Podcast: An unsung hero, digital mental health, and acting on patient feedback

Published: Aug. 21, 2019, 9:18 a.m.

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In this edition: We explore Sir Ernst Chain\\u2019s role in penicillin, apps tackling mental health, and an algorithm making sense of patient feedback.

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News: Obesity injections and bat faces \\u2013 We discuss a new treatment for obesity that provides an alternative to surgery, and meet some handsome bats with an interesting evolutionary story.

The story of Sir Ernst Chain \\u2013 The founder of Imperial\\u2019s biochemistry division, Sir Ernst Chain, was a German-Jewish refugee who played an important role in bringing penicillin to the masses. We speak to his son Benny Chain, who grew up at Imperial and now carries on his father\\u2019s work, at the interface of biology and computer science.

Digital options for mental health help \\u2013 What stops people accessing traditional mental health services and how can digital services step in? We discover how innovations such as the Shout app are helping fill the gap, with positive responses especially from young people.

Streamlining patient feedback \\u2013 Hospitals receive thousands of comments on their care, but it can be difficult to process them all. We speak to Imperial researchers who have created an award-winning algorithm that analyses comments and is already improving patient experience.

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