Technology has revolutionized healthcare. The technology we have today allows us to understand much more about our health and our health system using technology, than ever before. But yet, millions of people still suffer from completely preventable diseases worldwide each year. Many health systems are on the brink of collapse. Cleary technology is not the only answer to addressing all the problems in healthcare. So what role does digital health play in improving healthcare access and...

Children are not prone to severe covid complications, but this doesn’t mean that the pandemic hasn’t affected them. What is the impact of the pandemic and lockdown on their physical, psychological and social development? The pandemic has affected many people’s mental health. How do we recognize that our kids might be struggling with their mental health during this time? How can we best support them? When should we seek professional help? When it came to returning kids to school, people had...

Do you think frontline healthcare workers heroes?  What's the problem with calling them 'heroes'? A hero never tires. A hero is not overworked. A hero isn't fearful that they will transmit a deadly infectious to their granny. The label of hero adds to the burnout many frontline healthcare workers are feeling. What's the problem with the term burnout? It places the fault on the individual's flaws (bottom-up), rather than on the underlying health system failures (top-down). Frontline HCWs...

Have you ever heard a doctor say to a grieving family member, “I’m sorry, there’s nothing more that we can do?”. It’s usually in the context of someone who is terminally ill and death is around the corner.  My next guest on Behind the Frontline podcast seeks to remove this saying from medicine. Because in medicine, there’s always something that can be done. And while it may be true that someone who is terminally ill may not recover from their illness, palliative care – which is the...

With the COVID-19 vaccine rollout started, many people have questions about it. Is it safe? Does it work? What is the government doing to protect me? There are also multiple equity considerations about how the vaccine is distributed amongst nations and within each country as well. In this episode, my guest and I will try to answer common FAQs about the COVID-19 vaccines, dispel myths and provide an overview of the equity considerations. I am delighted to introduce the special guest for the...

1 in 10 people are currently suffering from depression and 1 in 5 with an anxiety disorder. Mental health challenges are increasingly being recognized as an important global health concern. Nobody is immune. It can affect anyone. There is not a single person that can that they have not been impacted by the COVID19 pandemic in one way or the other. What is the overall effect of the COVID19 pandemic on our mental health? What is the psychological toll of a forced lockdown, economic...

Hello and welcome to behind the frontline podcast, the podcast that asks the very simple question, ‘how can we change the world?’ I’m your host, Dr Adil Khan. In this season, I will be chatting to expert guests to try to understand how COVID19 impacts society in different ways. I hope to share the insights of these great minds with you and hope to inspire you to ‘change the world’. Imagine having a ‘hospital’ in your home. Why would anyone want this? Well, hospitals are, ironically...

The 11th of March marks exactly one year since the World health organization announced the COVID-19 outbreak is considered a pandemic. Take yourself back to that period. Do you remember all the uncertainty we had? We weren’t sure how best to protect ourselves. We weren’t sure that we would have enough basic personal and protective equipment for our frontline healthcare workers. It was during this period of uncertainty, that a few organizations stood out and helped us make sense of the chaotic...

The Behind the Frontline podcast celebrates people doing great things in healthcare. In this special feature episode, I chat with a trail-blazing junior Doctor. At 21 years old only, Dr Thakgalo Thibela is the youngest qualified medical doctor in South Africa. She matriculated at a mere 15 years of age and completed her MBCHB at WITS. Currently performing her internship, what are some of the challenges associated with this label of ‘the youngest qualified medical doctor’? Is it a burden or is...

The first season is all about COVID-19. COVID has challenged society in many different ways. We were simply not ready for it. But 1 year on, what have learned? Who is affected more severely than others? How can we overcome it? Who are the people and organizations working towards solutions? These are the questions I will try to answer with the help of my guests in this season. I’m looking forward to sharing the insights of people that are at the top of their fields. We will look at the COVID...