Emma Vardy

Common octopus with brown and yellow colouring with hints of blue. It has yellow eyes and fills the image.

It's #WorldOctopusDay! These beauties from our collection are both by French pharmacist and naturalist Jean Baptiste Vérany (1800-65).

Octopus vulgaris - the common octopus, which can grow to 9kg and change colour to match its surroundings.

Yes, yes I know I keep banging on about my fucking book! However, if you want one repost this and I’ll do a random winner pick thing by the end of the week because I’m great like that. ♥️📚
#amindofmyown

Anybody with Edinburgh knowledge recommend me a good mid-range hotel to stay at? I am overwhelmed with choice.

Can. Not. Wait!

As you can tell thoughts evolving! What do you think the barriers and facilitators are?

H. A. Brendekilde - A wooded path in autumn (1902)

Ahhhhh. Good!

What's Kevin done to his hair!!

Czech novelist Ivan Klima dies aged 94 Author of more than 40 books survived Nazi concentration camp as a child and later became an active member of the literary underground during communism

I hadn't heard of Czech novelist Ivan Klima until his recent death. I've ordered a copy of Love and Garbage (tr Ewald Osers) as he sounds like my type of writer. Worth it for his hair alone, I think.

www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...

Leonard and Hungry Paul cast and Director on telling a story about kindness, friendship, and the quiet heroism of everyday life - The feel-good series stars Alex Lawther, Laurie Kynaston and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell, with Julia Roberts as narrator

Am actually quite moved to read the thoughts of the actors and director about Leonard and Hungry Paul.

I honestly never expected any of this. I was just typing away for my own entertainment and a book popped out.

www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/...

My friends daughter has bailed on her. It's a hard life but going to be taking her up....on a free ticket offer to go see Katie Perry tomorrow evening. Tough decision
🤣🤣🤣

We're delighted too. Such a brilliant book. And such well deserved recognition of the talent that is @ronanhession.bsky.social

They say the Hunter’s Moon, which rises tonight, brings secrets to light... so what better time to reveal the cover of The Last Wolf, the first book in my brand-new series The Moonhaven Chronicles. Out 5 Feb 2026 with Macmillan Kids – available to pre-order now via this link: tinyurl.com/4a6w4jfz 🌕🐺

08.10.25 | 2pm BST

A white Samoyed smiling at the camera in front of a blue flowery dress.

I slag off Vinted sellers a lot but this is the perfect way to sell your item.

Woohoo Dr Jamie Lee Rahiri! 🎉🎉🎉
Can someone convince her to get on Bluesky? We SO need her voice here.
www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2025...

Enjoy and let me know thoughts.....

Indeed. I also see you are charity ambassador to Dementia UK. Just finished my mile a day in September. Genius yet simple idea for fundraising. Picked up a good new habit!

The trick to time. Brilliant.

Pharmacies facing angry patients over Covid jab confusion Up to half of patients coming to some pharmacies are being turned away because they are not eligible.

Horrible and incredibly short-sighted decision. Absenteeism, pressure on hospitals, long covid...death. And terrible messaging: restricting eligibility suggests reduced risk.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Also not providing NHS staff caring for people with COVID with jabs. Already colleagues in NHS services off with COVID. Does it really make no financial sense (if health or common sense not indeed sufficient)?

White ribbon on teal background with text: "October is POTS Awareness Month."

October is #POTS Awareness Month!
POTS is a serious condition where simply standing can cause rapid heart rate, dizziness, fainting, and crushing fatigue. It often strikes those with #MECFS & #LongCOVID. All month we’re sharing resources & raising visibility. Stay tuned!

Turquoise background with overlapping blue circles. In the centre, a simple illustration of a person with turquoise hair. Text around the person reads: “Dysautonomia Awareness Month.” Circles highlight symptoms: gastrointestinal issues, PoTS, heart palpitations, fatigue, shortness of breath, dizziness, cognitive issues, temperature dysregulation. Fainter circles in the background say and many many many more Long Covid SOS logo at the bottom left in white

October is #DysautonomiaAwarenessMonth

For many with #LongCovid, dysautonomia means daily struggles with dizziness, palpitations, fatigue & more

We need research, support & compassion
Let’s #MakeNoiseForTurquoise this October

#POTS #Dysautonomia #invisibleillness

And oldest old defined as 90 and over...

Ps we refer to ourselves as geriatricians but would refer to our patients as older people.

That's a GREAT question. The age limit used to be 65 when I started out in 1998. These days tend not to use age as much as need. As a broad rule of thumb 80 years plus. But really it's about need. Complexity of people with reduced physical resilience (frailty) and/or multiple long term conditions.

This sounds excellent, Emma! This should also help with those stuck on long waiting lists for other depts who then find out, when seen and investigated, that the original referral actually should have gone elsewhere.

Ps not at the stage of increasing clinics. But putting a stop to reducing clinic footprint. By that I mean there were consultant and registrar lists. There are now no registrar lists. And one consultant now does an MDT renal clinic once a month.

Reached out to AHP. They say struggle with access to eRS. So barrier removed. Just send us an email. One hitch is clinic is at hospital. Love to shift it to a community setting ideally.

Let's just say I am undeterred because it's quite simply the right thing to do.