Current Affairs: Staying Up to Date

At medical school interviews, you can expect questions on some of the bigger health-related news stories of the week, month, or year. Staying up to date isn’t just about looking smart — it’s about recognising that politics and current affairs often slip through hospital doors and into your day-to-day work on the ward or in clinic.

Doctors, and even medical students, are frequently seen as fair, reasonable, and informed voices on health issues. Being unaware of major healthcare stories won’t make a great impression, so it’s worth having a broad understanding of key debates.

What Should You Know?

Don’t panic — medical schools aren’t expecting you to be a BBC Health Editor. A good overview of the issue, the key stakeholders, and the views on different sides (plus a balanced opinion of your own) is more than enough.

We’ve started a blog on our website where we break down the biggest health-related news stories for medical school applicants, with tips on how to tackle interview questions. You can subscribe for free here.

Hot Topics for 2026/2027

1. Resident Doctors’ Strikes
   Junior doctors in the NHS striking over pay, working conditions, and staffing levels. Highlights issues around workforce morale, patient safety, and healthcare policy.

2. Assisted Dying Legislation
   Ongoing debates in the UK about legalising assisted dying. Raises ethical questions about autonomy, beneficence, and the doctor’s role in end-of-life care.

3. Weight-Loss Drugs
   New medications, like GLP-1 receptor agonists, are being prescribed more widely. Brings up public health implications, access, and cost debates.

4. Antibiotic Resistance & AI
   Rising antimicrobial resistance and how AI is being used to detect patterns, develop new drugs, and predict outbreaks. Links to stewardship, innovation, and patient safety.

5. Ageing Population
   The growing number of older adults in the UK increases demand on healthcare services, social care, and chronic disease management.

6. Martha’s Rule
   A policy impacting junior doctors’ contracts or workforce planning. Demonstrates awareness of regulations affecting healthcare delivery.

7. Trump’s Paracetamol Rant
   A high-profile news story highlighting public commentary on medicine, over-the-counter drugs, and misinformation. Useful for discussing health communication and public perception.

8. NHS Funding & Budget Pressures
   Discussions about NHS financing, waiting lists, and resource allocation. Shows awareness of systemic challenges affecting patient care.

9. Mental Health Services in the UK
   Access, funding, and service pressures for CAMHS and adult mental health services. Links to policy, patient outcomes, and workforce challenges.

10. Vaccination Policy & Uptake
    Seasonal flu, COVID-19 boosters, and public vaccine hesitancy. Important for ethics, public health, and communication questions.

11. Long COVID & Post-Viral Syndromes
    Ongoing research and management strategies for post-viral illness. Can be linked to clinical care, uncertainty, and healthcare planning.

12. AI & ChatGPT in Medicine
    Ethical, practical, and educational implications of AI tools in diagnosis, treatment, and medical education. Shows awareness of future trends.

13. Climate Change & Health
    Extreme weather, air pollution, and environmental health risks. Relevant for public health, preventive medicine, and policy questions.

14. Organ Donation & Transplant Policy
    Opt-out organ donation policy, equity in transplant allocation, and ethical dilemmas. Links to law, ethics, and clinical reasoning.

Tips for Staying Updated

• Read at least one health article per week — BBC Health is a good starting point. Most articles take just 2–3 minutes, but over time this builds a “cabinet of knowledge” you can draw on in interviews.

• Connect stories to broader points — current affairs can often link to ethics, public health, or clinical scenarios.

• Know the key players — for example, the Health Secretary (currently Wes Streeting, since July 2024) and the Prime Minister (Keir Starmer). These details may seem small, but they can come up in questions about policy or healthcare systems.

By keeping up to date, you’ll not only demonstrate awareness but also show interviewers that you understand the real-world context in which medicine operates.