Sharp Scratch Podcast

Modified 13/05/2023

• Sharp Scratch Podcast upd. 06/09/2025

• 🔉 Re-release: Anxiety

  [05/09/2025] Incoming Sharpscratch host Zaynah Khan is rebroadcasting her favourite episodes, handpicked from the Sharpscratch archives. This episode on Anxiety was originally published in March, 2020. In our next...

• 🔉 Re-release: Is there room for creativity in medicine?

  [23/08/2025] New editorial scholar Zaynah Khan is sliding into the hosting seat for Sharpscratch. We've delved into the Sharpscratch vaults to retrieve three episodes for you to listen to over the next month as Za...

• 🔉 How to get into medical school

  [24/07/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel made up of Elgan, Anna and George get together to talk about medical school interviews. They are joined by expert guest, Paul Garrud who is chair of the Med...

• 🔉 Implicit and explicit bias in medical school

  [14/07/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel made up of Judy, Elisabeth and George get together to chat about bias that exists in medical education. They are joined by expert guest Dr Laetitia Zeeman,...

• 🔉 How do doctors cope with death? Part 2

  [26/06/2025] In part 2 of this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel, made up of Mary, Éabha and George, get together to discuss palliative medicine with Dr Mary Miller, a consultant in palliative medicine with an...

• 🔉 How do doctors cope with death? Part 1

  [12/06/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel, made up of Mary, Éabha and George, get together to discuss palliative medicine with Dr Mary Miller, a consultant in palliative medicine with an interest i...

• 🔉 PassMed or perish

  [29/05/2025] Can you really pass medical school by only doing online question banks and never attending lectures? In this episode, George and panellist Judy meet with Professor Andy McKeown, Director of Undergradu...

• 🔉 From scrubs to the stage: indie rock and medicine - with GULZ

  [15/05/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel made up of Inez and George get together with the band GULZ to chat about balancing a musical career alongside working as doctors. GULZ talk about their expe...

• 🔉 Yes, medical school is still racist and misogynistic - with Annabel Sowemimo

  [01/05/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel talks about why misogyny and racism exists in medicine and how students and resident doctors can educate themselves to tackle bias in healthcare.  The pane...

• 🔉 How to navigate the hospital hierarchy

  [17/04/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to talk about hierarchies starting in medical school and continuing through our working lives as doctors. The panellists, made up of medical s...

• 🔉 Medical school and widening participation

  [03/04/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to talk about widening participation in medical school.  The panellists, made up of medical students Maira and George, chat with guest Clare...

• 🔉 Let's talk about sex: how to take a good sexual history - with Naomi Sutton

  [20/03/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to discuss the gaps in the medical curriculum when it comes to teaching on sexual health.  The panellists, made up of Will, Elisabeth and Geo...

• 🔉 The cult of medicine - with Sam Jahara

  [06/03/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel, made up of George and Inez get together to talk about why people sometimes describe medicine as a cult. The episode discusses the perceived parallels betwe...

• 🔉 What they won't teach you at medical - with Maddy Lucy Dann

  [20/02/2025] In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel get together to chat with TikTok sensation and A&E doctor Maddy Lucy Dann. The panel, made up of George and previous Editorial Scholar Nikki,  ask Madd...

• 🔉 Are you really listening? How medical students can improve their listening skills - with Rageshri Dhairyawan

  [06/02/2025] In this episode, the panel get together to discuss the importance of listening to our patients. The panel are joined by expert guest Rageshri Dhairyawan to explore how medical students and doctors can...

• 🔉 What is professionalism?

  [23/01/2025] We talk about professionalism from day one of medical school, but what actually is professionalism? In this episode, we take a slightly more philosophical approach to this important question.  Georg...

• 🔉 We all make mistakes

  [09/01/2025] Fears around making mistakes seem to be common amongst medical students and resident doctors, so why are many of us afraid to talk about these fears?  In this episode, the panel made up of Anna, Inez...

• 🔉 Doctors' dating dilemmas

  [19/12/2024] When it comes to dating, does being a medical student or new doctor make it more complicated? When is the best time to tell your Hinge date that you're a doctor? Are break ups during medical school in...

• 🔉 What if I don't get my first choice as a new doctor - with Helen Salisbury

  [05/12/2024] Many medical students are aware that when it comes to foundation allocations, you may not get your first choice. In this episode, we talk about how to cope with the uncertainty surrounding this, the r...

• 🔉 ”It’s giving...CAP”

  [21/11/2024] Were you born to write "It's giving CAP", but forced to write "patchy lower lobe consolidation, suggestive of a community acquired pneumonia"? In this episode, the panel learn about the history of pop...

• 🔉 How do we cope when a family member is unwell?

  [07/11/2024] Medical school is tough for students, with high workloads, exam pressure and uncertainty around placement rotations. So what is the impact on us when a family member or loved one becomes unwell? How d...

• 🔉 The OSCE Horror Show

  [24/10/2024] We are embracing spooky season here at Sharp Scratch! In this weeks special Halloween episode, the panel get together to hear listeners  embarrassing OSCE stories, and why these exams can sometimes f...

• 🔉 Taking time out of medicine

  [10/10/2024] Have you ever considered taking time out of medical school?   Whether it is during medical school, or once we have began working as a doctor, there are times when many of us are faced with needing to...

• 🔉 If you can see it, you can be it

  [26/09/2024] Have you had a great mentor while at medical school? Mentors, both formal and informal, are an integral part of medical training, but what makes a good mentor? And how do we find one? Whether through...

• 🔉 Religion at Medical School

  [05/09/2024] Medical students do not live in a bubble, we bring with us our own culture, traditions, and often our religion. In this episode we discuss how being a religious medic can influence how you navigate yo...

• 🔉 Re-release: The dating life of new doctors

  [05/08/2024] Who’s off limits when it comes to dating, how renal physiology can ruin your chance of romance, and whether you should put that you’re a doctor on your tindr profile. Dating as a newly qualified d...

• 🔉 Can we debrief?

  [22/07/2024] Have you ever had a really bad day at placement? Perhaps something really awful has happened, or something has upset you, or another member of the team, or maybe you’ve made a mistake. This year, ma...

• 🔉 Inbound medical students

  [08/07/2024] Transitioning from school to university is challenging for everyone, but is perhaps even more so when that transition involves moving to a whole new country. International medical students are those o...

• 🔉 Spark trans joy, not discomfort

  [25/06/2024] Trans people experience disproportionately poor health outcomes, with a recent study funded from the NIHR finding that trans and non binary patients are more likely to experience long term health cond...

• 🔉 Agency and autonomy at medical school

  [07/06/2024] Studying medicine can make us feel like we’re being shaped to become anonymous cogs in a health-delivering machine. To be effective, it can seem that we need to fit ourselves into a universal mold,...

• 🔉 Freedom to speak up

  [28/05/2024] The concept of ‘psychological safety’ has emerged to describe an environment where there is a shared belief amongst individuals that it is safe to engage in interpersonal risk-taking in the workpl...

• 🔉 Is there room for creativity in medicine?

  [13/05/2024] Often, we think of medicine as a science. We think of doctors as scientists and scholars. We pride ourselves in being ‘in STEM,’ supporting evidence based medicine and learning the so-called ‘me...

• 🔉 Navigating grief

  [29/04/2024] Medics, throughout our careers and lives, are surrounded by grief. We grieve in our own lives, we grieve for our patients, we grieve with our patients. In this week's episode, we talk a little about g...

• 🔉 Rewind: Behind the scenes at The BMJ

  [19/04/2024] Maybe you've been following BMJ Student for a really long time, or maybe you're new to following us. Perhaps you only know about Sharp Scratch, or you've written and worked with us before. However muc...

• 🔉 Reasons to be hopeful

  [15/04/2024] With the rapid unfolding of recent events in medicine, from low pay to staffing crisis’ to the rapid changes to the face of our postgraduate training, it can be easy to lose all hope for the future...

• 🔉 Parenting at medical school

  [02/04/2024] Parenthood and medical school are two very different, each noble, roles. This week, we shed some light on the experiences of those medical students who are parenting at medical school. What is parenth...

• 🔉 Perfectionism

  [18/03/2024] Perfectionism is medicine’s favourite flaw. It seems that all too often, the very traits that we entered this profession for; wanting to be the best, wanting to do the best by our patients and colle...

• 🔉 Academic burnout

  [04/03/2024] Medical school seems to be synonymous with hard work, from long hours at the library to long shifts at the hospital, with little room to just be and little time for daylight, especially during the lon...

• 🔉 The lonely medics club

  [19/02/2024] We spend a lot of time in medical school working as a part of a team, either in class time, or in clinical teams like the MDT. Yet, medical school can be a very lonely place. We get taught a lot about...

• 🔉 Meet the multidisciplinary team

  [05/02/2024] This week, the panel explore the dynamics of the multidisciplinary teams that come together to look after patients in hospitals and in the community. Building on previous episodes which have explored...

• 🔉 Teamwork makes the dream work

  [22/01/2024] We’ve all had those placements where we’ve felt like a real part of the team, where we’ve felt really valued and included, and that we’ve got to know our colleagues even in our short time in a...

• 🔉 Why I (still) love medicine

  [08/01/2024]   Morale has been low in medicine recently. With ongoing industrial action and the recent AIMS study finding that almost ⅓ of us students plan to leave the NHS within two years of graduating, it ca...

• 🔉 Christmas on the wards

  [22/12/2023] The festive season is officially here! This time of year is all about spreading peace and goodwill, and if you’re looking for good will, one place you’re almost certain to find it is the NHS.   ...

• 🔉 Fake it ’til you make it

  [11/12/2023]   In medical school, it can all too often feel like everyone knows what they’re doing except you. Some people always seem to have this err of confidence to them. But does anyone really know what th...

• 🔉 How to study for medical school exams

  [27/11/2023] Starting medical school can be a shock to the system. From day 1, there is so much to learn, there’s exams to pass and all these new practical skills to get your head around. This podcast is all abo...

• 🔉 The social life of medics (with Christina Aaliyah)

  [13/11/2023] They say nobody parties harder than medical students, but is that really true? What do our panellists think? Long-time listeners of sharp scratch may remember the fresher’s firsts: socialising episo...

• 🔉 The medical school scaries

  [30/10/2023] Spooky season is here, and sometimes there is nothing scarier than a medical degree. From broken bones, to early morning buses, we medics are fond of a horror story.   This episode, to celebrate hall...

• 🔉 Replay: How not to bomb your OSCEs

  [27/10/2023] Here at sharp scratch, we are taking a short break, so in the meantime we'd like to highlight some of our favourite episodes from the archive. I thought these episodes might be particularly helpful fo...

• 🔉 Replay: The first generation medical students

  [19/10/2023] Here at Sharp Scratch, we’re taking a short summer break, so in the meantime we’d like to highlight some of our favourite episodes from our archive. I thought these episodes might be particularly...

• 🔉 Replay: Academic first times

  [06/10/2023] We are taking a short summer break from Sharp Scratch, so in the meantime we’d like to highlight some of our favourite episodes from our archive. I thought these episodes might be particularly helpf...

• 🔉 Replay: Starting University

  [29/09/2023] Here at Sharp Scratch, we’re taking a short summer break, so in the meantime we’d like to highlight some of our favourite episodes from our archive. I thought these episodes might be particularly...

• 🔉 The 100th episode

  [07/08/2023] Join all of the previous hosts as we celebrate 100 episodes of Sharp Scratch!   Check us out on social media: Twitter: https://twitter.com/BMJStudent  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bmj_studen...

• 🔉 A problem shared is a problem halved

  [29/06/2023] Medicine can be challenging sometimes, and while there are often formal support structures in place such as welfare teams or occupational health to deal with acute events, or ongoing struggles, what a...

• 🔉 Medical milestones

  [06/06/2023] Milestones in medicine are often thought of as getting over the next professional hurdle - we’re always thinking about passing our next exam, advancing to our next year of medical school or training...

• 🔉 The first generation medical students

  [15/05/2023] Starting university or medical school can be a daunting experience for anyone, but when you’re the first person in your family to study medicine, it can feel even scarier. In today’s episode, we...

• 🔉 How good is a good enough doctor?

  [26/04/2023] When we think of being a ‘good enough’ medical student, our thoughts might go straight to exams. Have we passed them all? What about merits, or even distinctions? It’s easy to prioritise exam sc...

• 🔉 Is the grass greener elsewhere?

  [08/04/2023] Given the current working conditions in the UK, we’re hearing more and more stories of doctors moving abroad to practise medicine. However, this isn’t necessarily unusual. Doctors and other health...

• 🔉 How do I choose a specialty?

  [29/03/2023] From the moment you start medical school, you’re asked the same question - ‘what kind of doctor are you going to be?’. Whilst some know from the very beginning that they’re going to be a surge...

• 🔉 Baptism of fire: starting in the NHS

  [16/03/2023] From the lingering effects of the pandemic to ongoing industrial action, it is a turbulent time to be working in healthcare. As medical students about to start working in this profession, it can feel...

• 🔉 Being yourself at work

  [28/02/2023] Every consultation we have with a patient reveals something about us - sometimes we do that deliberately, sometimes it's just incidental - but we always bring something of ourselves to the consultatio...

• 🔉 Behind the scenes at The BMJ

  [16/02/2023] Maybe you’ve been following BMJ Student for a really long time, or maybe you’re new to following us. Perhaps you only know about Sharp Scratch, or you’ve written and worked with us before. Howev...

• 🔉 Sharing is caring

  [02/02/2023] We’ve talked before about how one's own experience of illness can affect their practice, but does it also influence how much you share with your patients? In today’s episode we’re going to be ta...

• 🔉 What’s in a name?

  [18/01/2023] Some supervisors say "call me Bob'' but others insist on "Doctor Jones". In this episode we're reflecting on what types of supervisors fall into each camp and why sometimes using professional titles f...

• 🔉 Nothing like Grey’s Anatomy

  [04/01/2023] From Casualty, Holby City, and Cardiac Arrest to Grey’s Anatomy, Scrubs and House, medical TV dramas are part of the fabric of growing up interested in a career in medicine. So today we’re discuss...

• 🔉 It’s not just you, medicine is weird

  [08/12/2022] Medicine is a career unlike almost any other. As medical students and junior doctors, we’ve had a lot of experience with strange, surreal moments. The first time you ask a super invasive question to...

• 🔉 I’m a (Phobic) Medical Student… Get Me Out of Here!

  [24/11/2022] Medicine is occasionally like the reality TV show I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! in that some of the things we have to do are just unpleasant, whereas other parts may be phobia-inducing. But...

• 🔉 Everyone has an accent

  [10/11/2022] Accents and dialects are influenced by so many different things including race, gender, and class. They change frequently depending on where we are, who we are with, and even what we are trying to get...

• 🔉 Compassionate medical schools

  [27/10/2022] Any medical student knows that medical school can be tough. The hours are long, the work is hard, and stress can build quickly. Throughout all of this, we’re taught about compassion - how to be a co...

• 🔉 Students, sex work, and stigma

  [13/10/2022] The relationship between our personal and professional identity has always been an important part of the conversations we have here on Sharp Scratch. What doctors and medical students do in their own...

• 🔉 Being out of your depth

  [22/09/2022] A career in medicine can sometimes mean stepping outside of your comfort zone. No matter what stage of your career you are in, it is likely that you will have to manage uncertainty, and will occasiona...

• 🔉 Starting university

  [12/09/2022] Starting university can be a really exciting and really nerve-wracking time. There are so many questions you might have before you start. How do you know what to pack? How do you make friends? How do...

• 🔉 Concerns about a colleague

  [01/09/2022] Medicine is a team sport. We work with multi-disciplinary teams to deliver patient care. However, there may be times when you will work with a colleague who worries you professionally. You may find it...

• 🔉 Prescribed personalities

  [21/07/2022] Have you ever felt like you had to dial up an aspect of your personality in order to fit in on placement? When going on placement, there may be times when you feel like ‘the odd one out’. But do y...

• 🔉 Understanding your payslip (special segment)

  [07/07/2022] This is a special segment from the Sharp Scratch episode - what med school didn’t teach you about money. Have you received your first payslip and not sure whether you have been paid correctly? List...

• 🔉 What med school didn’t teach you about money w/ Medics Money

  [07/07/2022] At med school, we are trained to interpret blood tests but not much (if at all) on how to interpret your payslip. Financial literacy doesn’t feature much in our medical curriculum but it’s an impo...

• 🔉 Do doctors do what they preach

  [23/06/2022] At medical school, we learn about the importance of healthy health behaviours and promote them to patients at consultations. But do you always do what you preach? In this episode, we chatted about th...

• 🔉 Too much medicine

  [26/05/2022] “Do no harm” is a mantra that is drummed into medical students from day 1 of medical school. Most of us have gone into medicine as we believe medicine to be a force of good. However, too much medi...

• 🔉 Funding medical school

  [12/05/2022] Along with the general public, medical students are feeling the cost-of-living crunch. How are medical students faring with the increasing cost of living? In this episode, medical students from outsid...

• 🔉 See it, say it, sorted?

  [28/04/2022] If you see something that doesn’t look right when going on placement, do you feel comfortable raising a concern? In this episode, we discuss the topic of raising concerns and the considerations that...

• 🔉 The role of medical students in activism

  [14/04/2022] As medical students progress through medical school, some students are becoming dissatisfied by the lack of attention to socially relevant healthcare issues in the conventional curriculum, and begin t...

• 🔉 Patient Confidential - is it okay to recount patients’ stories

  [31/03/2022] As healthcare professionals, we meet people from all walks of life and collect stories along the way — stories of illness and convalescence. When we hear interesting stories, there can be an urge to...

• 🔉 The clinical guideline will see you now

  [17/03/2022] Medical students are taught about and examined a lot on clinical guidelines. What is best for patients overall, as recommended in guidelines, may not be appropriate for individuals. Blanket recommenda...

• 🔉 There is no pill for homelessness

  [04/03/2022] There is often a debate about whether medicine is an art or a science. Our medical curriculum tends to favour the science bit, with pathophysiology of diseases and treatment algorithms dominating our...

• 🔉 Can you learn empathy?

  [17/02/2022] Empathy is one of the essential qualities of a good doctor. One way this is assessed at medical school is the use of objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) stations. The use of OSCEs in medi...

• 🔉 What you weren’t told about working as a junior doctor

  [07/02/2022] When going on placement, you are probably more interested in gaining experience in the clinical environment and less interested in how frequently doctors can take breaks. Doctors’ working conditi...

• 🔉 Publish or perish?

  [21/01/2022] Publications, presentations, citations - these are trophies that you can flash proudly on your CV. However, what medical students may underestimate, is the long hours required reading papers, processi...

• 🔉 Lost in translation

  [06/01/2022] As healthcare professionals, we work with people from a myriad of culture and countries. At times, some patients may need a little bit of help with English. We may also elicit language skills from our...

• 🔉 All I want for Christmas is...

  [10/12/2021] ‘Tis the season of giving and receiving gifts. In medicine, as demonstrated by the early phase of the pandemic, patients and the public may express gratitude towards healthcare staff by giving token...

• 🔉 Medical jargon 101

  [26/11/2021] FBC, BIBA, NBM - how many of these do you recognise? The healthcare system speaks an entirely different language. As healthcare professionals, our vocabulary is full of jargon and acronyms, and it’s...

• 🔉 Planet Earth on Red Alert

  [11/11/2021] The climate crisis is a health crisis. In this episode, we explored how climate change will affect how we practise medicine, the importance of sustainable healthcare practice and what you can start do...

• 🔉 Superstitions in medicine

  [01/11/2021] Do you hold any superstitions? We are trained as evidence-based healthcare practitioners, yet there are some superstitions that still persist in medicine. Superstition is an example of confirmation b...

• 🔉 Mind the gender health gap

  [21/10/2021] The government launched a Women's Health Strategy to improve health and wellbeing of women in March 2021 as the UK was found to have the largest female health gap in the G20 countries and the 12th lar...

• 🔉 What is the hidden curriculum?

  [07/10/2021] Join our Editorial Scholars, past and present, as we reflect on the hidden curriculum, and discuss its role in cultivating professionalism. While you are here, do check us out on social media: Twitter...

• 🔉 Do you have a mentor?

  [24/09/2021] What do med students have in common with Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter? Luke Skywalker had Obi Wan to guide him through Jedi training. Harry Potter had Prof Dumbledore who gave him advice in survivi...

• 🔉 Tips for clinical years

  [02/09/2021] This week the panel discusses their tips for clinical years. From the logistics of commuting and hospital accommodation to speaking to your first patient - tune in to hear the panel's reflections and...

• 🔉 Should I intercalate?

  [06/08/2021] This week Nikki and Anna are joined by Professor Doug Corfield from The University of Manchester Medical School to talk all things intercalation. From why to take a year out to all of the logistics in...

• 🔉 Imposter Syndrome

  [09/07/2021] This week Nikki and Issy are joined by general surgical registrar Clara Munro, and author and co-founder of the Impostor Syndrome Institute, Valerie Young to talk about imposter syndrome in medicine....

• 🔉 Will my hobbies make me a better doctor?

  [25/06/2021] This week the panel are still talking about their hobbies, and what their motivations are for pursuing them. From music to sports, photography to Netflix - do the skills we pick up help us become bett...

• 🔉 I tried to do everything and I had one or two breakdowns a term..

  [11/06/2021] How many times have you been surprised to find out about a coursemate's hidden talent? Perhaps you've discovered they were Grade 8 Cello when they were 11, or that they were an olympic athlete in a pa...

• 🔉 Inclusive Practice

  [21/05/2021] This week the panel are joined by Michael Brady, the national advisor for LGBT Health to discuss why your patient’s queerness might matter to you, and how to practice inclusively, as well as an inte...

• 🔉 Queer Allyship

  [07/05/2021] This week the panel are joined by Eli Fitzgerald to discuss what an ally actually is. Find out what makes someone a good (or a bad) ally, as well as how to be an ally for your patients or colleagues....

• 🔉 Queerness in Medicine

  [23/04/2021] Episode 51: Queerness in medicine This week the panel are joined by Dr Joseph Hartland, a doctor who works at the University of Bristol Medical School overseeing the teaching of diversity and protecte...

• 🔉 Why do you want to be a doctor?

  [09/04/2021] It's the age old medical school interview question - but why did we initially want to become doctors? Do those reasons still stand, or are they replaced by stronger motives? Listen to the panel discus...

• 🔉 Working hard or hardly working

  [26/03/2021] Do you have a healthy work-life balance? Find out what actually counts as work, and whether medicine means sacrificing your social life... This week the team are joined by Sharp Scratch’s old friend...

• 🔉 The F word

  [08/03/2021] Why is academic failure surrounded by shame and guilt? Find out what support is available for students, and why failing may make you a better doctor in the long term. This week the panel are joined by...

• 🔉 Tackling the hospital tech

  [19/02/2021] This week the team talk about all the tech you might face working in the NHS - from bleeps and fax machines to slow computers. Find out if you’re allowed to use WhatsApp, what the alternatives are,...

• 🔉 Naps & night shifts

  [05/02/2021] This week the team are joined by Mike Farquhar, Consultant in sleep medicine at Evelina London Children’s Hospital, to talk about sleep and fatigue in medical school and beyond. Morning lark, or n...

• 🔉 Being at a birth

  [22/01/2021] This week the team are joined by Lucy Chappell, Professor in Obstetrics at King’s College London and Honorary Consultant Obstetrician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust. The panel refl...

• 🔉 Festive ’Agony Aunt’ (part 2)

  [08/01/2021] The team gathered to respond to our listeners' medical school dilemmas. Some of the med students wanted to be anonymous so some of the dilemmas are voiced by actors and friends! On this episode, Nikki...

• 🔉 Festive ’Agony Aunt’ (part 1)

  [23/12/2020] The team gathered to respond to our listeners' medical school dilemmas. Some of the med students wanted to be anonymous so some of the dilemmas are voiced by actors and friends! On this episode, Nikki...

• 🔉 Too girly to be a doctor

  [11/12/2020] This week the team explore ideas of professionalism, and whether our concept of this as a society is more ‘masculine’. With our guest Dr Kate Lovett, the panel discussed their own experiences and...

• 🔉 ”Apparently one of the students has already fainted..”

  [27/11/2020] Vasovagal syncope might be a diagnosis on your list of differentials that seems relatively benign, as there are many more sinister causes for a sudden loss of consciousness. But no one wants a sudden...

• 🔉 Specialty Stereotypes

  [06/11/2020] You may be familiar with some common medical speciality stereotypes – the ‘tall, strong orthopaedic surgeon from the medics rugby team’, the psychiatrist who is ‘as mad as their patients’ or...

• 🔉 Being a patient as a medical student

  [23/10/2020] Have you ever noticed a difference in the way you're treated as a patient? Whether you were quizzed by your consultant or given 'special treatment', you're not alone - but how important is this, and d...

• 🔉 Medical student syndrome

  [09/10/2020] As you sit in a lecture, listening to the symptoms of a rare medical condition - have you convinced yourself that you have it? You might have medical student syndrome. This week the panel are joined b...

• 🔉 Fresher’s firsts: Socialising

  [28/09/2020] *This episode was recorded live* This is a strange time to be starting your first year of medical school - covid-19 is changing the way in which you learn and socialise, and find out what being a med...

• 🔉 Freshers’ firsts : Academic first times

  [11/09/2020] *This episode was recorded live* This is a strange time to be starting your first year of medical school - covid-19 is changing the way in which you learn and socialise, and find out what being a medi...

• 🔉 How not to bomb your OSCEs

  [21/08/2020] *This episode was recorded before the extraordinary circumstances caused by covid-19* On this week's episode the panel are joined again by medical school expert David Brill, as they discuss how to a...

• 🔉 How to smash your med school exams

  [07/08/2020] This episode was recorded before the extraordinary circumstances caused by covid-19* On this week's episode the panel are joined by medical school expert David Brill to discuss all things written exam...

• 🔉 Fighting shame by talking about it

  [24/07/2020] This week we dig into shame in medicine - how students are taught using shame, how shame affects patients, and why the phrase "we ask this question to everyone" might not be the most useful way of sig...

• 🔉 Learning online

  [10/07/2020] So much learning for medical students has moved online - with varying degrees of success for both teachers and learners. This week we hear some of our listeners' top tips for protecting your wellbeing...

• 🔉 Should you give that casual consultation?

  [26/06/2020] Could you just have a look at...? It's a question lots of medical students and junior doctors encounter from friends and family - rashes, moles and sometimes even haemorrhoids all seem to be fair game...

• 🔉 How competitive are you?

  [11/06/2020] The panel are joined by one of Anna's academic heroes to discuss competition in medicine. Whilst we all agree a little friendly rivalry can help us learn, how can we make sure competitiveness doesn't...

• 🔉 Sharp Scratch, talking evidence

  [29/05/2020] This week the Sharp Scratch panel are joined by BMJ podcast veteran Helen Macdonald, one of the hosts of The BMJ's Talk Evidence. We talk evidence based medicine, including getting your head around th...

• 🔉 Leaving medicine

  [18/05/2020] This week, the Sharp Scratch team is joined by Dr Fiona Godlee, Editor in Chief of The BMJ to talk about what it's like to leave clinical medicine, and how it can be challenging to lose your medical i...

• 🔉 What med students can learn from a Saturday job

  [01/05/2020] This week the Sharp Scratch team welcome two brand new panel members to talk about interesting jobs outside of medicine, and what we might be able to learn from a crappy Saturday job. This week's cont...

• 🔉 Should a doctor have a tattoo?

  [17/04/2020] **This podcast was recorded before the extraordinary circumstances due to the covid-19 outbreak.** Following on from our episode on what to wear on the wards, this week the Sharp Scratch team and exp...

• 🔉 You’re suddenly a doctor - what does interim FY1 mean

  [10/04/2020] We're joined by Professor Colin Melville from the General Medical Council (GMC) on this slightly unusual episode of Sharp Scratch. We talk about the role of the GMC in regulating new doctors and plans...

• 🔉 Covid-19

  [03/04/2020] This week on Sharp Scratch, we interrupt our scheduled podcasts to bring you a special bumper episode where we discuss the topic on everyone's minds: covid-19. We hear from medical students and junior...

• 🔉 What to wear on the wards

  [20/03/2020] **This podcast was recorded before the extraordinary circumstances due to the covid-19 outbreak.** Picking out clothes to wear on the wards is less straightforward than you might think. This week,...

• 🔉 Anxiety

  [06/03/2020] Anxiety's a natural part of life - under certain circumstances. And we know that med students and junior docs are more likely than other groups to suffer from anxiety disorders and depression. This we...

• 🔉 Yvonne Coghill is trying to fix racism in the NHS

  [28/02/2020] In this week's special episode of Sharp Scratch, we've got something a little different for you! Last week the panel talked microaggressions, so this week we're hearing from an expert guest who is lea...

• 🔉 Racism in medicine

  [21/02/2020] In an episode to coincide with The BMJ's themes issue on racism in medicine, this week we talk people getting your name wrong, other microaggressions, and how racism can literally break your heart. We...

• 🔉 Working with patients

  [06/02/2020] Every day hundreds of patients give up their time to help train medical students. Some work closely with medical schools, as expert patients who lead hands on teaching sessions, or helping develop the...

• 🔉 Working with the multidisciplinary team

  [24/01/2020] We've spoken before on Sharp Scratch about how med students and junior docs can make friends with more senior doctors (like in episode two, when we talked about referrals). But there's a host of other...

• 🔉 New year resolutions

  [09/01/2020] January is traditionally a time when people make all sorts of promises to themselves - often around food, exercise or work. But sometimes these New Year's Resolutions might put us at risk of putting o...

• 🔉 Doctor’s first Christmas

  [20/12/2019] Christmas bells are ringing! It's a day that comes for all those who work shifts: your first holiday season at work. How can you bring a little festive cheer to the ward? We hear from some clinicians...

• 🔉 Gallows humour

  [05/12/2019] It's happened to every medic: relatives start telling you off for your dinnertime topic choices; non-medical friends probe and then sit in shock as you tell your latest morbid hospital joke. Some peop...

• 🔉 Making ends meet

  [21/11/2019] Sharp Scratch is all about bringing the hidden curriculum to light - so it's time to get real about another hidden aspect of medicine: the financial commitments of studying and being a junior doc. Hid...

• 🔉 What you can do on social media

  [07/11/2019] Med students and doctors of the 21st century often use social media for work and leisure. We all hear the same spiel from our med schools about being safe online - but social media can also be used fo...

• 🔉 Documenting death

  [24/10/2019] As med students and junior doctors, we encounter death more than the general population. But what do you actually do when you're called to the ward to see a patient who has died - and what happens aft...

• 🔉 Coping with death

  [11/10/2019] As med students and junior doctors, we'll encounter death more than the general population. So how do we cope with the emotional strain this can bring? How do you support colleagues who are grieving?...

• 🔉 Being a sick doctor

  [26/09/2019] Last time we talked about getting ill, and taking some sick days - but what happens when you realise that your illness doesn’t have an end date, and if you’re going to return to work at all, then...

• 🔉 How sick, is sick enough, to call in sick?

  [13/09/2019] Med students and docs face pressure to keeping working when they are poorly - compulsory classes, stretched rotas and knackered colleagues, and pride or stigma masquerading as self discipline or resil...

• 🔉 The dating life of new doctors

  [29/08/2019] Who’s off limits when it comes to dating, how renal physiology can ruin your chance of romance, and whether you should put that you’re a doctor on your tindr profile. Dating as a newly qualified d...

• 🔉 Keeping your relationship alive when you become a doctor

  [16/08/2019] The secrets of true love, how being a new doctor affects your sex life, and whether it’s a good idea to date a medic in the first place. Becoming a doctor brings new challenges to romantic relations...

• 🔉 Tips for new doctors

  [01/08/2019] Your first day of being a doctor is very different to anything in medical school. What can we learn from those who have just finished their first year? What do they wish they had known? Join medical s...

• 🔉 Making your first mistake

  [19/07/2019] You've made a mistake. What goes through your mind? How do you share this with your team? Why is it important to recognise the role of systems and human factors in making mistakes? And how do you move...

• 🔉 How to treat someone who’s racist or sexist

  [05/07/2019] What happens when you’re treating a patient, and they say something offensive - do you have a duty to continue treating them? Is it OK to walk away? And whatever you choose, will there be consequenc...

• 🔉 Working with arsehole doctors

  [20/06/2019] You’re on the ward round. Doctor shouts at med student. What happens next? Join medical students Laura and Ryhan, newly qualified doctor Chidera, and Simon Fleming, orthopod reg and founder of #Ham...

• 🔉 Why CPR isn’t like on TV

  [07/06/2019] Join medical students Laura and Declan, newly qualified doctor Chidera, and CEO of Resuscitation Council UK Sue as we figure out what to expect the first time that we observe or take part in a CPR eve...

• 🔉 How to start a project that could actually change something

  [24/05/2019] Why projects fail, how one med student transformed her local emergency department, and why you should go looking for the people in the hospital basement. Join medical students Laura, Ryhan, Declan, an...

• 🔉 How to refer a patient without p*ssing off the med reg

  [09/05/2019] Why the hospital switchboard is the friend you never knew you had, how using emotions can help you refer a patient, and what it takes to make a med reg hang up the phone on you. We learn management f...

• 🔉 Sharp Scratch episode 1: Surviving the night shift

  [26/04/2019] Why nights shifts mess with your brain, how astronauts will cope with the time difference on Mars, and the power of frozen grapes when you need a boost. Join medical students Laura, Ryhan, Declan, and...

• 🔉 What is Sharp Scratch?

  [19/04/2019] What is Sharp Scratch. Laura Nunez-Mulder is here to introduce Sharp Scratch, the new podcast from The BMJ. We're here to talk about the "hidden curriculum" all of those things that new medics are sup...