Dr Copperfield Reviews

Andrew Lansley and his SpAds have asked to see copies of Dr Tony Copperfield's SICK NOTES (free extract here). It certainly contains lots more examples of waste, where cash which might be spent on patients is instead shovelled into the gaping bureaucratic maw.

Meanwhile, here are a few online reviews of the book:

Fellow GP Dr Jest says: 'I suspect this book will be regarded as something of a niche market publication, but I hope it manages a wider circulation... if I have one wish it is to make it compulsory reading for all PCT managers and Chief Executives. Indeed I’m thinking of passing my copy on to our own Beloved Leader, assuming it’s still in a fit state when my partners have done with it. I get the feeling there is a real gulf of understanding between our two disciplines, and I think Tony Copperfield might have give us a means of bridging the divide. So if you’re an NHS administrator, a politician in or aiming for the Health Department, or if you’re remotely interested in the workings of our shared profession, you owe it to yourself to read this book.' 

Hospital consultant Dr Zorro says: 'Although I was offered a free copy of the book to review I chose instead to buy my copy. Among other reasons this I think allows me more impartiality than if I had accepted the gift. The cost of the book was money well spent. This book should be read by doctors , managers and patients, and anyone else who is concerned about the state of our NHS.'

Northern Doctor confesses to a slight discomfort at Copperfield's apparently endless bad days, but adds that the book 'beautifully highlights some of the more ludicrous examples of the NHS at its most wasteful. When it comes to shooting bureaucratic fish in a barrel Copperfield is one of the finest shots in the NHS.'

The chemists are less gushing ('Pharmacists snarl at GP's remarks').