernia for an ultrasound? Our guests: Clara Munro is a general surgeon based in the North East of England and a clinical fellow at the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management. She is also the editorial registrar at The BMJ.

Sarah Robinson is an upper GI surgeon at the Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. Her areas of interest include hernia surgery and upper GI cancers.