David Oliver (doctor)

Last updated

David Oliver
Born (1966-01-13) 13 January 1966 (age 57)
Nationality English
OccupationPhysician
Known forPast President of the British Geriatrics Society
blogger
Medical career
Professiondoctor
Fieldgeriatric medicine

David Oliver FRCP is a British physician specialising in the geriatric medicine and acute general internal medicine. He was President of the British Geriatrics Society from 2014 to 2016. He is Visiting Professor of Medicine for Older People in the School of Community and Health Sciences at City University London and a King's Fund Senior Visiting Fellow. He was formerly the UK Department of Health National Clinical Director for Older People's Services from 2009 to 2013. He is a researcher, writer, teacher and lecturer on services for older people and a regular blogger, columnist and media commentator. He was elected as Clinical Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians, London. In April 2022 he was elected as president of the Royal College of Physicians but withdrew in July 2022 after he had contracted Covid 19 and "no longer felt able to do it justice". [1]

Contents

Early life and postgraduate clinical training

He attended a state primary school, Northern Moor and Northenden in Manchester. He then attended Manchester Grammar School [2] before studying medicine at The Queen's College, Oxford and Trinity Hall, Cambridge. [3]

Senior clinical role

He gained his Certificate of Completion of Specialist Training in (General Internal and Geriatric Medicine) London in 1998. He initially worked in South London then from 2004 he held a General Internal Medicine position in Reading, now part of the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, [4]

Academic and research activities

Oliver began his research career whilst a registrar at St Thomas' Hospital in London. He gained his research doctorate from the University of London in 2001. He was a Senior Lecturer in the School of Health and Social care at the University of Reading from 2004 to 2009 alongside his consultant contract at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust. He has been involved with City University London. [5] He is a visiting professor at the University of Surrey. [6]

National leadership and advisory roles

Alongside his clinical work Oliver was on secondment to the Department of Health from 2009 to 2013, first as specialist clinical advisor leading the national programme of work on Falls and Bone Health [7] and then as National Clinical Director for Older Peoples Services. [8] In his government role he developed national policies around the care of older people, advised Ministers and officials and provided assistance to other clinicians with their own local services. He stood down to take on his role as BGS President-Elect, when National Clinical Director roles moved from the Department of Health to NHS England.

He became President of the British Geriatrics Society, in November 2014, having been appointed for a 2-year period. [9]

Opinions, media and commentary

Since July 2015 he has written a weekly freelance column for The BMJ called "Acute Perspective". Oliver has written blogs for the King's Fund, [10] The BMJ website, [11] the British Geriatrics Society and guest blogs for other sites such as the Nuffield Trust. He writes regular opinion pieces for the Health Service Journal and BMJ and others in the national and professional press. He regularly comments on services for older people in print and broadcast media. He has appeared on BBC 1 (The Big Questions, News); BBC News Channel, BBC Radio 4 and 5 and BBC World Service, on Sky News and on numerous local radio stations. He has been quoted in The Independent, The Times, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, Daily Mirror and Daily Mail. He was written for several other outlets in professional and general press.

He is a senior visiting fellow at the King's Fund. [10] In 2014, he was the lead author of the keynote Kings Fund Paper "Making Health and Care Systems fit for an Ageing Population". [12] He was also one of the commissioners for the Health Service Journal "Commission on Hospital Care for Frail Older People". [13] He has campaigned on discrimination against older people [14] in the British National Health Service, against the attitude being that the person is old and there is nothing that can be done about it. He challenges plans for large reductions in older people in acute hospitals, [15] saying it is "absolute la la land to think we’re going to be in a situation any time soon where older people don’t still keep piling through the doors of general hospitals." [16] [17] He has also written about the need to focus more on healthy ageing, [18] to make health and care professionals better trained in the care of older people. [19] He has criticised the large NHS spend on management consultancy [20] and pushed the case for NHS staff to learn more from other organisations within the NHS, [21] criticised the idea that more aggressive regulation and inspection and "accountability" can bring about quality improvement in services [22] and attacked contestible but prevalent "groupthink" and oft repeated "factoids" from the health policy "commentariat" [23] and made the case for improving the care for older people in nursing homes rather than pretending no-one will ever need or want to be admitted to one. [24]

Awards and honours

In 2014, he was named by the Health Service Journal as one of the top 100 Clinical Leaders in England [25] and as one of the top 50 Leaders in Integrated Care. [26]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geriatrics</span> Specialty that focuses on health care of elderly people

Geriatrics, or geriatric medicine, is a medical specialty focused on providing care for the unique health needs of older adults. The term geriatrics originates from the Greek γέρων geron meaning "old man", and ιατρός iatros meaning "healer". It aims to promote health by preventing, diagnosing and treating disease in older adults. There is no defined age at which patients may be under the care of a geriatrician, or geriatric physician, a physician who specializes in the care of elderly people. Rather, this decision is guided by individual patient need and the caregiving structures available to them. This care may benefit those who are managing multiple chronic conditions or experiencing significant age-related complications that threaten quality of daily life. Geriatric care may be indicated if caregiving responsibilities become increasingly stressful or medically complex for family and caregivers to manage independently.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kamran Abbasi</span> British physician and sports writer

Kamran Abbasi is the editor-in-chief of the British Medical Journal (BMJ), a physician, visiting professor at the Department of Primary Care and Public Health, Imperial College, London, editor of the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine(JRSM), journalist, cricket writer and broadcaster, who contributed to the expansion of international editions of the BMJ and has argued that medicine cannot exist in a political void.

Independent sector treatment centres (ISTCs) are private-sector owned treatment centres contracted within the English National Health Service to treat NHS patients free at the point of use. They are sometimes referred to as 'surgicentres' or ‘specialist hospitals’. ISTCs are often co-located with NHS hospitals. They perform common elective surgery and diagnostic procedures and tests. Typically they undertake 'bulk' surgery such as hip replacements, cataract operations or MRI scans rather than more complex operations such as neurosurgery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alder Hey Children's Hospital</span> Childrens hospital and NHS Foundation trust in West Derby, Liverpool, England

Alder Hey Children's Hospital is a children's hospital and NHS foundation trust in West Derby, Liverpool, England. It is one of the largest children's hospitals in the United Kingdom, and one of several specialist hospitals within the Liverpool City Region, alongside the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool Women's Hospital, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, the Walton Centre, Mersey Regional Burns and Plastic Surgery Unit, and Clatterbridge Cancer Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milton Keynes University Hospital</span> Hospital in England

Milton Keynes University Hospital is a district general hospital serving Milton Keynes, its local authority area and the surrounding area of Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Oxfordshire. It is located in the Eaglestone neighbourhood, and opened in 1984. It is managed by Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The hospital has an association with the University of Buckingham Medical School.

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) is one of England's largest acute teaching trusts. It was established on 1 April 2006 following the merger of Nottingham City Hospital and the Queen's Medical Centre NHS Trusts. They provide acute and specialist services to 2.5m people within Nottingham and surrounding communities at the Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) and the City Hospital campuses, as well as specialist services for a further 3-4m people from across the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Health Service (England)</span> Publicly-funded healthcare system in England

The National Health Service (NHS) is the publicly funded healthcare system in England, and one of the four National Health Service systems in the United Kingdom. It is the second largest single-payer healthcare system in the world after the Brazilian Sistema Único de Saúde. Primarily funded by the government from general taxation, and overseen by the Department of Health and Social Care, the NHS provides healthcare to all legal English residents and residents from other regions of the UK, with most services free at the point of use for most people. The NHS also conducts research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

Healthcare in England is mainly provided by the National Health Service (NHS), a public body that provides healthcare to all permanent residents in England, that is free at the point of use. The body is one of four forming the UK National Health Service as health is a devolved matter, there are differences with the provisions for healthcare elsewhere in the United Kingdom, and in England it is overseen by NHS England. Though the public system dominates healthcare provision in England, private health care and a wide variety of alternative and complementary treatments are available for those willing and able to pay.

Geriatric medicine, as a speciality, was introduced in Egypt in 1982, and in 1984 a geriatrics and gerontology unit in Ain Shams University Faculty of Medicine was established.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Dixon (doctor)</span> British general practitioner

Michael Dixon LVO, OBE, MA, FRCGP, FRCP is an English general practitioner and healthcare leader. He is Chair of The College of Medicine, Co-Chair of the National Social Prescribing Network, Visiting Professor at University College London and Westminster University and Head of the Royal Medical Household.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Kelsey</span>

Tim Kelsey is CEO of Beamtree,, an Australian healthcare company (ASX:BMT) based in Sydney, Australia. He started in the role in December 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Adrian Richards</span> Oncologist and cancer researcher

Professor Sir Michael Adrian Richards, CBE, MD, DSc (Hon), FRCP is a British oncologist. From 1999 to 2013 he was the National Cancer Director in the UK Government's Department of Health. He was appointed to be the Chief Inspector of Hospitals in the Care Quality Commission on 31 May 2013. and was said by the Health Service Journal to be the third most powerful person in the English NHS in December 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive Peedell</span> English doctor and politician

Clive Peedell is an English politician and doctor specialising in oncology. He is a co-founder and former leader of the National Health Action Party. He stood as the candidate for Witney against Prime Minister David Cameron in the 2015 United Kingdom general election.

West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust runs three National Health Services hospitals: Watford General Hospital, St Albans City Hospital and Hemel Hempstead Hospital, in Hertfordshire, England. It provides "acute healthcare services to a core catchment population of approximately half a million people living in west Hertfordshire and the surrounding area". The Trust also "serves people living in North London, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and East Hertfordshire".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Everington</span> British physician and administrator

Sir Anthony Herbert Everington, known as Sam Everington, is a GP at a health centre within the Bromley by Bow Centre, in Tower Hamlets, an area of East London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Harding</span> British general practitioner

Professor Nick Harding OBE BSc FRCGP FRCP HonMFPH DRCOG DOccMed PGDIP (Cardiology) SFFLM, born 21 December 1969, is a British general practitioner and Chief Medical Officer at Operose Health.

Professor Alan J Sinclair is a clinical scientist and diabetes specialist from Newcastle-under-Lyme, England.

Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) is a process used by healthcare practitioners to assess the status of people who are frail and older in order to optimize their subsequent management. These people often have complex, multiple and interdependent problems (multimorbidity) which make their care more challenging than in younger people, or those with just one medical problem. CGA is the core work of specialists in the care of older people, although many other health care practitioners either have not heard of it, or are not aware of what it actually is. It is also called "multidimensional geriatric assessment."

The Medication Appropriateness Tool for Comorbid Health conditions during Dementia (MATCH-D) criteria supports clinicians to manage medication use specifically for people with dementia without focusing only on the management of the dementia itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifford Mann</span> British Emergency Medicine physician (1962–2021)

Clifford John Mann OBE was a British Emergency Medicine physician, and President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine 2013–2016, becoming the first President of Royal College of Emergency Medicine when the organisation received its royal charter.

References

  1. "David Oliver: My personal pandemic experience is just one of many". British Medical Journal. 20 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  2. Murray, Kate (15 October 2014). "Guardian Society > Interview > David Oliver: Older People are Not A Burden". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  3. Twitter https://twitter.com/mancunianmedic/status/1254494928899579910 . Retrieved 5 October 2020.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. "Wards and services: Elderly Care: Hurley Ward". Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust . Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  5. "City academics contribute to report on the frail elderly" (Press release). City University London. 19 November 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  6. "School of Health Sciences: People: Visiting staff: Professor David Oliver". University of Surrey . Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  7. "Report to the Minister of State for Care Services: Breaking through. Better services for people with Falls and Fractures in England". Age UK and National Osteoporosis Society. February 2012. Archived from the original on 1 August 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  8. "Professor David Oliver, National Clinical Director for Older People". Department of Health (United Kingdom). 8 August 2011. Archived from the original on 4 January 2012.
  9. "About us: Trustees Board and Officers: David Oliver". British Geriatrics Society. 12 June 2014. Archived from the original on 25 December 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  10. 1 2 "Who's who: David Oliver. Visiting Fellow". King's Fund . Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  11. "BMJ Blogs. David Oliver". BMJ . Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  12. Oliver D, Foot C, Humphries R. Making our health and care systems fit for an ageing population. Kings Fund. March 2014. At http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/making-our-health-and-care-systems-fit-ageing-population
  13. "Health Service Journal/ Serco Commission on Hospital Care for Frail Older People" (PDF). Health Service Journal. November 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  14. Oliver, David (April 2008). "'Acopia' and 'social admission' are not diagnoses :why older people deserve better". Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine . 101 (4): 168–174. doi:10.1258/jrsm.2008.080017. PMC   2312388 . PMID   18387906.
  15. Oliver, D (2014). "Preventing hospital admission: We need evidence based policy rather than "policy based evidence"". BMJ. 349: g5538. doi:10.1136/bmj.g5538. PMID   25249450. S2CID   206903341.
  16. Calkin, Sarah (11 March 2013). "Ex-older people's tsar criticises out of hospital obsession". Health Service Journal. Retrieved 24 November 2014.(subscription required)
  17. Oliver, D (2014). "David Oliver: Pet hate--privatisation by stealth". BMJ. 349: g6297. doi:10.1136/bmj.g6297. PMID   25338499. S2CID   36286855.
  18. Oliver, David (6 August 2014). "Ageing well. Whose responsibility is it?". The Guardian . Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  19. Oliver, D (2012). "Transforming care for older people in hospital: Physicians must embrace the challenge". Clinical Medicine. 12 (3): 230–234. doi: 10.7861/clinmedicine.12-3-230 . PMC   4953484 . PMID   22783773.
  20. Oliver, D (2014). "Stop wasting taxpayers' money on management consultancy for the NHS". BMJ. 349: g7243. doi:10.1136/bmj.g7243. PMID   25491703. S2CID   44374593.
  21. David Oliver HSJ 28 October 2014. Why no-one is responsible for ensuring best practice in hospitals. At http://www.hsj.co.uk/comment/frail-older-people/why-no-one-is-responsible-for-ensuring-best-practice-in-hospitals/5075988.article
  22. David Oliver. HSJ 15 January 2014 More accountability and regulation could punish the system at http://www.hsj.co.uk/comment/more-accountability-and-regulation-could-punish-the-system/5066958.article
  23. David Oliver. HSJ 5 August 2014 beware false solutions to the NHS challenges. At http://www.hsj.co.uk/comment/beware-the-false-solutions-to-the-nhss-challenges/5073477.article
  24. David Oliver. Kings Fund Blog. Admission to a nursing home can never be a never event. At http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/blog/2014/08/admission-nursing-home-can-never-become-never-event
  25. Trivedi, Shreshtha; Read, Claire (21 October 2014). "Clinical Leaders 2014". Health Service Journal . Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  26. Golding, Nick (13 June 2014). "Care Integration Top 50 leaders revealed". Health Service Journal. Retrieved 26 December 2014.