Nick Hopkinson

Lung Disease and Social Justice: COPD as a Manifestation of Structural Violence atsjournals.org/doi/full/10.11… @atscommunity @asthmalunguk @ATSBlueEditor /n

August edition of Thorax - out now. thorax.bmj.com/content/81/8?c…

What have doctors lost: 1. Any real say in how the NHS is run; using government appointed advisors is no substitute for properly representing doctors - which should be democratically determined by election from within the profession 2. Any real say in how doctors are regulated; the GMC council is now 50% lay and all appointments are made or agreed by the privy council 3. Any real say in how doctors are trained; ultimately formal training numbers are constrained by government and fiduciary concerns and training phas historically relied on a lot of pro bono work and goodwill from within the profession 4. Any real say in how healthcare is delivered; most doctors oppose doctor substitution but are ignored as government seeks healthcare professionals who are quicker and cheaper to train and employ and more malleable in terms of specialty and geography What’s really invidious is that patients and the public are not being properly informed about the huge changes in healthcare that are already happening and being planned. The care of patients and the public is being put at risk without any truly informed and transparent public debate. @TheBMA

Hot weather advice from @asthmalunguk for people with lung disease. #Asthma #COPD asthmaandlung.org.uk/living-with/ho…

The Independent Int'l Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory presents new report to the UN Human Rights Council. "The evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted & killed by the Israeli security forces." ohchr.org/sites/default/…

“Between October 7, 2023 and October 7, 2025, at least 20,179 children were killed, around 30% of the overall death toll.”

A new study of 105 people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease #COPD found that daily #walking can worsen cough and phlegm on days with high black carbon concentrations, a pollutant primarily from traffic emissions. That suggests actions to ensure accessible low-traffic spaces to walk 🚶🏽‍♀️are paramount. While longer walking duration was linked to increased coughing and expectoration overall, this effect was significantly amplified only when #blackcarbon levels were high. Importantly, walking activity alone was associated with higher cough and wheezing, potentially due to its role in clearing airways, but the benefits of regular #physicalactivity for COPD prognosis should not be discouraged. thorax.bmj.com/content/early/…

Review: A London Lark Rising - the story of the people and places of the East India Company. @sensorinet @bmj_latest bmj.com/content/393/bm…

As expected, Royal College of Physicians rejects the proposal that GMC should retain a right of appeal. Williams review called for this to be removed, this was promised, and that promise must be kept. rcp.ac.uk/news-and-media…

"While I was sitting there a group of angry white women came and pulled me out of the seat". Joyce Sikakane's meticulous lived account of the monstrous crime of apartheid. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Sik…

"The history and people of the UK and India are deeply entwined." @COPDdoc reviews "A London Lark Rising", a play exploring the story of the people and places of the East India Company bmj.com/content/393/bm…

This is a deeply distressing case. No child should have to endure such pain, and no parent should be left carrying the guilt and trauma that this family has experienced Patients and families have a right to know if the person providing treatment is or is not a doctor. Almost a year since its publication, key recommendations of Professor Leng’s review remain unfulfilled, despite being accepted by Government.

Thorax Editorial: The goal of the tobacco endgame is that no one starts to smoke, that everyone who smokes is supported to quit and that reductions in consumption and profitability mean that the tobacco industry, which continues to be the main barrier to progress, ceases to be commercially viable. thorax.bmj.com/content/early/…

Commuting podcast: Social media companies are using the tobacco industry playbook to addict children. Discovery during court proceedings confirms the malice and addictive intent of social media companies. thebmjpodcast.podbean.com/e/social-media… @bmj_latest

Still this.

The BMA remains concerned and calls on the Israeli government to immediately release all arbitrarily detained Palestinian healthcare workers, including Dr Hussam Abu Safiya. With @AmnestyUK we have written to the foreign secretary demanding action to ensure that the Israeli government adheres to international law and medical neutrality. bma.org.uk/what-we-do/wor…

The five women who embroidered this were murdered in Gaza by an Israeli airstrike in 2024.

@parthaskar @RichardLehman1 @DrLKVaughan @DrAsifQasim @KamranAbbasi @doctor_oxford @RslewisSally @ShivaniM_KC @COPDdoc @DrSelvarajah @VictoriaTzB His pinned Tweet says it all. RIP🙏🏼

A formal request from @creared_ for a thematic hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, to address abuses by the tobacco industry. @AshOrg @TobaccoFreeKids @StopCorpAbuse creared.org/request-for-a-…