Medicine and Science from The BMJ

New estimates of Global Patterns in Neonatal, Child, and Adolescent Mortality have been published - and while there has been a huge improvement, those gains are in danger - and we’re seeing worrying trends towards self harm. 

 

Kate Strong, a Scientist at the World Health Organization and Lucia Hug, a specialist in statistics and monitoring for UNICEF, join us to explain the data - and why they are worried about our ability to measure this in the future.

 

Helen Sharman is the first British Astronaut to make it to space - this week she was at the Royal College of GPs giving the annual Marx lecture. She joins us to discuss how research in space might impact healthcare on Earth, and what the NHS can learn from cosmonaut teamwork. 

 

Finally, The government and doctors in England are not getting on well - we’ve had a series of strikes from the resident doctors, GPs are in dispute about the imposition of a new contract, and now consultants are being polled on industrial action.  BMA Consultants Committee co-chairs Shanu Dutta and Helen Neary explain why.

 

Reading list

 

Neonatal, Child, and Adolescent Mortality

Global, regional, and national levels and trends in under 5, infant, and neonatal mortality during 1990-2024 with scenario based projections to 2030

Global, regional, and national levels and trends in older child, adolescent, and youth (5-24 years) all cause mortality from 1990 to 2024: modelling study

Systematic estimates of global causes of neonatal and under 5 mortality in 2000-24: secondary data analysis using bayesian multinomial logistic regression

Estimates of global causes of death for children and adolescents aged 5-19 in 2000-24: secondary data analysis using bayesian multinomial logistic regression

 

Full interview on YouTube:

Why NHS Senior Doctors in England Are Considering Strike Action

Does healthcare have a moral emergency?

In this episode of the Medicine and Science podcast, Kamran Abbasi sits down with healthcare leaders Maureen Bisognano, president emerita of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and Bob Klaber, director of strategy at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, to discuss why they're calling the lack of humanity in medicine an emergency.

We ask why this dangerous imbalance between the rational (efficiency, data, and metrics) and the relational (human connection, empathy, and listening) has developed in modern medicine. We also learn how simple changes, like asking "What matters to you?" instead of just "What's the matter?, can help us put the humanity back into healthcare.

 

Reading list

Read the BMJ Article: Healthcare's moral emergency: reconnecting healthcare with its mission and purpose

Michael West on workforce kindness

Amy Edmondson on psychological safety

Len Berry on cancer care & kindness

It has been a tumultuous time in UK health politics. UK Health Minister ,Wes Streeting, has freshly resigned. What does this mean for his newly introduced NHS Modernization Bill as it heads through Parliament?

Together with Hugh Alderwick, Director of Policy and Research at the Health Foundation, we unpack the bill's sweeping centralization of power, the abolition of NHS England, and the contentious role for US tech firm Palantir in the new NHS.

And, we explore a major milestone for women's healthcare. A condition affecting an estimated 170 million women globally has officially been renamed from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) to Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS). Rachel Morman, Chair of the PMOS charity Verity, joins us to explain why dropping "cysts" from the name is a vital step toward recognizing this as a complex, multi-system condition, and how this co-designed change will fundamentally reshape diagnosis, treatment, and future research.

Further reading:

Health Bill brings NHS management back into government

PMOS: What's in a name? Everything

PCOS name change to PMOS must be managed to avoid confusing patients, says expert

Twitter was launched 20 years ago, followed quickly by the iPhone and Instagram. Today, nearly 60% of the world’s population uses social media. Medical experts are sounding the alarm on the potential for these platforms to cause systemic harm. This past year has seen large events in the legal and public health battle against tech giants, with millions of dollars awarded in damages to child victims. Why has pinning down these companies proven difficult? And, what are the parallels between the social media industry and the historical tactics of "Big Tobacco"?

Guests:

Matthew Bergman is a practicing attorney and the founder of the Social Media Victims Law Center, as well as a professor at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon.

Ilona Kickbusch is an editorial board member of the BMJ and a visiting professor at the Digital Transformations for Health Lab at the University of Geneva, specializing in the commercial determinants of health.

Further reading:

From tobacco to TikTok: what public health litigation history tells us about holding social media accountable

What is the evidence for social media addiction?

The BMA has released their long awaited review of the Cass report. The original report looked at the provision of NHS gender identity services for children and young people, and involved a review of the science underpinning those services. It also set out a plan to improve care for gender diverse young people. 

We talk with David Strain of the BMA’s board of science to discuss their findings, and hear why they were critical of the Secretary of State, Wes Streeting's response to Cass’s review.

And, we hear about new research published with The BMJ that aims to help children with autism. The researchers used a non-invasive magnetic stimulation technique to target specific regions of the brain, with the goal of promoting sociality. We discuss the benefits, and how this technique might translate to treatment plans for patients.

Guests:

David Strain is an associate professor in cardio-metabolic health at the University of Exeter and Chair of the BMA’s Board of Science.

Benjamin Becker is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of Hong Kong, specializing in brain-based interventions for mental disorders.

Further reading:

Puberty blockers: BMA critique vindicates Cass review but questions government “overreach”

Accelerated non-invasive brain stimulation in childhood autism