April 3, 2025

7.8 Dr Margaret McCartney - Conflicts of Interest and the Skinny Jabs

7.8 Dr Margaret McCartney - Conflicts of Interest and the Skinny Jabs

We are joined by Dr Margaret McCartney a practising General Practitioner & Senior Clinical Lecturer at the University of St Andrews. She is a vocal advocate for Evidence Based Medicine and regular journal journal / newspaper columnist and contributor to the BBC Radio 4 programme Inside Health

This episode we are joined by Dr Margaret McCartney a practising General Practitioner and a Senior Clinical Lecturer in General Practice at the University of St Andrews. Margaret is a vocal advocate for Evidence Based Medicine and regular journal / newspaper columnist and contributor to the BBC Radio 4 programme Inside Health.

Does accepting money for a view affect a healthcare professional’s ability to make unbiased decisions in the patient’s interest? Should those with a conflict of interest be barred from producing guidelines or providing education? Should it be allowed at all? A controversial issue and an edgy conversation you will not want to miss! 

For our micro-discussion we get into the equally controversial subject of Weight-Loss jabs. A useful public health intervention or patient safety crisis in the making? We pick up on a recent episode of the BBC Radio 4 Programme Inside Health (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001jsly) that examines the impact on the NHS of allowing  widespread prescribing of  the new weight-loss drugs. 

Links mentioned in the episode:

Financial Conflicts of Interest and the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2016 Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2598092#ild160076r5

Listen to Margaret talk about , and change other Doctors’ minds about Conflicts of Interest on the BMJ podcast: https://thebmjpodcast.podbean.com/e/taking-on-the-van-tullekens-how-margaret-mccartney-changed-their-minds-about-cois/ 

As with all of our guests, Margaret shares with us her Memory Evoking Medicine, a career anthem and book that has influenced her career or life. Her drug will almost certainly have an effect on you…!

The Apothecaries are on the road again! Come and see our next live show at the Clinical Pharmacy Congress on the 10th May in London. Book your tickets and find out more here: https://www.pharmacycongress.co.uk/london   

Don’t forget to check out Steve’s impressive TV debut where he describes the role of a Clinical Pharmacist to none other than Professor Green on BBC Morning Live. This is a must watch for anyone who wants to understand this role and the impact of polypharmacy. A new career beckons… You can watch it here: https://www.rpharms.com/about-us/news/details/polypharmacy-featured-on-bbcs-morning-live

You can listen to the Aural Apothecary playlist here; https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OsWj4w8sxsvuwR9zMXgn5?si=tiHXrQI7QsGtSQwPyz1KBg 

You can view the Aural Apothecary Library here;   https://litalist.com/shelf/view-bookcase?publicId=KN6E3O Our website is https://www.theauralapothecary.com/ 

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