Great article on the ABC news website about the changing profile of blood group types in Australia

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2022-03-21/blood-group-type-australia-donation-ethnicity-diversity-genetics/100916578?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web Follow this link to details of the study and the results and a brief outline of the possible implications of these changes and the relatively unchanging profile of the pool of blood donors in Australia. Fiona Davies Twenty- three Units of Blood,(detail) 2006, metal and found objects size variable

4D bioprinting technologies explained

Great paper by Dr Stephen G. Gray looks at the possibilites of 4D bio printing tecnologies. It is really exciting times and needs to be tempered by an understanding of the ethical implications of the outcomes. https://www.3dprintingmedia.network/the-rise-of-the-4d-bioprinting-industry/ design ex the paper by Dr Stephen G Gray

Reports that we’re still without a viable synthetic blood substitute.

In an article published on the 15th December 2021 the writer Benjamin Plackett outlined the current position on the viability of producing synthetic blood or blood products ethically and successfully. Really interesting and reinforces my view that blood is amazing. http://www.insidescience.org/news/whats-stopping-scientists-making-viable-synthetic-blood The article states 'The pursuit of these lab-made blood products has branched into two [...]

Blood on Silk: The Uniform of the Patient

New work in progress Blood on Silk: The Uniform of the Patient, focusing on the knot tied usually loosely at the back of the hospital gown in order to maintain the privacy of the patient. The fabrics chosen for this project range from translucent silk mesh, to thin white cotton and a more solid hospital [...]

So many interesting things happening in the biomedical world of silk at the moment.

In the SilkLab at Tufts University bioactive inks have been developed that can function as a sensor either of the body wearing a garment printed with the ink or the environmental conditions surrounding the object printed with the ink. Amazing stuff. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=47&v=DM8JzVIN5Vo&feature=emb_logo 'The technology builds upon earlier work by the same researchers developing bioactive silk [...]

Sabrina Orah Mark’s monthly column, Happily, reinserts the fairy tale into her contemporary life.

It is a glorious record of the way dreams of a startling academic career, aspirations to be the first or the chosen one, and desires to see all of the everyday as a reference to a fairy tale, smash into the pandemic and motherhood. This is the link to the blog https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/columns/happily/

Online Sale of Blood from Recovered Caronavirus Patients

Great segment on Radio National this morning reporting on a whole range of anti-Caronavirus products for sale on the dark web. This includes blood from recovered Caronavirus patients presumably with antibodies to the virus being advertised as a preventative. Link below https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/dark-web-covid/12199816

Blood on Silk: The Violence of Medicine Part VII Being the chosen one or not.

The factors driving the allocation of resources within the medical system is often not obvious or transparent to the outsider, the patient or their family. One area where it is openly acknowledged is in the media coverage of transplant medicine. There it is repeatedly stated that the number of organs donated or supplied is significantly [...]

Violence in Medicine: Part IV Working under Those Conditions.

Being deprived of sleep is not only experienced by the patient as discussed in the last post but also by those working within the hospital. This fourth of a series of short essays or reflections on aspects of what could be understood as forms of violence within the practice of medicine turns to the experience [...]

ICU – Being asked to step outside while some procedure or other is being carried out

A paper from 2019 from the Intermountain Healthcare's Center for Humanizing Critical Care in Salt Lake City questions this traditional practice of exclusion. Click on the title below to be linked to the article online on Medical XPress. 'Do family members belong in ICU during procedures? Study finds clinicians mixed on practice.' My experience in [...]