Dr Shane O’Hanlon is a geriatrician in Dublin, Ireland. He was previously Digital Media Editor and Honorary Secretary of the BGS. He is an associate editor for Age and Ageing. Find him on X @drohanlon, Bluesky @drohanlon.bsky.social, and apparently also your favourite podcast provider!
It has always struck me during my years of working as a geriatrician that sometimes we come to the table too late and keep our voices down too low. By this I mean first that the day job often involves diagnosing and treating problems that have been developing for decades rather than nipping them in the bud; and secondly that we tend to put our heads down and work away quietly – perhaps not needing to command the respect and attention that some other specialties appear to enjoy. I recently met someone who organises meetings for multiple medical groups and they echoed these thoughts, having seen and met everyone from cardiology to orthopaedics. “You geriatricians are too nice - maybe try and get your elbows out more often!” he challenged me.
I took this to mean that we should advocate more for our patients, and I am pleased to say there has been more of this happening at all levels in geriatric medicine in recent times. When I worked in the UK a few years ago, I got to visit the Houses of Parliament to meet MPs and explain why cancer in older people needed more funding and support. Since then, I’ve seen BGS members on the news, on morning television and publishing bestselling books. So perhaps we are learning how to speak out when necessary and challenge ageist attitudes. Part of this advocacy has been to educate people on how to live healthily and increase our health span. These geriatricians have done amazing jobs in these settings and there are now many fabulous role models.
It was with this in mind that I accepted two offers recently to have my own time in the limelight – one an invitation to host a podcast and another to participate as a guest! A chance to see both sides of the podcasting microphone…
First up was a meeting with the European and World Elimination Race Champion in professional cycling, Lara Gillespie. Our hospital is a supporter of her professional endeavours, so she was happy to meet up for a chat about the crossover between healthy ageing and professional sport. Our conversation touched on preventive health, managing injury, healthy nutrition and bone health. We even talked about how her granny still cycles her e-bike regularly and swapped our favourite workout playlists! It was a joy to hear about her journey from cycling to school every day to becoming a World Champion and an inspiration to budding cyclists everywhere.
Soon afterwards I turned up to a professional podcasting studio in a radio station office to meet Kathryn Thomas, a seasoned broadcaster on Irish TV (think Davina McCall). Her new podcast series, “Are We There Yet?” features in-depth candid conversations about what guests have learned during their lives and where we are headed. It features people such as Trinny Woodall, Elizabeth Day and former Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar. Kathryn has a strong interest in ageing, so she had lots of great questions.
We chatted about ageism, how I got into geriatric medicine, how to embrace healthy ageing, as well as topics such as menopausal brain fog and new Alzheimer’s treatments. It was a lovely experience as Kathryn is such a warm and welcoming host.
I found both of these podcasts much easier than I expected. After all, geriatricians do know their stuff, so we don’t have anything to be nervous about! It was a surprised non-medical friend of mine who texted to ask: “Geriatricians do podcasts now?”… Well, yes, we do!
It’s clear to me that as a specialty there is going to be increasing demand for us to explain our work and promote healthy ageing so I hope this is something we will all embrace. I highly recommend the experience, and I know many BGS members out there (geriatricians and others!) will be amazing at this. I look forward to seeing what you can all do!
Listen to Shane's podcasts:
- Dr Shane O’Hanlon interviews Lara Gillespie, professional cyclist
- Kathryn Thomas interviews Dr Shane O’Hanlon, geriatrician
Other BGS member podcasts:
- Dr Mary Ni Lochlainn on “Why Muscle is the Organ of Longevity”
- Professor Jugdeep Dhesi on “Rethinking Care for Older Adults”
- Professor Claire Steeves on “Simple Steps to Prevent Dementia”
