CMAJ Podcasts

In this podcast, Dr. Derek Chu and Dr. Zainab Abdurrahman discuss the difference between true vaccine allergy and other normal or abnormal reactions to vaccines. They also discuss whether or not people with egg or latex allergy can be safely vaccinated. Dr. Derek Chu is a fifth-year allergy and clinical immunology resident at McMaster University and Dr. Zainab Abdurrahman is an allergist and clini...

In this narrative, Dr. Iris Gorfinkel still thinks about a patient she treated 25 years ago whose quiet defiance was a cry to be helped on his own terms. Dr. Gorfinkel is a general practitioner, and a principal investigator and founder of Prime-Health Clinical Research in Toronto, Ont. She wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called "The quietly defiant patient."To rea...

In this next "Med Life with Dr. Horton" podcast, Dr. Jillian Horton chats with Dr. Allan Peterkin about creative arts and playfulness as related to medicine and as tools to help balance out a stressful life. Dr. Horton and Dr. Peterkin talk about:- music, writing, theatre, improv groups, cooking and many other forms of artistic expression- the time Dr. Peterkin was on The Tonight Show wi...

In this podcast, Dr. Ryan McLarty and Dr. Darcie Kiddoo discuss how to care for boys’ foreskin when they are babies and how to ensure boys are taught proper foreskin care as they grow older. They also discuss what the foreskin should look like, what abnormalities look like, how to recognize and treat infections, and when surgeries, including circumcision, are warranted. Dr. Ryan McLarty is a fourt...

In this narrative, Dr. Ariel Lefkowitz shares the story of Betty, a patient whose faith helped her be at peace with her fate in life. Dr. Lefkowitz is a general internist at Sinai Health System and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. He wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called "Major Betty."To read the article: www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.181033---...

In this narrative, Dr. Pauline Pariser has many emotions about retirement after 35 years in practice. Dr. Pariser worked as a family physician in Toronto and is currently still an associate professor at the University of Toronto. She wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called "Reflections on retirement: Is that the way to say goodbye?"To read the article: www.cmaj.ca/...

In this podcast, Dr. Jeff Kwong and Dr. Daniel Dalcin discuss high-dose influenza vaccines, which contain more antigen than standard-dose vaccines. Dr. Jeff Kwong is a scientist at ICES and at Public Health Ontario, and a family physician at Toronto Western Family Health Team. He conducts research on the epidemiology of influenza. Dr. Daniel Dalcin is a family medicine resident at Dalhousie Univer...

In this narrative, Dr. Sarah Stumbar is sad to say goodbye to her patient Ana who, despite trying her best, is unable to achieve the American dream. The is the second part of Ana's story. This first part can be found here: https://soundcloud.com/cmajpodcasts/170278-encDr. Sarah Stumbar is a family physician and assistant professor of family medicine at Florida International University in Miam...

In this podcast, Dr. David McCullagh and Dr. Derek Chu discuss penicillin allergy: its prevalence, how to diagnose it, and how to confirm patient-reported penicillin allergy. Dr. David McCullagh is an infectious disease fellow at McMaster University and Dr. Derek Chu, fifth-year allergy and immunology resident, also at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. They co-authored a peer-reviewed prac...

In this podcast, Dr. Jonathan Fuller has a conversation with Miriam Solomon about different ways of knowing in medicine: precision medicine, evidence-based medicine, and narrative medicine. They discuss how these terms were coined and what they mean in the context of the current medical landscape. Prof. Miriam Solomon is a professor of philosophy at Temple University in Philadelphia. She published...

In this narrative, Zoe Lau, a graduating medical student at Queen’s University School of Medicine, remembers one patient who fell outside of any easy categorization. Her article was the 2018 winner of the Undergraduate Narrative Award for Palliative Medicine, hosted by the Canadian Society of Palliative Care Physicians. It is called "Dear Mrs. P."It was also published in CMAJ. To read th...

In this narrative, Dr. Clive Kearon reflects on his cancer diagnosis, and how life expectancy can change in one instant, sometimes for the better. Dr. Kearon is a thromboembolism consultant, clinician-researcher, and professor of medicine at McMaster University. He wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called "Four weddings and...."To read the article: www.cmaj.ca/looku...

In this narrative, Dr. Peter Newman remembers with fondness a person who ignited his love for literature and influenced his choice of career. Dr. Peter Newman is a family physician, teacher, and writer. He has worked extensively overseas, and is with the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. He wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called &quot...

In this podcast, Dr. Jonathan Fuller, philosophy of medicine postdoctoral fellow and graduating medical student at the University of Toronto, has a chat with Alex Broadbent, professor of philosophy at the University of Johannesburg. They discuss how medicine is defined, how the definition has changed over time, and what the term means in various contexts. For more philosophical discussions related...

In this podcast, Professor Alex Abramovich and Dr. June Lam discuss considerations for transgender patients in primary care. Prof. Alex Abramovich is an Independent Scientist at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and an Assistant Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Dr. June Lam is a fifth-year...

In this narrative, Dr. Susan MacDonald reflects on her involvement in the end-of-life choices of one of her patients. Dr. Susan MacDonald is a palliative care physician and associate professor of medicine and family medicine Memorial University in St. John’s, Newfoundland. She wrote a Humanities Encounters article published in CMAJ called "Leo died the other day."To read the article (sub...

In this podcast, Professor Andrew Hogan examines the history of the social and medical models of disability and mental illness. The social model characterizes disability as the product of an unaccommodating and oppressive society. In contrast, the medical model supposes that a disability is an individual and medical diagnosis. Prof. Hogan is assistant professor in the Department of History at Crei...

In this first "Med Life with Dr. Horton" podcast, Dr. Jillian Horton answers questions about CaRMS, the Canadian Resident Matching Service. In this episode, she is joined by Dr. Moneeza Walji. They answer these questions:What are some strategies for choosing and ranking programs? Should I have a back-up program in my ranking? What should I do about conflicting interviews? What are interv...

In this podcast, Professor Catherine Carstairs tells listeners about one of the first sex education efforts in our country called the Health League of Canada. In light of Ontario Premier Doug Ford's controversial move to go back to using a sex education curriculum that was created in 1998, it is helpful to examine historical efforts, and past failures, to educate the public about sex and sexu...

In her narrative, Dr. Krishna Acharya reflects on importance of taking the time to learn what families worry about. Dr. Acharya is a neonatologist and assistant professor of pediatrics in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her Humanities Encounters article is published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. It is called "The other side."This audio version of the article is read by Hiba Kukaswad...

Dre Guylène Thériault nous explique les recommandations clé des nouvelles lignes directrices sur le dépistage du cancer du sein chez les femmes âgées de 40 à 74 ans qui ne sont pas à risque accru. Dans cette conversation, elle est interviewé par Dr Roland Grad. Dr Roland Grad est médecin de famille et professeur agrégé de médecine de famille à l’Université McGill à Montréal. Dre Guylène Thériault...

In this podcast, Dr. Ainsley Moore discusses the latest evidence on screening for breast cancer in women aged 40–74 years who are not at increased risk for breast cancer. The guideline is published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Dr. Ainsley Moore is a family physician and Associate Clinical Professor at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. She is vice chair of the Canadian Task...

In this podcast, we hear from two experts who are calling on the Canadian minister of health to recall high-strength opioid formulations from the Canadian market. They explain why it might be time to consider using Vanessa's Law, which empowers the minister of health to recall a drug when he or she “believes that a therapeutic product presents a serious or imminent risk of injury to health.”P...

In this narrative, Dr. Martina Kelly reflects on the role of “touch” in medicine, a word that seems inappropriately intimate but also a routine part of clinical practice. Dr. Kelly is a family doctor, working in the Dept of Family Medicine of the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine in Calgary, Alberta. Her Humanities Encounters article is published in the Canadian Medical Association...

In this podcast, Dr. Peter Gill, general pediatrician and researcher at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, discusses the latest clinical information about acute flaccid myelitis: how it is spread, symptoms, how to diagnose, how to manage, and more. He co-authored a peer-reviewed practice article published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. It is titled "Five things to know a...