A Clear Voice

Send us Fan Mail This episode of BLA Connections A Clear Voice , hosted by Natalie Watson , features a follow-up conversation with Jackie Gartner-Schmidt after her keynote presentation at the British Laryngological Association (BLA) Conference 2025. Dr Gartner-Schmidt discusses Conversation Training Therapy (CTT), an approach that begins with everyday conversation rather than traditional vocal dri...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice , host Natalie Watson marks the handover of the British Laryngological Association presidency from Mr Declan Costello to Mr Nicholas Gibbins.  Declan reflects on his two-year term, highlighting the steady development of the Association’s foundations, including a new website, improved membership systems and strengthened organisation...

Send us Fan Mail The final episodes of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice, current series provides an overview of highlights from the Cutting Edge Laryngology 2024 conference in London. Host Natalie Watson introduces keynote speakers, including Prof Marc Remacle , reflecting on 30 years of work in laryngology; Dr Anais Rameau , discussing the role of artificial intelligence in the future of the field;...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice , host Natalie Watson interviews Prof Marc Remacle, reflecting on his 30-year career in laryngology. The discussion explores advancements in diagnostic and surgical techniques, including CO2 lasers, low-power lasers, and improvements in video endoscopy.  Prof Remacle highlights the evolution from open cancer surgeries to transoral...

Send us Fan Mail In this recording of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice , host Natalie Watson speaks with Dr. Anaïs Rameau from Weill Cornell Medicine, New York during the Cutting Edge Laryngology Conference 2024. They explore the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in laryngology, introducing concepts like "Audiomics" and "Videomics" to describe the use of AI for analyzing voice...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, host Natalie Watson speaks with keynote speaker Prof Nupur Nerurkar, who joined the Cutting Edge Laryngology Conference 2024 in London. Nupur shares her expertise on vocal fold cysts, sulci, and mucosal bridges, detailing insights from her research and clinical practice. She discusses advancements in diagnosing and treating these challenging conditions, including...

Send us Fan Mail In the BLA Connections: A Clear Voice episode, host Natalie Watson interviews Professor David Howard, the founding president of the British Laryngological Association (BLA). The conversation reflects on the history and development of the BLA and the vital role of laryngology in speech and language therapy. Professor Howard shares insights into his career, from his early interest i...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice , host Natalie Watson speaks with Professors James Hull and Surinder Birring, leading experts in respiratory medicine, to discuss the challenges of diagnosing and treating chronic cough. Chronic cough, affecting 5-10% of the population (primarily women), is a debilitating condition often misdiagnosed and misunderstood. It can signi...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of the podcast, host Natalie Watson explores the comprehensive management of Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis (RRP), bringing together three top experts:  Dr Andile Sibiya from South Africa, Mr Adam Donne from the UK, and Prof Craig Derkay from the USA. The discussion covers various aspects of RRP, including differences in patient presentation and healthcare sy...

Send us Fan Mail When it comes to exploring the vast field of laryngology, few events promise the depth and breadth of insight as the Cutting Edge Laryngology Conference—coming on 2-4 October 2024, showcasing the latest advances in our field.  In this special episode of the podcast, Natalie meets with Honorary Treasurer of the BLA, Chadwan Al Yaghchi, to discuss the programme and the topics they a...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, host Natalie Watson speaks with ENT surgeon Dr Andile Sibiya about laryngology care in South Africa, and the unique challenges facing the population in terms of the size of the area and population, and the huge reliance on limited public health services. When Dr Sibiya first started in the province, she was tasked with re-strategising the entire ENT service. She s...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, our host, Natalie Watson, invites  Fiona Gillies, Emma Webber, and Sarah Wallace OBE, to discuss post-COVID effects on the larynx and the long COVID project run by the Royal College of Speech and Language therapists.  The RCSLT project is led by a dedicated group of professionals working to create patient handbooks, fact sheets, and data collection tools. These re...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, host Natalie Watson is joined by Professor Ahmed Geneid,  head of the Phoniatrics Department, Helsinki University Hospital of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, to discuss chronic cough, a common issue in laryngology exploring the leading causes of chronic cough, including factors like asthma, smoking, pollutants, reflux, and ACE inhibitors.  Professor Geneid s...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever considered the connection between singing and laryngology?    In this episode, Declan Costello, a celebrated consultant ear, nose, and throat surgeon, ENT and Audiology News editor and current President of the British Laryngological Association, explores this topic with host Natalie Watson.    With a background as a Choral Scholar at St John's College, Cambridge...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Natalie chats with the current President and Immediate President of the BLA, Mr Declan Costello and Prof Guri Sandhu. Prof Sandhu is a founding member of the BLA and immediate past President of the Laryngology & Rhinology section at the RSM. He is a Consultant Otolaryngologist and Head & Neck Surgeon at Imperial College and The Royal Brompton Hospitals in...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice, host Natalie Watson is joined by Professor Reza Nouraei, Consultant Laryngologist and Tracheal Surgeon at Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, to discuss how to oxygenate our patients whilst operating on the larynx under general anaesthetic. Prof Nouraei walks us step-by-step through THRIVE and other tubeless ventilation methods. ...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of BLA Connections, A Clear Voice, we are joined by Professor Reza Nouraei, Consultant Laryngologist and Tracheal Surgeon at Queens Medical Center, Nottingham, UK, to discuss the exciting subject of artificial intelligence (AI) and its role in the future of laryngology and global healthcare. AI gives us the ability to classify voice signals, develop imaging program...

Send us Fan Mail Cutting Edge Laryngology 2022 is coming on the 22-23 September 2022, showcasing the latest advances in our field. In this special episode of the podcast Natalie meets with Associate Honorary Treasurer of the BLA, Chadwan Al Yaghchi, to discuss the programme and the topics they are looking forward to hearing about: from dysphagia to airway management, speech and language therapy to...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of A Clear Voice, we speak with Dr Aaron Johnson about age-related changes to the larynx. Following a decade-long career as a professional classical singer and singing teacher, Dr Johnson trained to be a Speech and Language Pathologist. He now works at NYU Langone’s Voice Centre and researches the effects of vocal training, voice use and ageing on the muscles of th...

Send us Fan Mail In this very special episode, Natalie Watson is joined by Charlie Harper to tell us his personal experience of airway stenosis. Charlie shares his advice to other patients going through similar experiences, as well as his incredibly valuable thoughts on how we as healthcare professionals can do better for our patients. After experiencing severe symptoms including nosebleeds, deafn...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to the latest episode of BLA Connect, A Clear Voice, where we join host, Natalie Watson and Mr James O’Hara, Clinical Senior Lecturer at Newcastle University and Honorary Consultant Otolaryngologist at Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals, to talk about a topic that is incredibly common in the laryngology clinic – persistent throat symptoms. James and Natalie discuss the many and...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to a new series of BLA Connections – A Clear Voice. In today’s episode we talk to Professor Guri Sandhu about the management of airway stenosis. “That's what got me interested, because you could improve someone's quality of life immensely in a relatively short timeframe.” Professor Guri Sandhu works in the national Airway Centre for Airway Reconstruction bas...

Send us Fan Mail As we embark on Series 4, host Natalie Watson invites Heather Pownall, the producer of 'A Clear Voice', onto the show to discuss the original vision for the podcast and what to expect from the new series.   Natalie looks back on her guiding aims for the podcast, to educate, build a community and to give a voice to all those associated with laryngology – surgeons, allied...

Send us Fan Mail Justin Roe is the Speech and Language Therapist representative for the BLA. He works at the National Centre for Airway Reconstruction treating people with laryngotracheal stenosis and a wide range of swallowing problems.  Gemma Clunie is a specialist dysphagia speech and language therapist also working at the National Centre for Airway Reconstruction at Charing Cross Hospital, par...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to this weeks instalment of BLA Connections: A Clear Voice In this episode, Natalie Watson is joined by fellow BLA Council member, Justin Roe who is the SLT representative for the BLA,  to discuss the programme for the upcoming  BLA Virtual Annual Conference taking place on 24th September. He was also one of the conference organisers and give a  fantastic overview of the p...