Finding fairhealth podcast

In this episode we catch up with Dr Jonathon Tomlinson, an amazing GP in Hackney. Jonathan fills us in with how he is getting on during the coronavirus crisis. He shares his experience working in a practice in one of the hardest hit areas for coronavirus in the UK (1min 40). He tells me how his team has acted quickly to manage the acute situation but also continues to support the long term conditions for many of his patients in the community.We talk about some of the many changes in primary care over the last few weeks (5min 40s). These include; phone and video consultations; losing the GP waiting room; sharing clinical decisions and talking more with colleagues. We discuss the effects of coronavirus on those people living in deprivation (10mins 10s) and Jonathon shares some experiences from his practice and his patients (11mins). Jonathan talks about the social determinants of health and the importance of prevention along with all the stuff we are seeing in the media at the moment like PPE (14mins 50s) .One of the things that GPs can do is advocacy and Jonathon was keen to discuss the work of Dr Rudolf Virchow 1821-1902 (19mins). Virchow is famous for saying that politics is nothing but medicine on a large scale and that our role as doctors is to show the link between social conditions and medical diseases (21mins). Jonathan explains why Virchow's message is particularly relevant at the moment. We explore the role of a GP in advocacy and coordination of a response to support those who are most in need and vulnerable. We discuss how much our job in primary care should include advocacy on behalf of our patients (26mins) and Jonathon offers some ideas for some steps clinicians can take forward to achieve this. Jonathon mentions collaboration, networks (e.g. The Deep End Network), treating long term conditions. We finish our conversation talking about the importance of caring for our patients (28m 55s), Jonathon shares his favourite book (32m 10s), and he tells us what his magic genie wish would be (34m 40s).Jonathon’s recommended BookLet Us Now Praise Famous Men by James Agee (photographs byphotographer Walker Evans)Other reading“Caring Effects” Julian Tudor-Hart and Paul Dieppe (mentioned at 30mins 50s)Jonathon’s excellent blogMy (Rachel's) favouritesIf you want to learn more about advocacy and Rudolf Virchow Jonathon has written lots about trauma informed care but this one will get you startedCoronavirus consulting and more about Jonathon’s experiences over the last few monthsYou can also find Jonathon on tweeting on being a GP and topics related our discussion @mellojonny

Dr James Matheson shares his experience on what is going on at his practice in Oldham, Greater Manchester, during this worldwide pandemic. James highlights how we are uniquely well placed in primary care to identify those most in need.James shares some of the positive stories of support during this crisis. He gives an example of how those living with homelessness have been housed almost overnight after years struggling to achieve this. We also talk about what we can learn from this crisis to support the most vulnerable in the future.Alongside seeing patients with Covid-19, James discusses the importance of continuing day to day care especially for the most vulnerable. He shares some of the things individual GPs can do to support these vulnerable people and how we can identify and reach out to those people most in need. We discuss the risk of Covid-19 for patients living in deprivation, but also the impact of little or no financial reserve during this time. He talks about some of the vulnerable groups that are particularly likely to suffer during this crisis. He mentions those living with homelessness, Gypsy and Travellers, refugees and migrants.To finish James tells me why he is feeling positive about the future.Please check out a recent blog post Fairhealth in the time of Covid-19 from Dr Tom RatcliffeThe RCGP are releasing some guidance on supporting vulnerable patients very soon. Keep an eye out on their resource hub and I will also post a link here.

An interview with Sir Michael MarmotShow Notes I was honoured to have a conversation with Sir Michael Marmot just a few weeks before The Marmot Review 10 Years On is due to be released. He told me the report has been performed in ‘the spirit of self examination’ to see if there has been any impact or if any good has come from the original report (2mins). He mentions the importance of the report amid the current context of worrying life expectancy figures (2m45s) and sheds some light on the reasons behind these worrying trends (4m40s).Sir Michael Marmot is world renowned as a specialist in the impact of inequalities on health with internationally acclaimed research, writing and public speaking on the topic. The professor talks to us about how he perceived his role in all of this (8mins) as someone who synthesises evidence and chains of reasoning (10m40s) to formulate recommendations. Despite being an international spokesperson for such an important issue, Michael tells me that he doesn’t see himself as particularly political (12m50s) but does feel able to present information ‘in the spirit of social justice.’ We discuss if the moral case is enough to inspire or create political change (13m30s) and how to create action around health inequalities. With years of experience of sounding the claxon for this important issue, he gives his views on how we unite people around this goal and how to deal with actors in the system that might not prioritise equity (15m 30s).With government promising more spending we talk about current opportunities for spending in areas that are most in need (17.30) and gives hope that there will be clear recommendations coming out of the report for where government should direct their resources. We talk about practical action for health professionals too with six recommendation of how we as health professionals can take steps try to tackle health inequalities (19mins).With climate change likely having the biggest impact first to those most disadvantaged and in need, Michael is aware of the current importance of climate change and environment. He shares with us how he is involved in trying to bring the environmental and social determinants of health agendas together and how actions to improve health can contribute to meet carbon neutrality (23mins).To finish we ask for Michael's book recommendations (24m10s) and his genie wish (28m10s)Michael's book recommendations (24m10s)Development Is Freedom – Amarta SenCapital Twenty First Century- Thomas PickettyGreat Expectations by Charles Dickens (first 2 pages if nothing else)Further readingBMA report- what can doctors do- (this needs downloading as a PDF) World Medical association report- Doctors for health Look out for the Marmot review 10years on report due to be release on February 25thMichael Marmot’s five recommendations of what doctors can do to tackle health inequalities1. Education2. Seeing the patient in a broader perspective/wider context3. Health service as an employer and the health system having an impact on the broader environment and community4. Working in partnership5. Advocacy