Voices for Safety | Improving Patient Safety, Reducing Health Inequalities
Voices for Safety | Improving Patient Safety, Reducing Health Inequalities
Podcast Description
Welcome to Voices for Safety, a patient safety podcast brought to you by the NIHR Greater Manchester Patient Safety Research Collaboration. Here, we delve into the latest issues and breakthroughs in patient safety research in England, UK. In each episode, we’ll explore key topics ranging from medication safety and safety culture, to designing safer health and care systems and preventing suicide and self-harm. Join us as we hear from the leading researchers driving these advancements and learn how their work is transforming patient care.
www.psrc-gm.nihr.ac.uk
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on critical topics in patient safety research including medication safety, safety culture, and systematic improvements within healthcare settings. Episodes dive deeply into specific issues such as diagnostic errors and acute kidney injury, exemplified by the premier episode discussing the importance of diagnosis improvements in primary care in conjunction with World Patient Safety Day.
Welcome to Voices for Safety, a patient safety podcast brought to you by the NIHR Greater Manchester Patient Safety Research Collaboration. Here, we delve into the latest issues and breakthroughs in patient safety research in England, UK. In each episode, we’ll explore key topics ranging from medication safety and safety culture, to designing safer health and care systems and preventing suicide and self-harm. Join us as we hear from the leading researchers driving these advancements and learn how their work is transforming patient care.
www.psrc-gm.nihr.ac.uk
As we mark Learning Disability Week, this episode of Voices for Safety explores a critical patient safety issue: the inequalities people with a learning disability face when accessing cancer care.
Host Dr Louise Gorman speaks with Dr Oliver Kennedy, an NIHR Clinical Lecturer at the University of Manchester and a Medical Oncologist at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, whose research uncovers stark inequalities across the cancer care pathway in the UK.
Drawing on a large-scale NIHR-funded study of over 180,000 people with learning disabilities, Dr Kennedy explains how they are less likely to be referred for specialist tests, more likely to be diagnosed at a later stage, and around half as likely to receive treatment, resulting in much shorter survival times.
Together, they explore why these gaps exist – from communication challenges and diagnostic overshadowing to systemic barriers in screening and treatment – and discuss what needs to change across prevention, diagnosis, and care to create a more equitable system.
Released during Learning Disability Week 2026, this episode highlights the urgent need for more inclusive, accessible healthcare systems and the importance of ensuring everyone can receive timely, effective, and safe cancer care.
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#NIHR #Patientsafety #Cancercare #Learningdisability #HealthInequalities
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