Humanising Healthcare podcast - 'Racial bias in devices and diagnostics'

Listen to the podcast on Spotify: Racial bias in devices and diagnostics

In this edition:

This week, Manasi was joined by Dr Pete Charlton, British Heart Foundation Research Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care, at the University of Cambridge and Dr Caroline Jolley, Reader in Respiratory Medicine & Physiology on the episode ‘Racial bias in devices and diagnostics.’ They discuss the efficacy of oximeter devices, how recent research on the topic categorises race and the impact in the medical and bioengineering communities. 

Dr Peter Charlton

British Heart Foundation Research Fellow, University of Cambridge

Dr Peter Charlton is a British Heart Foundation Research Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care, at the University of Cambridge. He develops biomedical signal processing techniques to analyse data from digital wearable devices for clinical decision making.

Peter gained the degree of M.Eng. in Engineering Science in 2010 from the University of Oxford. From 2010 to 2020, Peter conducted his research at King’s College London, developing techniques to use wearables to monitor cardiovascular and respiratory health. His Ph.D. focused on using signal processing and machine learning techniques to identify acute deteriorations in hospital patients. Peter is currently developing techniques to use clinical and consumer devices in screening for atrial fibrillation. He is leading a clinical study to assess the acceptability and performance of wearables in older adults.

Dr Caroline Jolley

Reader in Human Physiology

Dr Caroline Jolley joined CHAPS in 2015 as a Senior Lecturer in Human Physiology and was promoted to Reader in 2023. She is a respiratory clinician by training, with a specialist interest in respiratory muscle function and physiology in health and disease.

Manasi Nandi

Reader in Integrative Pharmacology

Manasi is a scientist and educator based within the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on the extraction of new information from vital signs data, aiding research and clinical decision making, and identifying earlier alerts of disease. She has expertise in medicine discovery and development and the translation of laboratory findings into clinical practice. She is a fellow of the British Pharmacological Society, most recently supporting efforts to embed inclusive principles into the national curriculum. Inclusivity and accessibility are at the core of her teaching and research practice. She is the Development, Diversity and Inclusion lead for the School and Cancer and Pharmaceutical Science, supporting EDI activities at Faculty and College level. She launched the Humanising Healthcare seminar series in 2023.