Public Health Insight

Hosted by PHI Media

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Episodes

343

Latest episode

Nov 2026

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About the show

The Public Health Insight Podcast is a weekly podcast ranked in the top 5% of all podcasts globally. The podcast covers all things public health and global health, from the sustainable development goals to the social determinants of health, as well as interesting dialogues about the diverse career opportunities that exist in the fields. Since its launch in March 2020, the podcast has featured more than 40 high-profile guests and has built an audience in more than 5,000 cities in over 190 countries.

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60 recent

November 10, 202621 min

Joining Forces To Hold The Automotive Industry & Governments Accountable

Documenting lead exposure is one step. Getting the people responsible to act is another. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Will Fitzgibbon explains how journalists worked with Nigerian scientists to test blood and soil, then put their findings to companies and governments. He describes factory shutdowns, changes to lead sourcing, and the responsibility passing that makes accountability difficult across a global supply chain. A September 2026 update follows cleanup efforts in Ogijo and residents still waiting for government blood test results. What changed after the findings became public, and what remains unfinished? References for Our Discussion ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon: Reporter Profile ◼️ Recycling lead for U.S. car batteries is poisoning people ◼️ How we linked the auto industry to lead poisoning in Nigeria ◼️ Lead poisoning: WHO fact sheet ◼️ Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Lead ◼️ CDC Updates Blood Lead Reference Value ◼️ Nigerian battery recyclers pay for lead cleanup after Examination investigation ◼️ The Panama Papers: Exposing the Rogue Offshore Finance Industry ◼️ Planté Battery — 1859 ◼️ The auto industry was warned: Battery recycling was poisoning people ◼️ Video: How the U.S. automotive industry fuels lead poisoning in Nigeria Guest ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon Host & Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

November 3, 202623 min

How Car Battery Recycling Is Fueling A Lead Poisoning Crisis

Recycling your car battery sounds like an environmental success story. But behind some of the lead going into new batteries are factories poisoning the communities around them. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Will Fitzgibbon traces a recycled lead trade connecting Nigerian factories with American automotive supply chains. He explains why lead-acid batteries remain in demand and how unsafe recycling can spread lead dust beyond factory walls into nearby homes, schools, and playgrounds. The trail leads to Ogijo, Nigeria, where workers and families live with the consequences of a global industry. Recycling can be done safely. Why are communities still paying the price when it is not? References for Our Discussion ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon: Reporter Profile ◼️ Recycling lead for U.S. car batteries is poisoning people ◼️ How we linked the auto industry to lead poisoning in Nigeria ◼️ Lead poisoning: WHO fact sheet ◼️ Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Lead ◼️ CDC Updates Blood Lead Reference Value ◼️ Nigerian battery recyclers pay for lead cleanup after Examination investigation ◼️ The Panama Papers: Exposing the Rogue Offshore Finance Industry ◼️ Planté Battery — 1859 ◼️ The auto industry was warned: Battery recycling was poisoning people ◼️ Video: How the U.S. automotive industry fuels lead poisoning in Nigeria Guest ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon Host & Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

October 27, 202614 min

Following Power & Money Through Investigative Journalism

A choice between pursuing a career in diplomacy and taking a chance on journalism sent Will Fitzgibbon to London with little job security. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, he traces the decisions and chance encounters that led him to the Panama Papers, a massive global scandal involving offshore finance. He reflects on what those leaked records revealed about the rules available to the rich and powerful, why those discoveries stayed with him, and how following money and corporate decisions eventually brought his reporting into public health. References for Our Discussion ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon: Reporter Profile ◼️ Recycling lead for U.S. car batteries is poisoning people ◼️ How we linked the auto industry to lead poisoning in Nigeria ◼️ Lead poisoning: WHO fact sheet ◼️ Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Lead ◼️ CDC Updates Blood Lead Reference Value ◼️ Nigerian battery recyclers pay for lead cleanup after Examination investigation ◼️ The Panama Papers: Exposing the Rogue Offshore Finance Industry ◼️ Planté Battery — 1859 ◼️ The auto industry was warned: Battery recycling was poisoning people ◼️ Video: How the U.S. automotive industry fuels lead poisoning in Nigeria Guest ◼️ Will Fitzgibbon Host & Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

October 20, 202618 min

Breaking the Cycle of Adverse Childhood Experiences

What can we actually do about childhood trauma? In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Dr. Frank Putnam, author of Old Before Their Time, turns from the science to the solutions. He explains why simply talking about child sexual abuse can protect the next generation, what clinicians and foster families should watch for, and how supportive relationships with older women help girls. He also describes a home visiting program for new mothers, and why he still sees reasons for hope despite renewed pushback. References for Our Discussion ◼️New Book: Old Before Their Time: A Scientific Life Investigating How Maltreatment Harms Children and the Adults They Become **Participate in the book giveaway. Contest rules at the end of the description** Guest ◼️ Dr. Frank Putnam Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

October 13, 202630 min

Old Before Their Time

One in five women and one in eight men report a history of child sexual abuse. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Dr. Frank Putnam, author of Old Before Their Time, explains what 35 years of the Female Growth and Development Study found. He describes how childhood trauma shows up in the body as early autoimmune activity, inflammation, and epigenetic aging. He also covers how adverse experiences compound, how trauma crosses generations, and why a child protection system with outdated, inconsistent data struggles to respond. References for Our Discussion ◼️New Book: Old Before Their Time: A Scientific Life Investigating How Maltreatment Harms Children and the Adults They Become **Participate in the book giveaway. Contest rules at the end of the description** Guest ◼️ Dr. Frank Putnam Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

October 6, 202637 min

Psychiatry, Child Protection, and the Roots of Childhood Trauma

In the early 1980s, Dr. Frank Putnam noticed that the children referred to him had very different symptoms but one thing in common: a history of abuse. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Dr. Putnam, author of Old Before Their Time, walks us through the path that led him from adult psychiatry to child protection. He also explains how he launched a study that followed abused girls for decades, at a time when many dismissed the work as a social problem rather than a scientific one. References for Our Discussion ◼️ New Book: Old Before Their Time: A Scientific Life Investigating How Maltreatment Harms Children and the Adults They Become **Participate in the book giveaway. Contest rules at the end of the description** Guest ◼️ Dr. Frank Putnam Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

July 30, 202639 min

The Nefarious Influence of Big Tobacco

A tobacco company promises jobs, investment and a factory, but only if a government makes health warnings smaller. Investigative journalist Matthew Chapman joins the Public Health Insight Podcast to examine how tobacco companies adapt their products and influence the rules governing them. Drawing on investigations in Kenya, Israel and the United Kingdom, he reveals undisclosed payments to experts, pressure on policymakers and efforts to weaken or delay regulation. The conversation explores Britain’s generational tobacco ban, the immense death toll linked to China Tobacco, and the limits of personal choice for addictive substances. Guest ◼️ Matthew Chapman References for Our Discussion ◼️ Lawmaker with family tie to British American Tobacco attempts to stop UK smoking ban ◼️ British American Tobacco undermines Kenyan health laws in bid for Gen Z ◼️ What to know about the global tobacco control treaty Host & Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

July 14, 202619 min

Why Prevented Disasters Don't Make the News & Acting Earlier to Save Lives

When a disaster is prevented, it doesn't make the news and most don't hear about it; and that's exactly the problem. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast with Dr. Barry Davis, biostatistician and author of The Preventioneers, we explore why prevention's biggest successes stay invisible. We discuss why climate warnings have gone unheeded for 170 years, why treatment beats prevention for the "popular vote," and how to rebuild trust with a public that distrusts experts. The answer isn't more data, but humility, storytelling, and trusted messengers. References for Our Discussion ◼️ [NEW BOOK] The Preventioneers: Diseases, Disasters, and the Discoveries That Changed Our World ◼️ An Ounce of Prevention: A Substack by Barry R. Davis Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

July 7, 202627 min

The Preventioneers: Why We Wait Until It's Too Late

A doctor proves handwashing saves lives and gets destroyed for it. A president dies of a preventable stroke. Scientists spend decades proving smoking kills while the industry fights back. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, Dr. Barry Davis, author of The Preventioneers , introduces us to people in history who saw catastrophe coming, built the evidence, and ran straight into resistance from industries, institutions, and a public that didn't want to hear it. If prevention saves lives, protects health, and saves money, why do we keep ignoring it until it's too late? This episode digs into that question. References for Our Discussion ◼️ [NEW BOOK] The Preventioneers: Diseases, Disasters, and the Discoveries That Changed Our World ◼️ An Ounce of Prevention: A Substack by Barry R. Davis Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

July 1, 202626 min

Mathematics, Medicine, and the Stories In Between

We often have the evidence to prevent harm long before we actually do something about it, and that delay costs lives. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, we sit down with a physician and mathematician whose career spans early machine learning research in the 1980s, landmark hypertension trials, and over 150 data monitoring committees. Dr. Davis reflects on the experiences that shaped his thinking and how resistance to change repeats throughout history. References for Our Discussion ◼️ [NEW BOOK] The Preventioneers: Diseases, Disasters, and the Discoveries That Changed Our World ◼️ An Ounce of Prevention: A Substack by Barry R. Davis Host ◼️ Purva Mehta, BMSc, MSc Producer ◼️ Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP® Production Notes ◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room Leave Us Some Feedback If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think. Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.

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