Time to Heal

Time to Heal; Tales of a Country Doctor tells the story of the colourful life of a country doctor towards the end of his career. In turn shocking, sad and funny, they describe a doctor who feels poorly served by the conventional medicine of his time and finds new ways to relieve the suffering of his patients. This tale has a twist. Twenty-first-century General Practice and its patients have been betrayed by top-heavy regulation, performance management and a blame culture. Young doctors no longer want to enter General Practice. The author explores why and how pandemics might provide the answers.

Michael Dixon has been a country general practitioner in Cullompton, Devon for thirty-five years. His experiences during these years have taken him from being a conventional family doctor to having an increasing interest in complementary medicine and social prescribing, all influenced by his patients' colourful stories. He has written extensively on medicine and the health service and was previously President of the Guild of Health Writers and the health columnist for SHE magazine. Today, in his late 60s, he continues as a part-time GP and is Chair of the College of Medicine, Visiting Professor at University College London and Health Advisor to HRH The Prince of Wales.