What Does Good Look Like‪?‬ melio

Testing is one of the most important strategies we have to control the COVID pandemic, yet it seems difficult to implement well, at scale.

The type of tests used to tell if you’ve had the disease in the past, the so called serology, or antibody, tests, in particular had a bit of a rough start. But what’s the status of these tests now? Are all antibody tests on the market equally good? Are they at all reliable, and perhaps even more importantly, are they useful? 

In this episode we meet James Freeman, who’s worked in assay development for over 35 years and who’s led the development of Siemens Healthineers’ top-performing COVID antibody test .

James will explain the difference between COVID antibody tests on the market, and what you should be looking for when buying a test. We’ll also discuss immunity and how antibody testing can be used to evaluate the response to a vaccine. 

After listening to this episode, you’ll have a good understanding of what information you can and can’t get from an antibody test. And if you feel like you want to test your own antibodies, you know how to choose the right test for you, based on the questions you want answered.

If you want to learn more about us, Melio, or find links to our previous podcast episodes, visit meliohealth.co.uk. For questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.

Dr Nick Murch is a highly experienced cold water and open water swimmer, as well as a consultant physician in acute medicine and medical education at the Royal Free Hospital in London. Nick will give you tips on how to break down a daunting challenge into bite size tasks, and the way small improvements compound over time. We’ll of course also cover his COVID experience, and what he’s learnt about the disease so far.

If you want to learn more about us, Melio, or find links to our previous podcast episodes, visit meliohealth.co.uk. For questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.

Recently, there have been many reports about Vitamin D and its role in the immune system. But what do we really know about Vitamin D and COVID-19, and how will the last months of lockdowns, travel restrictions and working from home have affected our Vitamin D levels?

If you want to learn more about us, Melio, or find links to our previous podcast episodes, visit meliohealth.co.uk. For questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.

It is rational that different countries take different approaches to manage an outbreak, such as what we’ve seen with COVID-19? And how can you tell the difference between fake news and real facts in the midst of a pandemic?

In the last episode of the WDGLL podcast, Sam Stoddart explained the basics of health economics, and how the interplay between individuals, healthcare providers and clinical settings affect our health. This week we continue that conversation through the lens of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The conversation builds on an article on the melio website originally written by Sam.

If you want to learn more about Sam and his work, check out his website Monkeyglandin and blog to learn more about science, medicine, statistics…stuff.

If you have any questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.

Health economics helps us understand how to improve health outcomes and lifestyle patterns through interactions between individuals, healthcare providers and clinical settings. Broadly speaking, it helps answer questions such as what is health and what is its value? Sam Stoddart helps us understand the basic health economics concepts; their benefits but also their limitations.

If you want to learn more about Sam and his work, check out his website Monkeyglandin and blog to learn more about science, medicine, statistics…stuff.

If you have any questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.

This week we’re making a deep dive into hematology, the medical speciality of blood disorders. A simple blood test can open up a world of valuable information about what’s going on inside our bodies, and hematologist Dr. Joel McCay guides us through some of the most common problems to look out for. Blood also contains many key players of our immune system, and inevitably the conversation gravitates towards COVID-19 immune responses and antibody testing, as well as some other recent learnings from the pandemic.

If you have any questions, comments or feedback on this episode, we'd love for you to get in touch via e-mail: podcast@meliohealth.com or, if you make a post on social media, please tag us using #wdgll.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of disease. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking appropriate medical support because of something you have heard on the podcast.