Best Tim Whiffen Podcasts (2024)

1
Episode 64: Pregnancy And Epilepsy | Dispelling The Myths 1:20:01

2h ago1:20:01

1:20:01

A common myth about epilepsy is that women who suffer from this condition should avoid getting pregnant. This is simply not true. It can be safely managed for both the mother-to-be and future child. Epilepsy is not a contraindication for pregnancy. Certainly there are additional precautions and steps that should be taken when a woman who has epilep…

1
Episode 63: Tonsillectomies | To excise or not to excise 50:00

16d ago50:00

50:00

Tonsillectomies are one of the most common operations both today and historically, however, it has always been mired in controversy. In ancient times, this was touted as being either life-saving or completely unnecessary and continued to be a polarising topic into the twentieth century. An evidence based approach has helped to provide guidelines su…

1
Episode 62: Lactose intolerance | Udderly unbearable 33:11

23d ago33:11

33:11

Over two-thirds of the world’s population lose the ability to metabolise during their lifetime (the majority during childhood). We know today that lactose intolerance, or lactase persistence, has a strong genetic predisposition. Almost 100% of Asians, 70% of African-Americans, East Indians, US Hispanics and approximately 50% of Spanish and French h…

1
Episode 61: Pelvic Pain And Endometriosis | More Than The Black Spots 1:17:10

1M ago1:17:10

1:17:10

Pelvic pain is a difficult and challenging medical condition for both patients and doctors. It can be debilitating for women that can begin as a teenager or a young adult and progress for years impacting every facet of their lives. Similiarly, pelvic pain can be challenging for symptom to assess and manage for doctors as there are a multitude of ca…

1
Episode 60: Vitamin B6 | ViB6ranium 30:59

2M ago30:59

30:59

Vitamin B6 is a common additive in supplements, energy drinks and breakfast cereals. In rare circumstances though, it can reach levels toxic levels and cause neurological symptoms the mimic neurodegenerative disease. This year newsGP reported a case where a GP took magnesium supplements for muscle cramps and over the course of a few years resulted …

1
Episode 59: Scleroderma | Arboreal Integument 45:55

2M ago45:55

45:55

Scleroderma is a disease characterised by the hardening and tightening of the skin and connective tissues. The first medical description can be traced back to the 1750s. Our understanding has evolved over the centuries but the pathogenesis remains largely unknown. The disease as several forms including diffuse and localised. Symptoms include skin d…

1
Episode 58: Ticking the spotted fever box | Rickettsia 40:47

3M ago40:47

40:47

In 1901, the state of Montana organised for scientists and doctors to investigate a mysterious illness from the Bitterroot Valley called ‘Black measles’ and ‘Black typhus’. People of all ages were affected but predominantly those who worked in the brush and were exposed to tick bites. The investigators called it ‘tick fever’ and this particular str…

1
Episode 57: Fantastic Faeces and Where to find pathogens | Metapanel 44:26

3M ago44:26

44:26

Our understanding of infectious disease and pathology stems from the 19th century with Robert Koch pioneering research. Dr Koch help to shaped modern microbiology and medicine when he identified the causative agents for anthrax and tuberculosis. Since that time, the number of infectious microorganisms that we know of that cause illness and diseases…

1
Episode 56: The Iron-Clad Chronicles | Iron Studies 54:36

4M ago54:36

54:36

In episode 56 of This Medical Life, Dr Travis Brown and Steve Davis delve into the critical topic of iron studies, with a special focus on iron deficiency, under the expert guidance of returning guest, Professor Ken Sikaris. Iron deficiency’s prevalence is influenced by factors such as age, sex, and ethnicity, noting that women, especially those of…

1
Episode 55: Pomegranate Health | Fighting The Good Fight 43:05

4M ago43:05

43:05

In this episode we delve into the nuanced world of the Pomegranate Health podcast with our guest, Mic Cavazzini. Pomegranate Health, a creation of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, serves as a platform to explore the multifaceted culture of medicine. It weaves through the clinical intricacies of medicine with episodes that span from the…

1
Innovators are Built by Community and Mentors (Special guest Jane MacFarlane) 46:19

5M ago46:19

46:19

Developing a life on a non-linear path such as working as a creative takes more than skill, it takes guidance and community - something that can easily be missed for early career artists. The Helpmann Academy runs a Creative Innovator Program that connects creative people to learning and mentoring to push them in a constructive direction, something…

1
Episode 54: Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) | Advocacy And Prevention, Part 2 53:30

5M ago53:30

53:30

In Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) Part 1, we learned that CTE is a neurodegenerative disease caused by repetitive cumulative brain injury. Patients suffer from debilitating mental health symptoms and may even have suicidal thoughts or actions. Unfortunately, there is no treatment for this disease and it can only be official diagnosed at aut…

1
Episode 53: Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) | The Disease, Part 1 1:19:28

5M ago1:19:28

1:19:28

In 2005, Dr Bennet Omalu would publish a report in the United States on the autopsy brain findings of a former professional footballer from the NFL. His conclusion was the former athlete suffered from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE); a disease caused by repeated brain injuries most likely due to sport. The response was swift and severe claim…

1
Episode 52 : This Medical Life Podcast Now With CPD 39:17

6M ago39:17

39:17

We begin this year with one of the most important topics for General Practitioners in 2024: what are the Continuous Professional Development requirements for doctors and how have they changed? Our special guest is Rachel White who is the Managing Director for the Australian Medical CPD Standards (AMcpdS) who has over twenty years supporting high qu…

1
A New Year Update 38:25

7M ago38:25

38:25

Don't mention 2023... Now 2024 is here! And Blind Insights is renewed... again! David and Tim update the audience and guests on the future of the show. If you have any thoughts or questions on how to flourish and contribute to your community, contact us and send us an audio clip at tim@whimsyproductions.com Want to work with David? Get in contact o…

1
Episode 51: TML Season Wrapup 2023 | Common things…no, rare things…wait, um, okay whatever 25:09

8M ago25:09

25:09

And that’s another year done. A huge thank you to all of our guest speakers who have been generous with their time and expertise. We would also like to thank our listeners and hope you enjoyed the episodes. This episode is a mini reflection on this year’s episodes, a link to one of Steve’s favourite podcasts, some TML clips, and an embarrassing mem…

1
Episode 50: Menopause | Let’s Talk 1:27:49

9M ago1:27:49

1:27:49

During the mid-twentieth century, menopause was touted as a severe disease that destroyed women’s femininity and was a burden to their husbands. Thankfully, today we recognise menopause as a natural part of ageing and conversations about it are happening more and more. In this episode, we have four special guests: Niki Bezzant: award-winning writer…

1
Better than Happiness (Special guest Dr. Gregory P. Smith) 1:05:19

9M ago1:05:19

1:05:19

David and Gregory discuss how to become the person you want to be, Gregory’s extraordinary life, and his insightful books: Out of the Forest and Better than Happiness. You can find out more about Gregory Smith here. If you have any thoughts or questions on how to flourish and contribute to your community, contact us and send us an audio clip at tim…

1
Episode 49: Professor Graeme Suthers | In Graeme We Trust 1:01:30

9M ago1:01:30

1:01:30

In July 2020 in the midst of a global pandemic, we released our first episode called ‘What is pathology?’ with This Pathological Life podcast. We hoped to create something that would entertain and education the audiencem and shed light on to some of the amazing stories and characters in medicine. In creating these podcasts, I am always thankful and…

1
Episode 48: Prostate Cancer Screening | PSA on PSAs 50:38

10M ago50:38

50:38

On the 1st of November 2023, the Australian Government will release new guidelines for screening prostate cancer with the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test. These guidelines are based upon the Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) published in 2016 with new items to be included in the Medicare schedule. These items are based upon the Prostate…

1
Episode 47: Breast Screening & Mammograms | Future (Part 2) 1:03:01

10M ago1:03:01

1:03:01

We continue the second episode of this two part series on breast screening and mammograms focusing on the future. In this episode, we talk about the importance of breast density as a new risk factor, personalised breast cancer risk assessment (iPrevent developed by Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre https://www.petermac.org/iprevent), and discuss a pers…

1
Building a Boot Making Company from Scratch (Special Guest Andrew Svisco) 1:04:29

11M ago1:04:29

1:04:29

Both David and Tim have been on a bit of a boot bent, researching, watching reviews, buying quality leather boots, and generally nerding out about quality-made things. David stumbled across an incredible boot called the Parkhurst Allen, which quickly turned into a quest to buy another Parkhurst boot. David speaks with Andrew Svisco from Parkhurst B…

1
Episode 46: Breast Screening & Mammograms | Present (Part 1) 55:49

11M ago55:49

55:49

A critical tool in the fight against breast cancer is population screening. Early detection, surgical intervention +/- further treatment has dramatically reduced advanced disease and mortality rates but it still remains the most common cancer worldwide. In this episode, we focus on the history of breast cancer, the development of mammograms and ear…

1
Episode 45: Fact Today, Fiction(?) Tomorrow | Sam Arbesman and the Half-Life of Facts 1:04:25

11M ago1:04:25

1:04:25

Our understanding of the world today is constantly changing. What was once considered truths and facts can, in hindsight, be seen as misguided or wrong. It may be challenging to accept but becomes evident over time that the things we learn today may become irrelevant or superseded in the future and this is particularly relevant to medicine. Sciento…

1
Episode 44: Vitamin D (Part 2) | A Ray of Evidence-based Sunshine 42:26

12M ago42:26

42:26

Vitamin D has been a controversial topic in recent times with the debate continuing over appropriate testing, adequate levels, and the evidence for treatment. We discussed the appropriateness of testing and chemical pathology component with Professor Ken Sikaris (Episode 25), but what does the research tell us about diseases associated with Vitamin…

1
Episode 43: Professor Peter Doherty | Immunological Self vs Non-self 56:08

12M ago56:08

56:08

Professor Peter Doherty trained as a veterinarian before venturing into immunology research. Professor Doherty travelled extensively throughout his career and has undertaken numerous research posts around the world. The achievement that he is most noted for is he was able to demonstrate how the body distinguished between virus-infected cells from n…

1
Episode 42: The Double Helix Structure of DNA | Finding Franklin 49:05

1y ago49:05

49:05

The double helix structure of DNA was the discovery of the century. However, the story about the discovery is mired in controversy as one of the major contributors, Rosalind Franklin, was conspicuously absent from acknowledgements and died (and subsequently not named) before the Nobel Prize was awarded. In 1968, James Watson wrote the book ‘The Dou…

1
Blind Insights - Taste The Orchard (Special Guest Warwick Billings of LOBO Cider) 1:05:36

1y ago1:05:36

1:05:36

David has been on a journey with a very special Cider from the Adelaide Hills. Warwick Billings of LOBO cider, creator of what, in David's opinion, is the best cider in Australia, joins the podcast to provide some insight into the history of cider-making and the experiences and philosophies that go into making a substantially special and scrumptiou…

1
Episode 41: Faecal Microbiome | All About Poo 49:58

1y ago49:58

49:58

Essentially every culture, modern or ancient, understood that health and faeces are inherently linked. The Ancient Chinese practiced ‘copromancy’ which was the assessment of health based upon the shape, size and texture of faeces. Today we have the Bristol Stool Chart that helps us to classify faeces/poo into seven different groups. As disconcertin…

1
Episode 40: Carrier Screening | The Hunt for Recessive Genes 1:00:04

1y ago1:00:04

1:00:04

In 1891, Guido Werdnig documented two cases of brothers who had global progressive muscular weakness. In 1935, Dr Dorothy Anderson conducted an autopsy on a young child who had died from malnutrition due to suspected coeliac disease despite being on the upon treatment. In 1943, in inherited form of intellectual disability in boys was described by M…

1
Blind Insights - Anger is your Compass (Special guest Moshe Ratson) 37:37

1y ago37:37

37:37

David speaks with psychotherapist Moshe Ratson about his book, "Anger is Your Compass". Anger is very powerful, and you can learn to direct your anger to make situations and yourself better. Moshe discusses how to become a Compassionate Warrior, someone who can tap into the wisdom that anger evokes, who feels strong emotions and strives to act with…

1
Episode 39: Influenza | Attack of the Intangible Fluid 39:07

1y ago39:07

39:07

Seasonal influenza causes significant morbidity and mortality every year but can often fall into the underestimated category. Between 10-30% of the general population are infected each year with influenza that leads to an increase in hospital and intensive care unit admissions, the onus for prevention and early intervention has never been more impo…

1
Blind Insights - Exploring Histories and Fantasies of Heroes and War (Special guest Christian Cameron) 1:15:44

1y ago1:15:44

1:15:44

Christian Cameron is a fiction novelist who has captivated David's imagination with his experiential descriptive writing in the genres of Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Thriller, and Science Fiction. David has been spending so much time reading, thinking, and talking about Christian Cameron's books and reading his back catalogue we had to invite him …

1
Episode 38: The MMR Vaccine Deception | A Fraud of Epidemic Proportions 53:45

1y ago53:45

53:45

In 1998, a 6 page report published in the Lancet that would later be described as one of history’s great science frauds. The article was titled “Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive development disorder in children” but the news headlines ran with a much shorter version: the MMR vaccine causes autism. The article …

1
Episode 37: Autoimmune Thyroiditis | Hashimoto and Graves’ Disease 32:02

1y ago32:02

32:02

In 1834, Robert Graves gave a lecture series on the ‘Newly observed affection of the thyroid gland in females’. He presented three women who had violent palpitations, enlarged thyroids, and an apparent enlargement of the eyeballs (later it would be called ‘exophthalmos’). In 1912, Hakaru Hashimoto reported a new disease in a German journal after ex…

1
Episode 36: Barrett Oesophagitis | From Squamous to Columnar 53:43

1+ y ago53:43

53:43

Since recorded history, heartburn has been a common complaint and the descriptions from ancient physicians are virtually indistinguishable from today’s accounts. However, one thing we do know that they did not is a small subset of patients whose long standing heartburn could predispose them to a precancerous condition known as Barrett oesophagitis.…

1
PSA - AUKUS Submarines Explained 22:58

1+ y ago22:58

22:58

The AUKUS Submarine deal has been announced for a short while and very little sense has been made of it in the public sphere. The $368 billion sum is scary to many people and has also invited very poor commentary from political and media voices. Peter and Tim quiz David on all you need to know to be a submarine expert, giving you the Who, What, Whe…

1
Episode 35: Professor Ian Frazer | The Cervical Cancer Vaccine 40:32

1+ y ago40:32

40:32

Professor Ian Frazer pioneered the development of the first Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine which has seen a reduction of HPV infections in young women between 70-86% and the incidence of cervical cancer rates drop by 90%. Few doctors/scientists have had such a profound impact on the health of so many people. Today we talk to Professor Ian Fraz…

1
Episode 34: Mind Games | Psychology from the 60s 33:36

1+ y ago33:36

33:36

In 1964, a young woman was murdered as she walked to her apartment in Queens, New York. Her screams were left unanswered. No one came to her help. Within the space of thirty minutes, the assailant would return two more times to stab her again and again. The woman died. The number of witnesses to this crime who did not help was: 38. Two psychologist…

1
Blind Insights - Understanding the AI Hype 29:25

1+ y ago29:25

29:25

Tech giants are in a spin trying to keep up with the hype that funds them, and AI has made some significant splashes in 2023 as it is being implemented into search engines. Tim and David discuss the outlook of what our world might look like as machine learning advances, and how we should expect to adapt to these new technologies. If you have any th…

1
Episode 33: MDMA | Medicinal Ecstasy 43:48

1+ y ago43:48

43:48

In 1912, Merck Pharmaceuticals was searching for a blood clotting agent to compete with a competitor in the market. One of the agents, a chemical by-product (and not even named) was produced and patented without any significant testing. This was a drug that we would come to know as MDMA or Ecstasy. In the 1960s, this drug found it’s way into use by…

1
Blind Insights - The Examined Life (Special guest Peter Quarry) 1:02:27

1+ y ago1:02:27

1:02:27

"If I Were You: A Psychologist Puts Himself on the Couch" by Peter Quarry is a 'psychological memoir' that captured the imagination of Tim in early 2023. Joining David and Tim in this episode is the author of a book that effectively exemplifies the response to the Socratic phrase: "The unexamined life is not worth living." Peter describes his fasci…

1
Episode 32: Aspirin | From Poultices to Pills 49:26

1+ y ago49:26

49:26

The medicinal properties of aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) have been well-documented for hundreds of years. It seems even our ancient ancestors thousands of years ago had some insight into its healing properties even if the usage was misguided. We are still learning about aspirin and the best ways to use it. Our special guest is Professor Simon Dim…

1
Episode 31: BRCA | The BRreast CAncer genes (Part 2) 41:59

1+ y ago41:59

41:59

A continuation of Episode 30. In this episode, we discuss the continued management of patients with Breast Cancer and the BRCA pathological variant. Our special guests: Associate Professor Nick Murray who is a Medical Oncologist and Director of the Medical Oncology Unit at the Royal Adelaide Hospital Cancer Services Dr Eryn Dow – Medical Oncologist…

1
Blind Insights - Our New Diets 44:36

1+ y ago44:36

44:36

In this episode, with a strong dose of 'do your own research', David and Tim share their new eating habits and dietary practices. Four books, namely The Glucose Revolution, Super Gut, Drop Acid, and Nature Wants Us To Be Fat, are paving the way for the latest research in diets and human health. Having read the books, Tim and David share their exper…

1
Episode 30: BRCA | The BReast CAncer genes (Part 1) 54:57

1+ y ago54:57

54:57

In 1866, a French physician by the name of Pierre Paul Broca recognised a terrifying disease running through the women of his wife’s family: breast cancer. He wrote that they could be well and have perfect health before this ‘germ’ of an illness would go off like an ‘explosion’ and could kill within 1 to 2 years. Broca studied his family for the ne…

1
What's next for Blind Insights in 2023? 26:55

1+ y ago26:55

26:55

Refocused and reinvigorated, some things have changed for the podcast and you can expect more content in 2023. This episode catches you up with what is happening for David and Tim and gives you some insight into what is coming for Blind Insights this year! If you have any thoughts or questions on how to flourish and contribute to your community, co…

1
Episode 29: Dupuytrens Contracture | Curse of the Vikings 44:54

1+ y ago44:54

44:54

In the 16th century, a curse was foretold about the Scottish MacCrimmon clan that they would cease to be the official (bag) pipers of the chiefs of the Clan MacLeod and would be forced to leave the Isle of Skye forever. The curse came true. The fingers of the men from the MacCrimmons clan became twisted and gnarled resembling a claw and they were u…

1
Blind Insights - Transitioning from Academics to Professions 33:49

1+ y ago33:49

33:49

2023 marks Tim and David fully committed and functioning in their new professions. When this podcast started, David was teaching at university, and now he works in marketing strategy form two companies. How and why does someone make a shift to a completely different field? The shift might not be as drastic is you think... If you have any thoughts o…

1
Blind Insights - What is Inbound? David's Master Thesis in a Nutshell 44:14

1+ y ago44:14

44:14

At the end of 2022, David Finished his master's thesis with a High Distinction. David wrote a relatively comprehensive analysis of Inbound Marketing for his Master of Strategic Communications and pitched his writing for a professional audience while still achieving academic success. Tim and David discuss David's findings where he blended academic e…

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