Dr Ellen Fallows

I'd put it the other way round. Scientific method, as a human practice, is intrinsically value laden. What you choose to investigate, what you decide to measure, how you measure, what you ignore, how you deal with uncomfortable results, even who you allow to do it, are all soaked in values.

Well said!

Formerly anti-vax parents on how they changed their minds: ‘I really made a mistake’ Researchers believe personal stories are more persuasive than facts alone in addressing vaccine skepticism

Formerly anti-vax parents on how they changed their minds: ‘I really made a mistake’

Almost half of England’s councils ‘could face bankruptcy over £4.6bn deficit’ Damning National Audit Office report says action is needed to address deficit accumulated under Tory-era policy Almost half of councils in England risk falling into bankruptcy without action to address a £4.6bn deficit amassed under a Conservative-era…

Almost half of England’s councils ‘could face bankruptcy over £4.6bn deficit’

Trump administration cancels meeting on flu shots, fueling anti-vax concerns FDA, which vaccine skeptic RFK Jr oversees, made the announcement with no explanation or new date

Without warning Trump administration has CANCELLED the meeting to discuss plans for development of autumn winter flu vaccine. It takes ~6months to develop a vax. This move seriously jeopardises flu vax campaign. Flu killed 86 children & 19,000 adults in US this year.

Pay crisis in general practice nursing: government must change funding model now | News | Royal College of Nursing A pay crisis in GP surgeries is undermining government ambitions to move more care into the community, with a third of nursing staff missing out on a pay rise

🆕| Moving care into the community means valuing and respecting our general practice nursing staff.

But our recent survey shows three in ten working in England received no pay rise at all, despite being promised one by the government last year.

Read more ⬇️

measles is one of the most infectious diseases out there and it is a dangerous illness, particularly for young children - vaccination has kept it at bay for decades.

Not vaccinating - and not suppporting vaccination - has consequences

Young people drinking

Deaths from alcohol specific causes in England rose by 42.2% between 2019 and 2023, the highest number on record.

A national strategy to tackle the harms caused by alcohol is long overdue, and important for reducing health inequalities, say Julia M A Sinclair et al
www.bmj.com/content/388/...

UK farmland being contaminated by ‘forever chemicals’ linked to cancers, report finds Levels of PFAS chemicals found in sludge destined for British land would not be considered safe for allotments * Where are the UK’s ‘forever chemical’ hotspots? * Industry using ‘tobacco playbook’ to fend off ‘forever chemicals’ regulation * The…

UK farmland being contaminated by ‘forever chemicals’ linked to cancers, report finds

We built our world with fire. Now heat is destroying our lives | John Vallant We fell in love with the power and speed that fossil fuels brought us. But the price being paid in California, and around the world, has become too high Zero per cent contained. In layperson’s terms, that means “out of control and burning at will”. It’s…

We built our world with fire. Now heat is destroying our lives | John Vallant

The first of the new 60-page, fortnightly print issues of The BMJs is out now.

It's been a great team effort to develop the new format -let us know what you think of it when you see it...

www.bmj.com/content/388/...

Coroner issues warning about antidepressants after suicide of royal’s husband Thomas Kingston, son-in-law of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, had been prescribed SSRIs A coroner has issued a warning about the effects of antidepressants prescribed by a Buckingham Palace doctor to the son-in-law of Prince and Princess Michael of…

Coroner issues warning about antidepressants after suicide of royal’s husband

I'm sharing this for the first time in this space. Hoping it finds people who understand.

Of course not, but asking why is important - is this because they reduce consumption of foods that cause a multitude of illnesses?

We've just joined Bluesky 🎉 Follow us for research, news, comment and opinion from Nature journal 🧪

RCN International Nursing Research Conference 2025| Royal College of Nursing Call for abstracts opening this Winter

📣Call for abstracts now open for the RCN International Nursing Research Conference 2025

💡Nursing Research: Transforming Global Health in a Changing World Find out more at buff.ly/4iEFB03

📅 Submission deadline 16 March

#RCNresearch25

Can anyone explain how a GP can take on this “over and above” work for just over a fiver?

But what’s the mechanism? Is it because they reduce consumption of inflammatory ultra-processed foods?

Is the NHS facing a 'quad-demic' this winter? No, but it is finding it harder and harder to cope with 'normal' winter pressures. Plus flu might still have a nasty kicker in store this winter.

Headlines are warning of a 'quad-demic' about the hit the NHS, but data show that a 'quad-demic' is v unlikely.

The worry is not that the NHS is about to be hit by unprecedented demand, but that it is unable to cope with normal demand.

I've written about it here
open.substack.com/pub/christin...

Funding for primary care should recognise clinical need which is currently not the case.

To future proof the NHS this is more important than any reform.

@nuffieldtrust.bsky.social @becksfisher.bsky.social & team thank you for articulating brilliantly what we see & feel on the ground in practice

The Briefing Room - Will new weight loss drugs save or bankrupt the NHS? - BBC Sounds The NHS is set to offer Mounjaro to 3.4m people to tackle obesity.

@ellenfallows.bsky.social thanks for your contribution to this discussion & highlighting the importance of a holistic approach to the table. Good listen 🎧

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Quote from Professor Ranger reads: Today is a timely reminder of the importance of our National Health Service, the access to health care it affords us, and the importance of maintaining it. Investing in nursing is a clear route to doing that.

In her latest blog, our General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger reflects on:

- The suggested 2.8% pay increase for nursing, and why patients and staff deserve better
- Universal Health Coverage Day

Read Nicola's blog here: bit.ly/3VE8uzt

#UHCDay

‘Forever chemical’ found in mineral water from several European countries Contamination thought to stem from the heavy application of pesticides containing TFA, a type of PFAS Mineral water from several European nations has been found for the first time to be contaminated with TFA, a type of PFAS “forever chemical” that is a…

‘Forever chemical’ found in mineral water from several European countries

TikTok’s annual carbon footprint is likely bigger than Greece’s, study finds Average user generates greenhouse gases equal to driving an extra 123 miles in gas-powered car a year, data shows TikTok’s annual carbon footprint is probably larger than that of Greece, according to a new analysis of the social media platform’s…

TikTok’s annual carbon footprint is likely bigger than Greece’s, study finds

October2024

Want an easy guide to understanding the discipline of #lifestylemedicine? Read this, then join The British society of Lifestyle Medicine
70b706f2.flowpaper.com/October2024/...

We need to talk about plastic: five everyday items choking the planet It is one of the world’s most dangerous materials, and global leaders are meeting in South Korea to thrash out a treaty to curb its effects This week, world leaders are gathering in Busan, South Korea, to hammer out a global plastics treaty to try to…

We need to talk about plastic: five everyday items choking the planet

Oxford scientist resigns from Royal Society over Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship Prof Dorothy Bishop said fellowship was ‘a contradiction of all the values’ of UK’s national academy of sciences A leading scientist at the University of Oxford has resigned from the UK’s national academy of sciences over concerns about Elon Musk’s…

Oxford scientist resigns from Royal Society over Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship

The response to Chris Hoy's call for wider access to prostate cancer screening has been largely uncritical.

But few things are quite as vexed as screening for prostate cancer, says @mgtmccartney.bsky.social www.bmj.com/content/387/...

Gut microbiota regulates stress responsivity via the circadian system Gut microbes are known to modulate stress responsivity and behavior. Tofani et al. demonstrate that such modulations occur via the circadian system. The oscillations in gut microbiota composition regu...

Gut microbiota regulates stress responsivity via the circadian system - our latest paper just out - well done Gabriel Tofani & all
www.cell.com/cell-metabol...

#PublicHealthMatters