Martha's rule: the medical profession should embrace it

I agree with Robert Francis in your news analysis on Martha's rule that we should avoid setting up a bureaucratic process without making sure it works in practice.1 The NHS has been criticised for "drowning in bureaucracy,"is beset with chronic problems that successive governments have ignored, and has a "chronic shortage of good leaders"to apply the "common sense"needed to sort it all out.2 Clinical care is complex, especially in times of heightened emotions, and families wanting a second opinion need to be treated with care and compassion. The imbalance of power in the doctor-patient relationship means that patients and families need to be supported to voice their concerns. © Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited.