Medical Humanities Podcast

Episoder

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  Children's hospitals as exceptional places: Topic Collection 14.08.2026 47min

  What happens when we look past the "good glow" of charity to critically analyse its role in public healthcare? In this episode, hosts Dr Sarah Ahmed and Dr Sabina Dosani discuss the Medical Humanities Topic Collection, "Charity and children’s hospitals — exceptionalism, experiences and welfare" with the guest editors: Professor Ellen Stewart, Dr. Francesca Vaghi, and Dr. Jennifer Crane.   They talk about how childhood has historically been treated as a policy blind spot, while being used as an emotionally powerful tool for philanthropic fundraising as well. They also examine research from the UK, Mexico, and Finland to discuss the invisible layers of hospital design, and the ethical tensions that arise when essential healthcare needs are relegated to charitable "extras".   The guests:  - Professor Ellen Stewart, Professor of Public Policy and Health at the University of Glasgow;    - Dr. Francesca Vaghi, Childhood scholar and medical anthropologist at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences;   - Dr. Jennifer Crane, Lecturer in Health Geographies at the University of Bristol.     The hosts:  - Dr. Sabina Dosani, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist;  - Dr. Sarah Ahmed, Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar.   https://mh.bmj.com/pages/topic-collection-childrens-hospitals   Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media. The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.  
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  Decolonising academic publishing: Black and Brown in Bioethics topic collection 22.06.2026 34min

  Since the COVID-19 pandemic, calls to confront racism, systemic bias, and inequity in global health have become increasingly urgent. But what does meaningful change look like in practice? In this episode, Dr Sarah Ahmed and Dr Sabina Dosani are joined by the co-founders of the Black and Brown in Bioethics (BBB) network: PhD scholar Matimba Swana, postdoctoral researcher and artist Kumeri Bandara, and academic clinical fellow Dr Harleen Kaur Johal. Together, they discuss their Medical Humanities Topic Collection (https://mh.bmj.com/pages/topic-collection-black-and-brown-in-bioethics) and how decolonising knowledge can help transform healthcare by rebalancing power, challenging whose voices are recognised as authoritative, and creating more equitable futures. Drawing on papers exploring Black feminist citation practices, clinical trials, and the lived experience of sickle cell pain, they reflect on mentorship, collaboration, and widening participation. Evidence suggests that reshaping medical narratives and diversifying authorship contribute directly to the development of more equitable and inclusive healthcare models. The participants:  - Matimba Swana, PhD student at the University of Bristol researching swarm robotics, cancer nanomedicine, bioethics, and digital health inequalities;  - Kumeri Bandara, Postdoctoral researcher at the Ethox Centre, University of Oxford, and an artist focusing on health disparities, migration, and the arts  - Dr Harleen Kaur Johal, Anesthetics resident doctor, postdoctoral researcher, and NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow at the University of Bristol, specialising in critical care and healthcare disparities The hosts:  - Dr. Sabina Dosani, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist; - Dr. Sarah Ahmed, Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar. Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media. The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.
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  The Medical Humanities: what's next for the field? 29.05.2026 38min

  Traditional methods of research and clinical practice are facing a radical shift as scholars push for deeper inclusivity and new ways of thinking. In this episode, Dr. Sarah Ahmed and Dr. Sabina Dosani talk with Dr. Louise Creechan and Professor Femi Oyebode about the future of the Medical Humanities. They explore the boundaries of inclusivity, questioning who truly gets to speak for lived experiences of suffering and ill health without being instrumentalised by institutions.  The participants:  - Dr. Louise Creechan is a Wellcome early career fellow at Durham University, co-lead of the Measurement Lab in Durham's Discovery Research Platform, and a scholar at the forefront of critical neurodiversity studies. - Professor Oluwafemi (Femi) Oyebode is a retired psychiatrist, scholar, and author whose research intersects psychopathology with literary humanities, utilising classical art and text to reflect on the modern human condition. The hosts:  - Dr. Sabina Dosani, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist; - Dr. Sarah Ahmed, Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar. This is the last of a four-part series about the Medical Humanities. Please check the previous episodes. Stay connected! Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media. The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.
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  Medicine and the Humanities: the art of transgression 08.05.2026 28min

  What happens when a comic book illustrator and a fine artist challenge the way medicine is practiced? In this episode, Dr. Sarah Ahmed and Dr. Sabina Dosani talk with Dr. Monica Lalanda and Dr. Tamarin Norwood about why "politeness" might be a problem for research. They explore the overlap between the arts and medical science – exploring how graphic medicine and fine art are tools to break through silos. They discuss how crossing lines and being "transgressive" can bring the focus back to the person behind the patient. The participants: Dr. Monica Lalanda is a physician, Graphic Medicine artist and bioethics researcher who coordinates the Spanish Society of Graphic Medicine. Dr. Tamarin Norwood is a Leverhulme Research Fellow. She is an Honorary Fellow at the University of Durham Institute for Medical Humanities and was an Associate Editor at the Medical Humanities journal from 2025 to 2026.  The hosts: Dr Sabina Dosani, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist; Dr Sarah Ahmed, Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar. Stay connected! Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media.   The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.  
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  Generative chaos: mapping the Medical Humanities 17.04.2026 39min

  In the second part of our four-part series about the fundamentals of the field, Professor Stuart Murray and Professor Neil Vickers discuss the origins and institutional state of the Medical Humanities. The conversation explores the field's roots as a strategic effort in the 1960s to maintain human values within a technological medical landscape. Murray and Vickers offer differing perspectives on the discipline, debating everything from the institutional realities of research funding to how scholars in the Global South are using the field to critique traditional medical models. Their discussion highlights the core tensions and contradictions that define the Medical Humanities today. The participants: Stuart Murray, Professor at the University of Leeds and Director of the Leeds Centre for Medical Humanities - https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/english/staff/102/stuart-murray;Neil Vickers, Professor at King's College London and Co-director of the Centre for the Humanities and Health - https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/professor-neil-vickers.The hosts:Dr Sabina Dosani, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist;Dr Sarah Ahmed, Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar. Stay connected! Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media.   The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.
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  What’s the point? Medicine needs the Humanities 20.03.2026 29min

  "Medicine, like people, is messy." In the first episode of a new series from the Medical Humanities podcast, we tackle a question often asked by both sceptics and practitioners: What is the point of the Medical Humanities? Jointly hosted by Dr. Sarah Ahmed (Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar) and Dr. Sabina Dosani (Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist), this conversation features a deep-dive with two leading voices in the field: Dr. Wing May Kong, Honorary Senior Lecture in Endocrinology and Ethics from Imperial College London, and Chair of Trustees of the Institute of Medical Ethics. https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/w.kong  Dr. Grace Halden, Reader in Contemporary Literature and Medical Humanities, and co-director of the Centre for Medical and Health Humanities at Birkbeck, University of London. https://www.drgracehalden.com/  They explore why healthcare is about far more than just data and objectivity. From the unconventional use of sculpture to teach medical students the power of touch, to the "liberating" impact of bringing lived experience and creative non-fiction into the NICU, they also discuss how the humanities create a vital, legitimising space for the stories that don't fit into a clinical record.   Stay connected! Visit our blog for more insights and subscribe to the podcast for the latest episodes. Love the podcast? Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation with us on social media. The Medical Humanities Podcast is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.
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  The Medical Humanities podcast is coming back soon... 13.03.2026 1min

  Join Dr. Sabina Dosani and Dr. Sarah Ahmed as they interview world-class artists, scholars, and clinicians about health, illness and systems of care.
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  Looking further than what you can see: non-visual design, with Simon Dogger 19.12.2024 51min

  The design studio of Simon Dogger focusses upon stimulating equity, connection and innovation. He is able to look further than what you can see and not only because he is blind. In cooperation with Dutch schools and universities his studio is working on design education for Visual Impaired People (VIPs). VIPs are resourceful and good inclusive thinkers, but this power is rarely acknowledged. That’s a pity since the design field and societies are in desperate need of different perspectives. This podcast is about the first steps toward a non-visual design school. It deals with the image of VIPs in society, the importance of touch and the benefit for design schools. In a world where design seems reserved for those who can see, a new perspective is emerging. This podcast delves into the groundbreaking journey of blind and partially sighted designers challenging the visual dominance in the design industry. Through personal stories, innovative methods, and transformative workshops, it reveals how creativity thrives beyond sight. Experience how touch, sound, and emotion redefine design processes, making them more inclusive and human-centered. Join us as we explore a future where design is not just seen but felt, where limitations become strengths, and where diversity reshapes what creativity truly means. Please read the related blog post and transcript: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/12/16/4015/ Visit Simon's website at www.SimonDogger.nl or send him an email at [email protected]. Instagram @Simon_Dogger. Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204. Thank you for listening!
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  The industrial tragedy at Bhopal through the LivingBodiesObjects’ digital storytelling 11.07.2024 30min

  The 1984 Union Carbide gas disaster in Bhopal, India, is recognised as the world’s worst industrial disaster.  The Wellcome-funded LivingBodiesObjects project has been working with the Bhopal Medical Appeal (referred to as BMA), a charity funding free healthcare for disaster survivors and water-affected communities. In this podcast episode, LivingBodiesObjects team members Clare Barker and Lynn Wray, and the Bhopal Medical Appeal’s Jared Stoughton introduce their collaborative work to produce new digital resources emerging from the stories of survivors and activists in water-affected areas of Bhopal.  To learn more about the Union Carbide disasters and the work of the Bhopal Medical Appeal, please visit www.bhopal.org. You can also find them on Facebook and Instagram.  Please read the related blog post and transcript: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/07/11/livingbodiesobjects-and-the-tragedy-at-bhopal Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204. Thank you for listening!
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  Humanising Care for Older People Living with Dementia - Teun Toebes in conversation with Khalid Ali 30.05.2024 36min

  Teun Toebes, humanitarian activist, in conversation with Khalid Ali. In this podcast, Teun talks about his book 'The Housemates' (The Housemates by Teun Toebes, Laura Vroomen | Waterstones) and documentary film 'Human Forever' (Human Forever The Film (human-forever.com) describing his quest to understand better the experience of older people living with dementia in care in the Netherlands and globally.  Read the related blog post, including a transcript of this podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/05/30/humanising-care-for-older-people-living-with-dementia-teun-toebes-in-conversation-with-khalid-ali Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  Making Modern Maternity 08.05.2024 21min

  Introducing their forthcoming special issue of Medical Humanities, Drs. Whitney Wood, Heather Love, Jerika Sanderson, and Karen Weingarten discuss the political significance of “making” our “modern maternity” with Editor-in-Chief Brandy Schillace. Whitney Wood is Canada Research Chair in the Historical Dimensions of Women’s Health at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, British Columbia. Heather A. Love is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada). Jerika Sanderson is a PhD candidate in English at the University of Waterloo. Her research investigates 21 st-century biotechnologies across the media, literature, and popular culture. Karen Weingarten is Professor of English at Queens College, City University of New York and the author of “Pregnancy Test” and “Abortion in the American Imagination: Before Life and Choice 1880-1940”. The issue is due in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, please read the related blog post: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/05/08/making-modern-maternity/ Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!  
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  Black and Brown in Bioethics: A new Medical Humanities Research Forum 28.03.2024 25min

  In this podcast, our Editor-in-chief Brandy Schillace sits down with Matimba Swana and Kumeri Bandara of Black and Brown in Bioethics to discuss how they started, why it is important to build community when challenging disparities in academia, and how Medical Humanities and Black and Brown in Bioethics are joining forces to transform the academic publishing landscape to cater to more diverse voices, knowledge, and audiences.   Read more: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/03/28/research-forum-black-and-brown-in-bioethics Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  Scenario Planning, Healthcare, and the Humanities 08.03.2024 24min

  In this podcast, Brandy Schillace (EIC) and Cristina Hanganu-Bresch (Blog and Associate Editor) talk to Matt Finch and Matthew Molineux about how scenario planning can help inform decisions about healthcare and the role of narrative in building scenarios that teach and humanize the health professions. Read more: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2024/03/08/scenario-planning-healthcare-and-the-humanities Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  Poetry, Disability, and the Power of Medical Humanities with Kimberly Campanello 26.10.2023 26min

  Making connections through poetry, disability, and medical humanities. Brandy Schillace, Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief, interviews Kimberly Campanello, Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Leeds University, UK. Read the related blog including the transcription of this podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2023/10/26/on-poetry-disability-and-the-power-of-medical-humanities Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!  
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  Virtual Reality and Disability: Supportive learning through VR 28.07.2023 29min

  Stuart Murray, Professor of Contemporary Literatures and Film, University of Leeds; Wellcome funded LivingBodiesObjects project David Tabron, Blueberry Academy speak to Brandy Schillace about LivingBodiesObjects, the Blueberry Academy, and how Virtual Reality can support those with learning differences. Read the blog with the transcript of this episode: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2023/07/28/podcast-with-stuart-murray-and-david-tabron And more on the LBO website https://livingbodiesobjects.org/, and the Blueberry Academy website https://www.blueberryacademy.co.uk/.
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  Bittersweet Potatoes: Noura Kevorkian, documentary film maker, reflects on the plight, and resilience of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon 20.06.2023 36min

  In this podcast, Dr Khalid Ali, film and media correspondent, interviews Noura Kevorkian, a Syrian/ Lebanese documentary film-maker. Noura Kevorkian discusses the personal and professional journey of her award-winning documentary 'Batata', its impact on the film's protagonists, and how the film advocates for the rights of refugees around the world. Read the blog post and the transcription of the podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2023/06/20/podcast-with-noura-kevorkian-on-the-documentary-film-batata Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!  
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  Featuring the Nocturnist’s SHAME IN MEDICINE: The Lost Forest 01.03.2023 28min

  Medical Humanities, editor-in-chief Brandy Schillace speaks to Emily Silverman, MD, the University of California San Francisco (UCSF)creator of The Nocturnist podcast, and Luna Dolezal, Associate Professor in Philosophy and Medical Humanities based in the Wellcome Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health. They both published a 10-part podcast series called 'Shame in Medicine: The Lost Forest'. Blog link with the transcription of this podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2023/03/02/shame-in-medicine-the-lost-forest Related links: https://shameandmedicine.org/ https://thenocturnists.com/ https://www.thenocturnists-shame.org/ Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  Immersive and Interactive: Accessibility Theatre and LivingBodiesObjects 10.01.2023 23min

  Editor's in Chief of Medical Humanities, Brandy Schillace, interviews Amelia DeFalco, University of Leeds and Steve Byrne Director/Chief exec of the Interplay Theatre about the Interplay Theatre's work with disabled students and the role of immersive experience for the LivingBodiedObjects project. Related blog including the transcription of the podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2023/01/12/immersive-and-interactive-accessibility-theatre-and-livingbodiesobjects Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  From Voiceless to a Voice Representing the Deaf Community and British Sign Language (BSL) 14.12.2022 41min

  Dr Khalid Ali, film and media correspondent, interviews British documentary filmmaker, Edward Lovelace. They discuss his film ‘’Name me Lawand’’, a rapturous portrait of a deaf Kurdish boy’s emotional journey towards discovering how to express himself. A love letter to the power of communication and community. Edward describes how he bonded with Lawand and how together they created a poignant film amplifying the voices of the Deaf community and their fight for passing the BSL act in 2022. Related blog with the transcript of this podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2022/12/15/lawand-from-voiceless-to-a-voice-representing-the-deaf-community-and-british-sign-language-bsl Other related links: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2021/10/27/listen-without-prejudice/ https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2016/04/08/the-reading-room-deaf-gain/ https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2018/08/09/deafhearing-family-life-in-the-silent-child-an-unsympathetic-portrayal/ https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2021/01/05/hearing-happiness-jaipreet-virdi-on-deafness-accessibility-and-her-latest-book/ https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2021/01/21/book-review-hearing-happiness-deafness-cures-in-history/ Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!
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  Finding the Right Words, a book on Grief, Dementia, and Literature 07.11.2022 23min

  The moving story of an English professor studying neurology in order to understand and come to terms with her father's death from Alzheimer's. Brandy Schillace (Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief) interviews Cindy Weinstein, Vice Provost and Professor of English at California Institute of Technology. Related blog including the transcription of the podcast: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-humanities/2022/11/08/cindy-weinstein/ Subscribe to the Medical Humanities Podcast in all podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. If you enjoy our podcast, please consider leaving us a review and a 5-star rating on the Medical Humanities Podcast iTunes page (https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/medical-humanities-podcast/id961667204). Thank you for listening!