Raw Talk Podcast

We're back! Join Mel & Grace for a quick reflection of some season 2 highlights and a preview of the upcoming season 3 of Raw Talk. What's in store? We'll discuss emerging medical devices, the legalization of marijuana in Canada, indigenous health, and to start us off - graduate student mental health. These topics, plus many more as we dive into sharing the diverse stories and perspectives behind...

For our season finale, we pick up from last episode to bring you the second instalment of our Raw Talk Live event, a panel discussion focusing on new methods of science communication. Our panelists provide their unique perspectives on how we can (and why we should!) use new media and technologies to make science more accessible to the public. You'll hear from Dr. Vicky Forster, a Postdoc at SickKi...

August is flashback month, as we move back in time to present you recordings from the event we hosted back in May, Raw Talk Live. This week's instalment presents the first of two panel discussions, and explores public engagement in science. We hear from an array of speakers, diving into the personal and the political dimensions of this theme. Joining us is Dr. Mehrdad Hariri, CEO and Founder of th...

Did you know that nearly 500 million people globally suffer from some form of irreversible kidney-related disease? These individuals may wait years before receiving a transplant! In this installment of Raw Talk, Dr. Lisa Robinson, Paediatric Nephrologist and Senior Scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children chats with Melissa about the forefront of kidney disease research. James and Anton also pa...

Mindfulness is becoming increasingly integrated in mainstream society, but is this new wave of wisdom effective or just the latest trend? How does mindfulness impact our view of ourselves and our view of the world? In this episode, Marija and Grace sit down with Dr. Agnes Wong, a Professor of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto, Ophthalmologist at the Hospital for Sick C...

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating and misunderstood disease that affects 20 million people globally. Raw Talk had the chance to attend a screening of the award-winning documentary, Unrest. Unrest explores the personal journey of Jennifer Brea from ME/CFS patient to advocate to storyteller. Join Grace and Melissa as they reflect on the compelling document...

While cancer is still a scary word, roughly 75% of people diagnosed with cancer will survive long-term. But how are these patients supported in the long term, as they deal with late side effects from their treatments? Join Kat and Melissa as they sit down with Dr. Jennifer Jones, Director of the Cancer Rehabilitation & Survivorship Program and Senior Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centr...

The focus in childhood cancer is often solely on treating the disease, but what about the costs - both health and financial - that patients and their families must bear? Join Melissa as she sits down with Dr. Sumit Gupta, Paediatric Oncologist in the Division of Haematology/Oncology at SickKids, Chair of the Unit for Policy and Economics Research in Childhood Cancer (PERCC), Associate Chair of the...

Living in a dense urban jungle is not without its risks, and cities in Canada are no exception. Toronto is regarded as the most polluted city in Canada, but what could this be attributed to? How do global events shape the quality of the air we breathe? In this episode, Kat sits down with Dr. Chung-Wai Chow, a lung transplant physician and leading researcher at UHN, to discuss the effects of enviro...

You've spent your entire life wiring your brain to make you ... you! So, if your brain changes, you change - right? On this episode, Melissa and Swapna chat with Dr. Carmela Tartaglia, a Clinician-Investigator at the Krembil Neuroscience Centre at Toronto Western Hospital, to shed light on a form of early onset dementia - frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Dr. Tartaglia is also the Marion a...

Repairing the damaged brain is the one of the holy grails of neuroscience. On this episode, Grace and Melissa sit down with Dr. Freda Miller, a Senior Scientist at the Hospital for Sick Children, who firmly believes that studying the developing brain can give us insights into how to rebuild it in circumstances of damage or degeneration. Dr. Miller is a Canada Research Chair in Developmental Neurob...

What do comics and medicine have in common? A lot more than you may think! In this episode, Dr. Shelley Wall, Assistant Professor in the Biomedical Communications program, chats with Jabir about the power of the visual narrative, how graphic medicine contributes to the generation of knowledge, and traces her own journey from a PhD in romantic literature to becoming a biomedical communicator. Swapn...

If there's one aspect of your learning you could simulate, what would that be? In this episode, Jabir sits down with Dr. Ryan Brydges, Director of Research at the Allan Waters Family Simulation Centre, and health professions education scientist at the Wilson Centre, to explore how simulation can impact health policy and patient care. Dr. Brydges also talks about his journey into simulation researc...

On this episode of Raw Talk, we focus on a topic that affects us so intimately: sleep. Join Jabir as he sits down with sleep physiologist and author, Dr. Richard Horner, to discuss why we and other living things sleep, how the brain changes during sleep, and what makes sleep different from anesthesia. The two also speak in great detail about Dr. Horner's book, The Universal Pastime: Sleep & Rest E...

Although the relief of pain and suffering is inherent in all fields of medicine, there's one specialty in particular where this aspect of care is truly the focus. While you may be unfamiliar with the field of palliative care, which aims to improve quality of life and provide comfort to patients and loved ones, it has made great strides in the last few decades. In this episode, Eryn and Kat sit dow...

What do sex and gender have to do with neuroscience? Join Jabir as he sits down with Dr. Gillian Einstein, neuroscientist in the Department of Psychology and the Wilfred and Joyce Posluns Chair of Women's Brain Health and Aging, to find out! Hear about her transition from studying art history to systems neuroscience, how the fields of sex/gender research and neuroscience intersect, the importance...

What structure holds the three smallest bones in the body? If you guessed the ears, you're right! Kicking off 2018, the first episode of this year is all about our auditory system, and its influence on brain development. In this episode, Jabir sits down with Dr. Karen Gordon, a scientist, audiologist, and Director of Research in Archie's Cochlear Implant Laboratory at Sick Kids Hospital. They disc...

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, but what makes it so difficult to treat? What is tumor hypoxia and how can it influence biology to drive a poor prognosis? In this episode, Richie sits down with Dr. Brad Wouters, the Executive Vice President of Science and Research at UHN to discuss the vast advancement in the field and the need for collaborative integration between basic and clinical...

Over the past decade, academics and media outlets alike have been telling us that stem cells are going to revolutionize regenerative medicine. But what does this really mean? What are stem cells, how do they work and why have they been generating so much public interest? On this episode, Richie sits down with Dr. Andras Nagy, world-renowned Senior Scientist at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Inst...

Throughout their many years of training, medical students will learn everything they need to know to provide adequate medical care. This curriculum includes specialized medical knowledge and skills, but also encompasses all the specific behaviours we consider to be "professional". On this episode, you'll hear from Dr. Shiphra Ginsburg, a clinician-educator at the Wilson Centre for Research in Educ...

By the time you are finished reading this, one person somewhere in world will take their own life - suicide is the second leading cause of death in young people, aged 15-29. This week, join Richie as he sits down with Dr. Sakina Rizvi, a neuroscientist in the Arthur Sommer Rotenberg (ASR) Suicide and Depression Studies Program at St. Michael's Hospital. In this episode, Dr. Rizvi outlines the comp...

Have you ever wondered what mathematical modelling can teach us about how and why HIV and sexually transmitted infections spread in various geographical areas? Or why it's important to engage the public when discussing research priorities? What about the serious implications of stigma and the language associated with it? In this episode of Raw Talk, Alex sits down with infectious disease clinician...

Many of us have experienced depression or have loved ones who have. Reaching out for help is never easy, and when frontline treatments don't work, the effect on quality of life can be devastating. On this week's episode, Kat sits down with MRI-Guided rTMS Clinic Co-Director Dr. Jonathan Downar from the Toronto Western Hospital. Dr. Downar shares his insights on rTMS as an intervention for treatmen...

Hey Raw Talk listeners! The start of October also marks the start of Mental Illness Awareness Week, so we sat down with Dr. Robert Levitan, a clinician-scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. In this episode, Dr. Levitan talks about how his patients inspired him to pursue research on seasonal mood disorders, the role of both genetics and the social environment in causing mood disr...

Your favourite grad student science podcast is back for a second season! The crew welcomes its newest members, reflects on their journey in bringing the show to existence and the role social media has played in connecting with listeners. We also look ahead to what's in store for the upcoming season, including new topics, new segments and more stories from the biomedical research community at the U...