Talking about medicine & the arts

Welcome to our eighth student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Rajeka Lazarus talks about misinformation regarding vaccine portrayal on social media.

Dr Rajeka Lazarus is a consultant in infectious diseases and microbiology with a research interest in adult vaccinations. Dr Lazarus is one of the co-founders of the UK Clinical Vaccine Network (UK CVN -- link below), which focuses on advancing and promoting awareness about adult vaccinations through collaborations, conferences and research.

In the podcast, Dr Lazarus discusses some of the ways in which social media shapes misconceptions about vaccines, and how such misconceptions can go on to influence patients' perceptions of the healthcare system, public trust in medicine, and medical decision making.

The podcast is hosted by Kothai Anbarasan, a second-year medical student from the University of Bristol.

We hope that you enjoy listening to this podcast.

For more information on vaccines (including the Covid-19 vaccine), please see the podcast page at medicine360.co.uk

Welcome to our seventh student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Simi Pam discusses Women’s health in sport and how lived experiences and social challenges contribute to the health and performance of female athletes.

Dr Pam talks about her journey into sport and the role it has played in her life as well as how she is now balancing both aspects of her career. Dr Pam sheds light on the issues female rugby players face as well as the important changes that both are happening and need to happen to make sport a healthier environment for women. She talks about the research surrounding female athletes and the lack of understanding around the differences between male and female athletes -- as well as the welcome changes that are beginning to happen.

Topics of discussion include the menstrual cycle, women’s footwear, and pregnancy. She also gives us her perspective on how women’s health is portrayed in the media, on the community that arises from women's sport, and on the particular areas -- in rugby and other professional sports -- in which more scientifically-evidenced knowledge is needed.

The podcast is hosted by Esther Jacobs, a second-year medical student at the University of Bristol.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Welcome to our sixth student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Mark Crouch takes us into the complex world of the Global Health Organizations (GHOs) operating in Papua New Guinea.

Dr Crouch is a family physician with over a decade of experience serving the people of Papua New Guinea at Kudjip Nazarene General Hospital. As well as being deeply involved in day-to-day patient care, he is a Medical Education Co-ordinator and Public Health Physician, and has a post as honorary lecturer at the University of Papua New Guinea School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

In the podcast, Dr Crouch discusses the crucial roles GHOs play in addressing healthcare needs, and the potential drawbacks and unintended consequences of their presence. We hope the podcast, in sharing some of Dr Crouch's experience and hard-earnt knowledge, gives a nuanced perspective on the multifaceted nature of global health initiatives.

The podcast is hosted by Ben Hulley, a second-year medical student at the University of Bristol.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Welcome to our fifth student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Zafar Iqbal discusses the world of elite level sports and exercise medicine.

Dr Zafar helps demystify the roles and responsibilities of various medical professionals across a Premier League football club, as well as giving us an unrivalled insight into a career in sports medicine. He talks about the fascinating metrics used to monitor players’ health and goes into the complex interactions the Head Doctor may have with managers, players and other doctors at international teams. He gives us his take on the contrast between the environments of hospital based medicine and performance driven sports medicine, and suggests how the latter is being changed by technology (such as AI), and by the increasing sharing of knowledge between different sports.

Dr Zafar is presently Head of Sports Medicine at Arsenal Football Club. He has over 19 years of experience working in professional football. He has also been the Medical Officer for 3 years at Kent County Cricket Club, and has been consultant to a number of the players in Pakistan's international cricket team. He currently holds the role of Co-Chairman at the Football Association Medical Society and is a prominent campaigner in increasing the prevalence of Automated External Defibrillators in public places

The podcast is hosted by Ibrahim Ahmad, a second-year medical student at the University of Bristol.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Further information on subjects mentioned in this podcast can be found at medicine360.co.uk

Welcome to our thirteenth Medicine 360 podcast, in which Anna Mathur speaks with Dr Ishminder Mangat about motherhood anxiety. She discusses what anxiety is as well as the many guises it can take, and she reflects on what inspired her to write her books and how social media impacts on anxiety as well as how the practice of gratitude has been transformative for her.

Anna Mathur is the author of the best-selling Mind over Mother – Every mum’s guide to worry and anxiety in the first years (2020), Know your Worth (2021), The Little Book of Calm for New Mums (2022), The Little Book of New Mum feelings (2023) and Raising A Happier Mother (2023). She is a therapist and is extremely passionate about making therapy accessible to everyone: she also runs courses to support women's emotional needs. She has a hugely popular podcast: 'The Therapy Edit'.

This podcast is hosted by Dr Ishminder Mangat, a junior doctor in Bristol interested in exploring the links between medicine and the humanities. She was the lead organiser of Bodies (2023) -- a medical humanities festival in Bristol.

Welcome to our twelfth Medicine 360 podcast, in which Henry Marsh talks with Dr Ishminder Mangat. He discusses his career and writings, his transition from doctor to patient, and his changing understanding of his own mortality -- as well as what good writing is, how (and when) books may help medical students, and the joys of e-cargo bikes.

Henry Marsh, CBE, FRCS, is the author of the best-selling Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death and Brain Surgery (2014), Admissions: A Life in Brain Surgery (2017), and And Finally (2022). Do No Harm was translated into over thirty languages. He is also one of the founders of Hospice Ukraine (https://www.hospiceukraine.com), a charity which supports palliative care in that country.

This podcast is hosted by Dr Ishminder Mangat, a junior doctor in Bristol interested in exploring the links between medicine and the humanities.

Welcome to our eleventh Medicine 360 podcast, in which Kris Hallenga and Dr Liz O’Riordon discuss breast cancer and the power of narrative with Dr Ishminder Mangat. They discuss what inspired them to write their stories, and how writing their stories has affected their lives.

Kris Hallenga is a best-selling author, broadcaster and founder of the first breast-cancer awareness charity, CoppaFeel! (www.coppafeel.org) In 2009 she was diagnosed with secondary metastatic breast cancer at the age of 23. CoppaFeel!’s campaigning has resulted in cancer awareness being put onto school curriculums. Kris has won a Pride of Britain award, a Cosmopolitan Ultimate Campaigner award, and has been given an Honorary Doctorate by Nottingham Trent University. In 2021 she published a memoir, Glittering a Turd: How Surving the Unsurvivable Taught Me to Live, which became a Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller. She has a podcast of the same name, in which she speaks to guests about the difficulties in their lives.

Liz O’Riordan is an international speaker, broadcaster, and the award winning co-author of The Complete Guide to Breast Cancer: How to Feel Empowered and Take Control. She began to speak and write about breast cancer after having been diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in 2015, aged 40. A recurrence in 2018, and complications affecting her left shoulder, forced her to retire from her job as a consultant breast surgeon. In 2020 she launched a podcast, ‘Don’t Ignore the Elephant’, which explores difficult-to-discuss topics. In 2023 her cancer returned for a second time. Her memoir, Under the Knife: Life Lessons from the Operating Theatre has just come out.

This podcast is hosted by Dr Ishminder Mangat , a junior doctor in Bristol interested in exploring the links between medicine and the humanities.

Welcome to our fourth student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Isaac Batali shares his insider's perspective and knowledge about how MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders) is working to combat HIV/AIDS in areas like South Sudan.

He talks about what led him to join MSF, and discusses the medical and educational efforts in South Sudan to combat HIV. He talks about the different kinds of challenges those efforts face: the problem of the stigma of AIDS; the presence of military conflict; and natural crises such as flooding. How does MSF promote lifelong adherence to treatment plans in such a context? And empower people to look after their own health.

Isaac Batali is a South Sudanese doctor working with MSF-OCA* in the Lankien hospital in South Sudan. He mainly takes care of the in- and outpatients for HIV. Along with the medical testing and treatment of HIV, Dr Batali is involved in organising community support groups which aim to inspire people to be more open to conversations about HIV as a step towards changing the ways in which HIV is viewed.

The podcast is hosted by Jimin Han, a second-year medical student at the University of Bristol who has an interest in MSF and HIV-care in areas of conflict and instability.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Glossary of some medical terminology used in this podcast

ART -- Antiretroviral Therapy (for HIV)

MD -- Doctor of Medicine (US degree name)

*OCA -- 'The Operational Centre Amsterdam is a cooperation between MSF United Kingdom, MSF Germany and MSF Holland. The Operational Centre Amsterdam operates on the basis of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the 3 partner Associations.'

Details of further resources about MSF and their involvement in the treatment of HIV/AIDs can be found at www.medicine360.co.uk/post/msf-hiv-in-south-sudan

If you would like make a donation to MSF:

https://www.msf.org/donate

Welcome to our third student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Annette Welshman discusses some key issues within palliative care. How best are end-of-life decisions communicated? How important is language itself in palliative care? Is there a universal language of suffering? What different kinds of cultural, social and pharmacological barriers are there in different European countries? How are doctors to maintain the trust of those who are dying after many failed medical interventions?

Dr Welshman also talks about the extraordinary life of Sue Ryder and what can be learnt from her work supporting the sick and dying, and how palliative care has developed over the last 40 years.

Dr Welshman worked for over 25 years with Lady Ryder in establishing palliative care protocols. She has implemented palliative care programmes in various countries, with very different kinds of healthcare systems. She has been Vice Chairman at the European Association of Palliative Care, and the education of medical professionals and families is one of her key concerns.

The podcast is hosted by Katie Whitcher, a second-year medical student at the University of Bristol.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Further sources of information on the life and work of Sue Ryder can be found on the medicine360.co.uk.

Welcome to our second student-hosted Medicine 360 podcast, in which Dr Gail Nicholls talks about the socio-economic class-divide in medicine. The issue is complex and important, both to individuals seeking to enter medicine, and to Medicine as a whole. What has been done to resolve the related inequalities in recent years? What remains to be done?

Dr Gail Nicholls is an Associate Professor in Primary Care with a background in general practice. She is also the Interim Director of Admissions and Widening Participation Lead for the University of Leed's School of Medicine. She has a great deal of experience in designing and delivering outreach projects and mentoring programmes.

The podcast is hosted by Ellie Harrison, a medical student from a widening participation background at the University of Bristol.

We hope you enjoy listening.

For more information on the topics discussed in the podcast, please visit medicine360.co.uk.