Clinical Conversations

In this episode of Clinical Conversations, Dr Emma Spencer discusses the importance of digital health literacy - the ability to access, understand and use digital health tools - with Professor Mahmood Adil, RCPE's outgoing Clinical Data & Digital Health Lead. Prof Adil provides insights into the evolution of digital health and clinical informatics over his career and how doctors can enhance their digital health literacy.

The introductory resource on clinical data and digital health can be accessed on RCPE's Education Portal: https://learning.rcpe.ac.uk/data-digitalhealth

Professor Mahmood Adil was RCPE's Clinical Data & Digital Health Lead. He is a global expert in clinical data, digital health & innovation fields. He has over 25 years of medical, public health, executive management, academic and policy experience and has delivered on key senior positions in the UK, USA & Middle East.

Dr Emma Spencer is Co-Vice Chair - Education of RCPE's Trainees and Members' Committee and resident doctor in internal medicine.

RCPE would like to thank Professor Adil for his contributions and service as our Clinical Data & Digital Health Lead.

Recording date: 17 April 2026

An extended version of this episode will be released on our sister podcast, Career Conversations, later this year: https://podcasts.rcpe.ac.uk/show/career-conversations/

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This podcast is from the Trainees & Members' Committee (T&MC) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

In this episode, Dr Heather Kennedy hears about a case that was challenging but rewarding for Dr Neil Watson, which he had presented at the recent RCPE Medical Trainees Conference. They discuss multi-system disease, and the challenge of connecting the dots between different symptoms and presentations, highlighting the importance of combining specialism and generalism.

Dr Neil Watson is a neurology registrar in NHS Lothian. His research background is in human prion disease, and he completed an MD with the University of Edinburgh in which he led an international study validating the current diagnostic criteria for sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Dr Heather Kennedy has completed IMT and is currently working as a locum in NHS Fife. She is a member of the Trainees and Members' Committee (T&MC).

Recording Date: 31 March 2026

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This podcast is from the Trainees & Members' Committee (T&MC) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

In this episode Dr Marilena Giannoudi discusses all things heart failure with Dr Sam McClure. They begin with how to diagnose and classify heart failure with reduced ejection fraction and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction before moving onto treatment and when to refer to the Heart Failure Team.

Dr Sam McClure is a Consultant Interventional Cardiologist and Clinical Lead for Heart Failure in Sunderland.

Dr Marilena Giannoudi is a cardiology registrar based in Leeds. She is Co-Chair of the Trainees and Members & Committee, a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and is currently undertaking a PhD.

Recording Date: 30 March 2026

-- Useful Links --
ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic heart failure (2023 Update) - https://www.escardio.org/guidelines/clinical-practice-guidelines/all-esc-practice-guidelines/focused-update-on-heart-failure-guidelines/

European Heart Journal, Volume 44, Issue 37, 1 October 2023, Pages 3627–3639 - https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/article/44/37/3627/7246292?login=false

Chronic heart failure in adults: diagnosis and management (NICE Guideline) - https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng106

H2FPEF Score for Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction - https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/10105/h2fpef-score-for-heart-failure-with-preserved-ejection-fraction

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This podcast is from the Trainees & Members' Committee (T&MC) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

In this episode, Dr Angus Sinclair speaks with Dr Jonathan Malo about dyslipidaemias. They discuss the different types of dyslipidaemias, the treatments (including some new ones) and the types of cases that should be referred.

Dr Jonathan Malo is a consultant chemical pathologist at the Department of Clinical Biochemistry in NHS Lothian. And is the clinical lead for the Lipid Clinic at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. He currently chairs a Scottish network of lipid clinic specialists, and is involved in a Scottish government group tasked with improving CVD prevention.

Dr Angus Sinclair is an Internal Medical Trainee in the East of Scotland. He graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2018 and since then has worked across Scotland and as a medical registrar in a rural district general hospital in New Zealand. He has been actively involved in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, as well as in clinical governance and resident doctor leadership.

Recording date: 20 March 2026

--Links--

Assessment of adverse effects attributed to statin therapy in product labels: a meta-analysis of double-blind randomised controlled trials, The Lancet, 2026; 407, 689-703.

Effect of statin therapy on muscle symptoms: an individual participant data meta-analysis of large-scale, randomised, double-blind trials, The Lancet, 2022; 400, 832-845.

N-of-1 Trial of a Statin, Placebo, or No Treatment to Assess Side Effects, NEJM, 2020;383:2182-2184. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMc2031173.

Statin treatment and muscle symptoms: series of randomised, placebo-controlled n-of-1 trials. BMJ, 2021;372:n135. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n135

SIGN 149: Risk estimation and the prevention of cardiovascular disease (2017) - https://www.sign.ac.uk/assets/qrg149.pdf

NICE Guideline 238: Cardiovascular disease: risk assessment and reduction, including lipid modification (2023) - https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng238/resources/cardiovascular-disease-risk-assessment-and-reduction-including-lipid-modification-pdf-66143902851781)

AHA guideline - https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0000000000001423

ASSIGN/QRISK score calculators - https://www.heartuk.org.uk/educational-content/risk-calculators

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This podcast is from the Trainees & Members' Committee (T&MC) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

In this episode, Dr Marilena Giannoudi talks with Rebecca Howard and Bruce Cruickshank from Guide Dogs UK, one of the UK's leading sight loss charities. They discuss some of the small acts and considerations that medical professionals can practice to help their patients with sight loss.

Rebecca Howard is a Sighted Guide Trainer with Guide Dogs UK.

Bruce Cruickshank is a volunteer with Guide Dogs UK and is a guide dog owner.

Dr Marilena Giannoudi is a cardiology registrar based in Leeds. She is Co-Chair of the Trainees and Members & Committee, a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and is currently undertaking a PhD.

Recording date: 9 March 2026

-- Links --

Guide Dogs UK - https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/

Guide line services - https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/contact-us/#guide-line-services-support-and-dog-related-queries

Sighted guide training - https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/how-you-can-help/sighted-guide-training/

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Feedback: cme@rcpe.ac.uk

This podcast is from the Trainees & Members' Committee (T&MC) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).