Irish Medical Lives

• Ep. 10 Irish Medical Lives with Dr Chris Luke and guest Dr. Seamus O'Mahony

  Dr Seamus O’Mahony, retired Consultant Gastroenterologist and Clinical Professor at Cork University Hospital, is the prize-winning author of four highly acclaimed books, the first of which, The Way We Die Now, won the British Medical Association’s Council Chair’s Choice award in 2017. Can Medicine be Cured? was published in 2019, and The Ministry of Bodies in 2021. His latest book, The Guru, the Bagman and the Sceptic, was published by Head of Zeus in 2023.Seamus is a frequent contributor to the Dublin Review of Books, Observer, Irish Times, Lancet, British Medical Journal, Medical Independent, and Irish Independent, among others. He is a member of the Lancet commission on “The Value of Death” and is visiting professor at the Centre for the Humanities and Health at King’s College London.In this seriously thought-provoking episode of Irish Medical Lives, Dr O’Mahony recalls the sometimes tragic lives of his forebears in West Cork and his adventures in academic research in Edinburgh, before addressing the thorny issues of corruption (or self-service) in modern medicine, the relative impotence of the modern hospital consultant, the ‘pointlessness’ of much of medical literature (and its insidious ‘replication crisis’), and way in which modern medicine has become a sort of ‘global religion’. And he explains why ‘the compression of morbidity’ (the near-elimination of suffering in old age promised by the healthy longevity movement) is a myth, why the public health services on both sides of the Irish Sea are so clearly failing and why the notion of a (peaceful, painless and neat) ‘good death’ is unlikely to be realised in more than a few cases.Nonetheless, Seamus is optimistic that - given the right amounts of humility and honesty - the modern medic can still aspire to the most worthwhile and longstanding aspiration of all, ‘to make the conditions of human life everywhere more bearable’. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• Ep. 9 Irish Medical Lives with Dr Chris Luke and guest Dr. Declan Kelly

  Dr Declan Kelly, Chief Executive Officer of Eolas Medical, an innovative healthcare technology company based in Belfast, is a remarkable medical entrepreneur who has - over the course of a half-decade - created one of the most influential clinical information platforms in the English-speaking world.Named after the Irish word for knowledge, the Eolas platform was created by Dr Kelly and his team of medical engineers to give clinicians instant and frictionless access to the knowledge they need to deliver effective and evidence-based care, and it has transformed how healthcare professionals interact with clinical guidelines, protocols and institutional knowledge. Eolas is now live in over 400 hospitals and healthcare sites, it covers 80% of the National Health Service in the UK, and it is used by 40% of doctors on the island of Ireland. And the mission statement is simple: to have the answer to any clinical question at every clinician’s fingertips, as and when they need it.In this podcast, Declan recalls his grandfather’s experimentation with ‘early coding’, and the crucial importance of a great teacher at school, he explains how and why he came to undertake the coding needed for the new platform, and he describes how AI (artificial intelligence) – which is already having a major impact on contemporary healthcare – can be harnessed for the clear benefit of patients and professionals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• Ep. 8 Irish Medical Lives with Dr Chris Luke and guest Dr. John Waterstone

  Dr John Waterstone, Director of the Waterstone Clinics in Cork, Dublin, Limerick, and Waterford and former President of the Irish Fertility Society, is one of the true pioneers in fertility medicine in Ireland, and currently the most experienced specialist in reproductive medicine in the country.In this episode of Irish Medical Lives, Dr Waterstone recalls his childhood in Kilkenny and Westmeath, his undergraduate days in Trinity College in Dublin (where he studied genetic science and medicine), and his specialist training in fertility care in London under the auspices of great British pathfinders, such as Professor Robert Winston.John also tackles many of the questions commonly posed about fertility care in Ireland, and touches on some of the most recent advances and controversies, from delayed public funding of ‘IVF’ to the variability of actual ‘success rates’ between different services on both sides of the Atlantic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• Ep. 7 Irish Medical Lives with Dr.Chris Luke and guest Dr Rachel McNamara

  Considering a career in public health medicine?Or wondering if there’s any point in getting involved in ‘medical politics’?In this episode, Dr Rachel McNamara, a Specialist Registrar in Public Health Medicine, former National Fellow for Innovation with the HSE Spark Innovation Programme and the first female Chair of the Irish Medical Organisations NCHD Committee, discusses the wide range of public health issues with which her speciality is engaged at the moment, from the recent Covid-19 pandemic and ‘quad-demic’ to the assimilation of Ukrainian refugees and the HPV ‘catch-up’ campaign, and she recalls her role with the IMO in bringing about some landmark protections for NCHDs in Ireland in the last few years and highlighting the particular challenges for women in medicine. Rachel also explains how her career choice was partly shaped by her father’s tragic death at an early age, why in addition to her MRCPI and Master’s in Public Health Medicine at University College Cork, she has obtained diplomas in Health Innovation, Medical Law, and Palliative Care, and why she now feels - on a personal level - that she is just where she is supposed to be - determined ‘to bring a user-centred, innovative lens to improving health services, driving improvements in patient outcomes and looking after the workforce along the way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• Ep. 6 Irish Medical Lives with Dr.Chris Luke and guest Dr Maia Springael

  What’s it like being a medical student in Dublin these days?And is there more to the Intern Year than exhausting drudgery?In this episode, Dr Maia Springael, a June 2024 medical graduate and Intern at Tallaght University Hospital, explains how French schools differ from those in Ireland, describes the lasting benefits of an early career in artistic gymnastics, and explains how she ‘came out of her shell’ during her Leaving Certificate year, and made the decision to study medicine. Maia also enthuses about the annual Student Medical Summit, the Intervarsity ‘SimWars’, her hugely useful ‘electives’ in Paris, Toulouse and Cork, and the envy-inducing medics’ professional completion programme at University College Dublin. She is also remarkably upbeat about her current job.This is a must-listen for anyone considering a career in medicine or wondering how to survive (and thrive in) that first ‘Intern Year’. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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