Health Versus Wealth With Dr Ben

Dean Billington, a telecoms company owner, stands 6ft 5ins tall and completed 7 years in the British Army, (as a radio operator in the Royal Engineers), joining when he was aged 17. After leaving the Armed Forces, he worked in the telecoms sector. Then In 2011, he left to start Triton Telecom, his own company. Employing 4 people, they are a “one-stop-shop for all B2B telephony requirements, with partners in technology, IT, marketing, telemarketing and SEO”.Dean has lived a full, extraordinary life and crammed a lot into his 55 years. He has saved lives (in his role as a qualified rescue diver) and nearly lost his own, in a near-fatal motorcycle accident. In 2010, he was knocked off his bike and broke his shoulder blade in half, broke 6 ribs, suffered head injuries, has pins & plates in his knee, has had surgery 3 times and spent 6 months in hospital. Despite this setback, his approach to life today is upbeat and full of optimism and positivity.Once asked by a journalist what he felt was his biggest opportunity in life, he replied: “Getting up in the morning! Every day is an opportunity to do better than you did the day before. Every day is a new start. Y

Jas Rohel is the Founder of the annual Education Awards, which she launched 8 years ago after she noticed many people leaving the sector without the recognition they deserved. They began small, only in the Midlands, with 200-250 people attending each year. Now the awards are staged nationally, held at 5 venues, Manchester, London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Midlands, each attracting 500-600 people and held throughout the year. The awards' headline sponsor is the international bank HSBC.Jas has also recently become CEO of the education charity the Titan Partnership, which has been going for 35 years and has established a fine record for making an impact in schools. It began with a group of head teachers coming together to discuss teacher training, but now involves much more. They target youngers from primary schools to Higher Education. “As CEO I aim to grow the network as every school needs to be part of Titan. We want to grow the charity on a national basis," says Jas. "More needs to be done to support the young generation due to the landscape of the world today. Youngsters have it 100% tougher today than it used to be in my day as a youngster. I don't remember walking around worried about knife and gun crime. There is the influence of social media and the impact it has on youngsters today. There is so much negative information about.” In her other roles, Jas Rohel is also a Council member at Solihull Chamber of Commerce and is Station Controller at Solihull Radio.

Dr Jared Watson, an experienced clinical psychologist, was born, raised & educated in New Zealand, including at the University of Wellington, before he came to the UK in 2016. Part of the award-winning team at Dr Finlay's Private Practice, Dr Jared divides his time between supporting people with severe and enduring mental-health issues, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and working with NHS staff who report a range of conditions relating to their work and stressful lifestyles. Dr Jared also supports individuals and teams within the corporate sector, specialising in what is termed ‘organisational psychology’. His work involves helping companies and their employees to optimise their performance. In this episode, he also discusses the impact on mental health brought by social media today. He also discusses the rise in mental health diagnoses in past 20 years in the UK, and the possible reasons for this. "That’s not so much related to the recent Pandemic and could be partly influenced by the fact that people are more comfortable talking about mental health issues today.” He sees this as a good thing. Mental Health has been on a journey and there is less stigma and shame attached to it and talking openly about it these days. Hence the expression: “It's OK not to be OK”. Dr Jared adds: “It's not such a taboo subject anymore.”

John Street is the Founder & Director of one of Birmingham’s most famous and longest-established charities, Free At Last, which is dedicated to improving the lives of the children and young people of Nechells, an area of the city. Now in his 50s, John started as a community youth worker aged 17 and has worked in the sector for over 30 years. He works punishing hours and is devoted to supporting the charity, its staff, the children, and is constantly fire-fighting problems. Free At Last is celebrating its 25th anniversary. It currently helps 2,000-3,000 people a year and John manages a team of 65 staff. He attends the centre Monday-Fridays and usually has Saturdays and Sundays off, but he also works approximately 26 weekends a year. “In the last 5 weeks I’ve worked Monday to Friday, then Saturday and Sunday, too,” he says. Free At Last has won many awards, notably The Queens Award for Voluntary Service 2019, citation: “For improving the lives of the children and young people of Nechells, Birmingham”. Asked about his own health, John says: “I don’t do stress and I choose not to do stress”. Pressure helps him. He unwinds by climbing mountains and leading outdoor expeditions. John was listed in the Independent newspaper’s ‘Happy List’ in 2013 for being one of top 100 happiest people in the country for helping others.  

Elizabeth Muir, a Musculoskeletal & Pelvic Health Physiotherapist and Clinical Pilates Practitioner, is part of the Dr Finlay's Private Practice team in Birmingham. Her “hybrid” credentials, combining and merging Physio and Pilates, also inspire her own business, Elizabeth Alexander Physiotherapy and Pilates. Beth offers listeners valuable tips and advice based on her 14 years’ experience treating and supporting everyone from new-born babies one day-old, right up to her oldest patient, who was 99.Beth is passionate about encouraging people to move more. Breathing is also a major topic discussed at length, as it affects many areas of the body and mind. Our focus on mental health, as well as physical, has grown hugely post-pandemic, she says, and Pilates and Physio are central to this. There’s not enough post-natal care and support today, and Beth as a mother-of-two, talks about her own experiences, also of supporting clients in this area.

Rachel Ingram has run her own business since 2020, Cadmium Partners, and brings 17 years of global board-level search expertise. The firm finds and places senior executives, also helps individuals with career planning. Her clients are listed, FTSE and scale-up companies. She advises on managing succession, building pre-IPO board slates and making boards and leadership teams more diverse and effective. She says she has also been “at the vanguard of helping women to get on boards”. Her expertise includes sectors Consumer, Digital + Technology, Financial Services, FinTech, Cyber, Data & AI. 

Dr James Gill is an Associate Professor of Clinical Skills at Warwick Medical School. As Head of Dr Finlay’s SPEEDS Clinic, James is a runner and cyclist who’s completed 10ks, half marathons, Tough Mudders and has twice climbed Kilimanjaro (5,895m; 19,340ft), reached Everest Basecamp (5,364m; 17,598ft), and Ben Nevis many times. At 6ft 2ins tall, James has also been an onscreen medical doctor on Bear Grylls’ ‘The Island’ TV series. He’s provided medical support on ‘Survivor’ series ‘Heros vs. Villains’ and ‘Titans Vs Rebels’. He’s also worked recently on ITV’s ‘Gladiators’.

Dr Heather Currie MBE is an NHS doctor & gynaecologist and has been practising for 38 years. She is the publisher of sector-leading magazine Menopause Matters. Awarded the MBE in 2021 for ‘services to healthcare’, she’s written a book, “Menopause Essentials”, which won an award. The Menopause Matters website and magazine (launched in 2005) are dedicated to providing accurate information on Menopause to women and men everywhere.