Live from Oxford with Professor Ben Goldacre - Bad Pharma, Good Data, Better Care

The Apothecaries are back on the road! In this special live episode, The Aural Apothecary takes the stage at the Bennett Institute for Applied Data Science, hosted at Jesus College, Oxford University, as part of the Institute’s 10-year anniversary conference.

Our guest is Professor Ben Goldacre — a hero of ours, and the bestselling author of Bad Pharma, whose work has shaped how we think about evidence, transparency, and accountability.

Recorded in front of a live audience, we quiz Ben on the actions that followed Bad Pharma: a 13-year appraisal, if you like, of what has changed, what has not, and where good intentions still fall short. Along the way, we explore data in Medicine, storytelling, regulation, and why embedding analysts inside healthcare teams matters if data is to drive learning rather than assurance. A live conversation about evidence, honesty, and the hard work of turning data into better care.

As with all of our guests, Ben shares with us his Memory Evoking Medicine, a career anthem and book that has influenced his life. 

The Bennett Institute,home of OPENPrescribing and OPENSafely : https://www.bennett.ox.ac.uk/

Bad Pharma: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/oct/17/bad-pharma-ben-goldacre-review

Better, Broader, Safer - The Goldacre Report https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/better-broader-safer-using-health-data-for-research-and-analysis

From Prescription to Ocean — A TEDx Talk by Jamie Hayes We’re incredibly proud to share that Aural Apothecary co-host Jamie Hayes has taken to the TEDx stage with a thought-provoking talk:  Prescription to Ocean: The Hidden Impact of Medicines https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swCLNaAG5qY Jamie explores a fascinating and urgent question: What happens to our medicines once they leave the prescription pad — and how do they impact the world beyond the patient? It’s a journey that connects healthcare, the environment, and our shared responsibility for the future. You’ll never think about prescribing (or taking) medicines in quite the same way again. Please take a few minutes to watch, reflect, and share — this is a conversation worth having.

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You can listen to the Aural Apothecary playlist here; https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OsWj4w8sxsvuwR9zMXgn5?si=tiHXrQI7QsGtSQwPyz1KBg 

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