The Irish Pharmacy Podcast

On the Irish Pharmacy Podcast from Vital Pharmacies, Sheena speaks with GP Dr. Maura Finn about why people shouldn’t avoid seeking care due to embarrassment and how direct questions help ensure safe treatment and rule out serious disease. They discuss common “whispered” issues such as bowel problems and hemorrhoids (including why bleeding patterns and bowel habit changes matter and when colonoscopy or BowelScreen is needed), vaginal symptoms often mislabeled as “thrush” (and when to get examined or swabbed), recurrent UTIs and the potential role of vaginal estrogen in older women, and men’s reluctance to seek care due to fear and cost or access barriers. They also warn about online prescribing for erectile dysfunction missing underlying conditions and drug interactions, normalize discussing incontinence treatment options beyond pads, and cover sensitive topics like alcohol and drug use, non-adherence to prescriptions, side effects, misinformation, supplements affecting health (including renal function), snoring and sleep apnea, and medical causes of bad breath.

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro
00:50 Embarrassing Questions Normalized
01:34 Feet Rashes and Exam Basics
03:03 Earwax and Human Quirks
03:58 Hemorrhoids and Direct Talk
04:57 Red Flags and Worst Case
08:30 Gender Differences and Barriers
11:37 Thrush BV and Misdiagnosis
13:05 When to See a Doctor
15:41 Recurrent UTIs and Estrogen
18:06 Blood in Stool and Screening
21:07 Online Doctors and ED Risks
24:03 Incontinence and Pelvic Floor
25:35 Pee Pads Marketing Myth
26:11 When Leaks Aren’t Normal
27:07 Awkward Questions Alcohol
28:52 Talking Weight With Consent
31:14 Drugs And Confidentiality
33:21 Nonadherence And Side Effects
35:55 Pill And Antidepressant Myths
39:57 Supplements Wellness Risks
42:51 Snoring Or Sleep Apnea
44:36 Bad Breath Medical Causes
46:15 No Shame Final Takeaway

*Follow the Irish Pharmacy Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. This podcast is brought to you by Vital Pharmacies, Ireland's biggest group of independently owned Irish pharmacies.*
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

First aid expert Siobhan Butler joins host Sheena Mitchell for a rapid-fire myth-busting session covering the most common first aid scenarios families face, from nosebleeds and knocked-out teeth to choking, CPR, and everything in between!

Topics covered:

Nosebleeds

Knocked-out teeth

Sprains & strains

Cuts & bleeding

Bumps & bruises / head injuries

Bee & wasp stings

Eye irritation

Swallowing objects & poisoning

Asthma attacks .

Diabetic hypos

Heat stroke/exhaustion

Fainting

CPR & AEDs

Choking

Key Resources & Links

- National Poison Centre (Beaumont): 01-809-2166 (open 7 days, 8am–10pm) | Outside hours: 112 or 999
- Siobhan Butler - First Aid for Everyone: Instagram @firstaidforeveryone
- First aid for choking: Demonstration videos available on Vital Pharmacies' social channels

*Follow the Irish Pharmacy Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. This podcast is brought to you by Vital Pharmacies, Ireland's biggest group of independently owned Irish pharmacies.*
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Misinformation, Red Light Masks & Collagen: David Robert Grimes on Thinking Clearly in a Clickbait World

On the Irish Pharmacy Podcast from Vital Pharmacies, Sheena interviews scientist and author David Robert Grimes about how misinformation thrives in a social-media clickbait era by triggering fear and disgust, undermining rational thinking through negativity bias. He distinguishes misinformation (unintentional falsehoods), disinformation (deliberate lies), and malinformation (true facts stripped of context), illustrating malinformation with the “dihydrogen monoxide” water hoax and vaccine risk framing. Grimes argues community pharmacists are vital because trusted, relationship-based discussions work better than debates for helping worried patients. They discuss influencer-driven wellness marketing, conflicts of interest, black-market GLP-1s, and his critiques of red-light face masks and oral collagen studies as methodologically poor and often tied to sellers. He also outlines Russia’s history of exploiting disinformation and highlights Finland’s media literacy education as a model, urging people to pause, verify sources, and avoid outsourcing thinking to social media or AI.

00:00 Podcast Welcome
00:16 Meet David Robert Grimes
00:51 Skeptical Inquiry Fellow
01:52 Why Misinformation Spreads
03:24 Anti Vaccine History
05:12 Misinfo Disinfo Malinfo
06:40 Water Hoax Explained
10:22 Pharmacists Build Trust
14:34 Wellness Industry Myths
15:35 Black Market GLP 1s
16:59 Red Light Masks Hype
18:19 Debunking Red Light Masks
22:25 Influencers and Acceptability
23:46 Parasocial Trust and Targeted Ads
25:26 Ethics of Paid Promotions
28:30 Regulating Medical Influencers
30:00 Collagen Hype Debunked
33:21 Supplements and Real Evidence
35:02 Pseudo Profound Wellness Talk
37:26 Disinformation and Russia Examples
41:22 Media Literacy Finland Model
43:34 Slow Down Verify and AI Limits
45:45 Pharmacists as First Stop
46:41 Wrap Up

This episode was brought to you by Vital Pharmacies Ireland

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Men’s Health in Ireland: Why Men Don’t Show Up (and How We Can Change That)

On the Irish Pharmacy Podcast, brought to you by the Vital Pharmacies Group, host Sheena is joined by Dr. Noel Richardson (Men’s Health Forum in Ireland, National Centre for Men’s Health at Southeast Technological University, and HSE men’s health policy advisor) and Dr. Maura Finn (GP at Ennis Medical) to discuss men’s health, masculinity, and help-seeking in Ireland. They highlight stark inequalities, including higher premature male mortality (especially in deprived areas) and preventable risk factors such as alcohol, tobacco/drug use, obesity, low physical activity, risk-taking, and low engagement with services. Richardson describes masculinity as shaped by social determinants, rapid cultural/technological change, and pandemic-driven isolation among young men, and stresses community and workplace outreach programs like Men on the Move and Farmers Have Hearts. Finn explains why women typically build earlier healthcare relationships, while men often present late due to fear and lack of connection, and notes gaps in referral pathways and talk-therapy supports. They emphasize the role of community pharmacy, school-based health literacy (including SPHE), supporting fatherhood, staying connected, and improving bowel screening uptake. This episode was brought to you by Vital Pharmacies Ireland

Useful links
Order a FREE HSE STI kit here!
BowelScreen Info and kit ordering here!
The Real face of Men's Health Report available here!


Timeline
00:00 Welcome and Guests
01:25 Why Mens Health Matters
04:34 Masculinity in Modern Ireland
08:53 Isolation and Social Change
10:51 Why Men Avoid the GP
17:09 Reaching Hard to Reach Men
23:48 Pharmacy and Community Solutions
25:57 Fear Confidentiality and Culture
29:15 Schools and Health Literacy
32:27 Online Trends and Looksmaxing
33:16 Wish List and Practical Advice
34:51 Screening Takeaways and Wrap Up
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Introducing The Irish Pharmacy Podcast: Real Health Talk, No Jargon

Sheena introduces the Irish Pharmacy Podcast, brought to you by Vital Pharmacies a monthly show that breaks down the health stories behind the headlines in a way that makes sense. Each episode features friendly, honest conversations about the topics everyone’s talking about—new trends, common wellness questions, and the things people end up Googling late at night—without jargon or lectures. The podcast aims to help listeners and their families feel more informed about their health and get the real facts on the issues they’ve been wondering about. New episodes release monthly, and listeners are invited to follow wherever they get their podcasts.

00:00 Welcome and Purpose
00:09 Meet Sheena
00:15 What to Expect
00:31 No Jargon Promise
00:41 Join the Conversation
00:49 Monthly Episodes
00:53 Follow and Subscribe

Find Vital Pharmacies on Instagram!
Host - Sheena Mitchell

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.