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 29th February 2012... it really started at a whim. Blogging. Sitting in a cafe in Paris...

Looking back, it was supposed to be sort of like a personal diary. Reading that blog suggests there never were any great expectations that many would read it but, over time, some have taken the time to read the rants, pontifications, lectures, wisdom... call it any which way you want - whoever you are - thank you for reading and passing on your thoughts. It has been much fun indeed... or at the very least, cathartic.

Time moves at pace... and when you are having fun, before you know, four years and a bit of blogging have whizzed by... and here today, I pen my 200th blog. And this one is dedicated to one of my pet bugbears (No, it's not the HSJ - behave yourself!) but the airline analogy the NHS uses when it comes to patient safety.

And it's frustrating to no end.. .do you ask why? It's because the airlines really do have much to teach us, but unfortunately the lessons which we can learn are lost in vacuous soundbytes and tokenism towards patient safety.

To begin with, if you are going to use airlines as a barometer for safety, then one cannot pick and choose which bits are to be used and what not. The culture of learning from mistakes is one to be admired and learnt from but without forgetting the professional approach taken by the airline industry towards it.

Let's begin with training. There isn't a single airline in the world which allows its planes to be flown by those not trained. Imagine the sheer emotions if your pilot casually mentioned that he hadn't actually trained in flying the plane or indeed got a certificate to prove his or her training. There's a sheer belief as a passenger that the person flying the plane is trained. 

To read more, click here. 

Hampshire healthcare professionals are coming together for an event designed to help people understand their diabetes better.

The Diabetes Wellness Day South brings together a wealth of information under one roof on Saturday, June 25. To read more, click here. 

Newly diagnosed people in Kent are to be given a free information pack about diabetes, a charity has announced.

The Paula Carr Diabetes Trust, which is based in Ashford, will be distributing the documents to all GP surgeries and people with diabetes across Kent and Medway. To read more, click here.

An NHS trust in the North East has been presented with a national gold award for its commitment to staff training in diabetes.

The City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust received the Virtual College award at the seventh Clinical Symposium earlier this month. To read more, click here. 

A leading diabetes charity is backing Jamie Oliver’s call for the Government to publish a childhood obesity strategy immediately.

Diabetes UK, which is part of the Obesity Health Alliance, said it wants to see more done to fight the growing problem of obesity. To read more, click here. 

The role of the healthcare professionals in diabetes care will be the theme for the next All-Party Parliamentary Group for Diabetes meeting.

It will take place on Wednesday, July 6 from 4pm and will further discuss the investigation which was launched by the APPG into diabetes care. To read more, click here. 

The dates for next year’s International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Congress have been announced.

The four day event, which is due to take place in Abi Dhabi, will start on Monday, December 4, 2017.

The IDF conference brings together healthcare professionals, diabetes associations, policy-makers and companies to share the latest findings in research into the condition. To read more, click here. 

A free booklet for schools containing essential information about diabetes has been published by a charity.

The InDependent Diabetes Trust has released the 16-page information document as part of a campaign to drive up standards of care for pupils with diabetes in light of recent legislation.

To read more, click here. 

A diabetes charity has donated a state-of-the-art treadmill to a research centre to help progress research into the condition.

Silver Star Diabetes has handed over the exercise equipment specially adapted for people with diabetes worth £17,000 to the Leicester Diabetes Centre to help support studies into type 2.

To read more, click here. 

A doctor who established an international centre of excellence in diabetes research has been presented with a CBE by Prince Charles.

Professor Melanie Davies was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year’s Honours List for services to diabetes research, having been responsible for major advances in type 2 diabetes.

To read more, click here.