“Profanity is the crutch of the conversational cripple..”
David Keuck
What we have here is the cover of the first issue of the Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal, published 3 October 1840. We all know this journal, now officially the BMJ. It is a proud publication, with a long history and tradition. One of these is its rivalry with the Lancet, annoyingly first published in 1823. Another is the Christmas edition, which usually contains a few lighter hearted pieces of research. 2024 is no exception. The University of Leeds has conducted research into the dexterity of hospital staff, using the Buzz Wire game. This game has been validated as a tool to test manual dexterity, hand eye coordination, spatial awareness, steadiness and the handling of stress. The goal was to complete a loop of the wire without error in a 5 minute window. 84% of surgeons completed the task, compared to 57% of physicians, 54% of nurses and 51% of non-clinical staff (P<0.001}. They also found that 50% of surgeons swore, 30% of nurses, 25% of physicians, and 23% of non-clinical staff. They concluded the surgeons are indeed the dexterous of hospital staff and the most likely to employ offensive language to deflect stress. #nosupriseshere #letsmakelemonade
Pen Paint and Scalpel 