Kristin speaks with two pharmacists working in menopause care: Bo Kim, clinical pharmacist and founder of EmpowHer Menopause in Perth Jarrah Anderson, Clinical Lead at MedCast and member of the Quality Use of Medicines Alliance In this episode Types of menopausal hormone treatment (MHT) When different MHT options are used in perimenopause and menopause. Safety conversations Current thinking on precautions and contraindications, and how to explain risks and benefits clearly. Access and cost in Au...
Mar 14, 2026•34 min
This International Women's Day (IWD) we a focused on women's health. In this episode, Kristin speaks with Professor Susan Davis, AO, MBBS, FRACP, PhD, FAHMS, Head Monash University Women's Health Research Program, Endocrinologist, leading menopause researcher. Prof Davis is Director of the Women's Health Research Program in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University Melbourne. She is a consultant Endocrinologist at Cabrini Medical Centre and Head of the Women's Specia...
Mar 07, 2026•39 min
In this episode, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) pharmacists Clarissa Rentsch and Sheridan Rodda break down the essentials of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, from diagnosis and treatment options to the expanding role of monoclonal therapies. We explore Crohn disease, ulcerative colitis, therapeutic drug monitoring and how pharmacists can optimise care for people living with IBD. A clear, practical conversation for clinicians and anyone wanting to better understand this complex condition. Purple Pen...
Feb 14, 2026•1 hr 2 min
In this episode, I'm coming to you live from NAPSA Congress, the National Australian Pharmacy Students' Association's week-long flagship event that brings together pharmacy students from across Australia. The Congress is packed with education sessions, workshops, social events, networking opportunities, and a vibrant trade exhibition, and this episode captures the energy of being right in the middle of it all. I spoke with Sebastian Harper from Griffith University, NAPSA's National President, Se...
Jan 22, 2026•28 min
Listen in to our latest episode as Kristin chats with Josh Schiller, a Accredited Practising Dietitian, about navigating the world of nutritional supplements and vitamins in pharmacy practice. Josh breaks down which products he would recommend, the key interactions between diet, vitamins, and prescription medicines that you need to know about and the age old question, do you really need that multi-vitamin. From green leafy vegetables to food-drug interactions that can impact therapy outcomes, th...
Jan 17, 2026•43 min•Ep. 184
We talk to Gary Bain (AKA the wound guy) about the integumentary system, the stages of wound healing, the advantages of good old fashioned clean water for wound cleaning, guiding principles of dressing changes for inflammatory phase vs proliferation phase, when to use different types of dressings e.g hydrocolloid, the benefits of a wound selfie to check progress, advantages of compression bandages for accelerating wound repair, the importance of moisturising a closed wound and busting wound mana...
Dec 23, 2025•43 min
We talked with, Dr Eleni Yiasemides (board-certified consultant Dermatologist specialist from Sydney) about *Inappropriate indications for topical corticosteroids (cortisones) like perioral dermatitis when less is usually more *The verdict on combination products corticosteroids + anti fungal creams and when to use them *Busting myths on topical corticosteroids like "apply sparingly" *The issue of tachyphylaxis *Practice points about alcohol based treatments, preservatives and fragrance *Alterna...
Dec 13, 2025•42 min
We're marking World Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Awareness Week 2025 with an episode dedicated entirely to antibiotics, the medicines we rely on every day and the ones we need to protect. We're joined by Caroline Chen, a senior antimicrobial stewardship pharmacist and project officer at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, for a deep dive into all things antibiotics. Together, we walk through the ABCs of commonly used antibiotics, or more accurately the B through T, including beta-lactams, clindamyci...
Nov 18, 2025•51 min
Listen in as Kristin chats with Dr Angela Kwong, a Sydney-based General Practitioner with a special interest in medically supervised weight management, about the use of GLP-1 agonists. Dr Kwong serves as the NSW State Lead for the RACGP Specific Interests Group in Obesity Management and works closely with colleagues across disciplines to improve care for people living with obesity. She is also the founder of Enlighten Me , a multidisciplinary online program that provides evidence-based, GP-led s...
Nov 15, 2025•50 min•Ep. 180
We talk with Prof Pete Smith, an allergist from Queensland about Why rhinitis shouldn't be sneezed at (sorry we had to), including the consequences of allergic rhinitis being un/undertreated The recommended method to use intranasal sprays - hint "if you can taste it, you're wasting it" How to discuss concerns patients might have about intranasal corticosteroids The long list of potential triggers of nonallergic rhinitis What are the red flag symptoms of rhinitis? Some further reading: Nonallergi...
Oct 11, 2025•47 min
Listen in to round out our conversation about anticoagulation, by hearing from two Anticoagulation Stewardship Pharmacists - Hadley Bortz from the Alfred in Melbourne and Julianne Chong from Concord Hospital. Find out more about ACS programs in Australia and overseas and the benefits that these programs can bring to your health service. Anticoagulant patient care plan Anticoagulation Forum Advancing Anticoagulation Stewardship: A Playbook CATAG Medicines Stewardship Toolkit...
Sep 13, 2025•39 min•Ep. 178
Join us as we talk with Prof Prash Sanders about the role of anticoagulation for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), learn when patients should be screened for AF, how to perform a stroke risk assessment and strategies to reduce the risk of bleeding. This podcast is in collaboration with Medcast and the Quality Use of Medicines Alliance, a provider of health professional education in Australia focused on the quality use of medicines. Check out their resources here . Clinical guide: Anticoagu...
Aug 16, 2025•39 min•Ep. 177
Naloxone has been available in Australia without prescription since 2022 (after pilot programs through 2019-2021, analysis showed this trial saved 3 lives per day ). Join us as Kristin and Nat talk naloxone with Pharmacist Emily Turkovic. Emily shares her personal story and why she is passionate about ensuring that naloxone is widely available in our community. Listen in for tips and tricks on how to broach the subject with patients and ways to de-stigmatise naloxone. Resources: Opioid Safety To...
Jul 12, 2025•41 min•Ep. 176
Listen in as Kristin chats with Dr Ian Heslop about the health care needs of travellers, covering topics such as traveller's diarrhoea, altitude sickness and more. Listen until the end to find out what Ian brings in his travel medicine kit! Ian is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Newcastle and has a strong background in Hospital Pharmacy and in academia. He was involved in the establishment of the Bachelor of Pharmacy program at James Cook University in Townsville - and whil...
Jun 14, 2025•55 min•Ep. 175
Listen in to our latest episode as Kristin chats with Chelsea Felkai about being a healthcare provider for patients with intellectual disability. Chelsea is a community pharmacist who is completing her PhD at the University of Newcastle. You can find resources relating to the provision of inclusive healthcare and the NSQHS Standards User Guide for the Health Care of People with Intellectual Disability that Chelsea refers to in the podcast here . Other resources include: PSA Medicine safety: disa...
May 10, 2025•57 min•Ep. 174
Join Natalie as she chats with Dermatologist A/Prof Deshan Sebaratnam about the management of acne. Listen in as they chat about over the counter treatment options, what may have changed in acne management and the effectiveness of isotretenoin. A/Prof Sebaratnam, in addition to his private practice, as a specialist dermatologist at Liverpool and Dubbo Base Hospitals in NSW.
Apr 12, 2025•33 min•Ep. 173
Tune in as Dr Sayontonee Ghosh gives an overview of TB including: Transmission Diagnosis Screening Symptoms Treatment options
Mar 15, 2025•35 min•Ep. 172
Did you know that PPIs are one of the most commonly prescribed medications in Australia according to PBS data? Join Kristin for a deep dive into proton pump inhibitors as she chats with Gastroenterologist, Hepatologist and Gastrointestinal endoscopist, Dr Kostas Brooks. What dose PPIs should patients actually be taking? How do you manage rebound symptoms? Listen in to find out.
Feb 15, 2025•43 min•Ep. 171
Join Kristin as she chats with Dr Gaurav Sutrave to chat about emergening treatments for fungal infections. Gaurav is a Staff Specialist Haematologist and Transplant and Cell Therapies Physician at Westmead Hospital, as well as the Medical Director for the Westmead T cell Therapies Laboratory.
Jan 11, 2025•37 min•Ep. 170
Join Kristin and Nat as they chat with Shaylee Mills, The Rural Pharmacist . Shaylee works in the beautiful Pilbara region of WA - google it - the scenery is spectacular! Although it is at least 17 hours drive from the nearest capital city (Perth) - Karratha is far from a small town and is home to around 22000 people. Shaylee shares what her world as a pharmacist looks like and some of the benefits (and challenges) of working rurally. You can find Shaylee here and don't forget to give Purple Pen...
Dec 14, 2024•41 min•Ep. 169
Check out our latest episode as Kristin and Nat chat with Dr Jeremy McAnulty about the work undertaken by Public Health Units. If you are from NSW, you may remember Dr McAnulty from the daily televised COVID updates - Dr Jeremy McAnulty is a public health physician and Executive Director of Health Protection NSW at NSW Health, overseeing the statewide public health aspects of communicable disease control and environmental health. From 2020 to 2022 he headed NSW Health's COVID Public Health Respo...
Nov 09, 2024•31 min•Ep. 168
Join Kristin for a deep dive into meningococcal disease with Dr Anita Campbell. Learn more about the various strains of meningococcal and their prevalence patterns in Australia and how that might impact the way we think about vaccination for meningococcal, using Men B as an example. Dr Anita Campbell is a clinician researcher working as a paediatric infectious disease specialist and medical lead of the Stan Perron Immunisation service at Perth Children's Hospital.
Oct 12, 2024•28 min•Ep. 167
Join us for a very special World Pharmacist Day edition of the Purple Pen Podcast. Recorded live during pharmacy wellbeing week at Monash Health, Nat & Kristin reconnect with Jane Booth and Karlee Johnston to talk about Pharmacist Wellbeing. We explore the concepts of empathy, vulnerability, burnout and restorative supervision. Our guest, Dr Karlee Johnston, is a clinical pharmacist with extensive experience in critical care and winner of the SHPA - Australian Clinical Pharmacy award in 2023...
Sep 24, 2024•42 min•Ep. 166
Join Kristin as she chats with Rebekah Moles about fever. Rebekah is an Associate Professor in Pharmacy Practice at the University of Sydney and she is passionate about quality use of medicines in paediatric patients. She has conducted research on the management of common ailments such as fever and cough/cold in young patients.
Sep 14, 2024•39 min
Join us as we talk with Dr David Liew about the underappreciated condition of gout, dispel some myths and talk about what's changed in recommendations. This podcast is in collaboration with Medcast and the Quality Use of Medicines Alliance, a provider of health professional education in Australia focused on the quality use of medicines. Check out their resources here . Arthritis Australia have further information on gout here . The 2015 study by Philip C Robinson is here An Observational Study o...
Aug 10, 2024•44 min•Ep. 164
Kristin is joined by Professor Sanjay Swaminathan to talk all things MABs or monoclonal antibodies. Dr Sanjay Swaminathan is a Clinical Immunologist and Allergist, he is a Senior Staff Specialist and Head of the Department of Immunology and Allergy at Westmead and Blacktown Hospitals.
Jul 13, 2024•31 min•Ep. 163
Prof Asha Bowen is back to discuss Impetigo (also known as school sores), an infection of the skin caused by bacteria. Observational studies over four decades in northern Australia have found that Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children living in remote communities have the highest burden of impetigo worldwide. Prof Asha Bowen is a paediatric infectious disease specialist and clinician-researcher at Perth Children's Hospital and Telethon Kids Institute. She is Head of Departmen...
Jun 08, 2024•41 min•Ep. 162
RSV season is upon us, and there are a number of new exciting developments in the prevention of RSV to discuss! Listen in, as Prof Asha Bowen chats to Kristin and Natalie about the newest innovations in RSV immunisation and vaccination. Prof Asha Bowen is a paediatric infectious disease specialist and clinician-researcher at Perth Children's Hospital and Telethon Kids Institute. She is Head of Department of Infectious Diseases at Perth Children's Hospital. ATAGI statement in the use of Arexvy in...
May 11, 2024•45 min•Ep. 161
Join Kristin as she chats with A/Prof Esmita Charani, PhD, MSc, MPharm, MRPSGB, about the way clinicians think and feel about antibiotic use, and in particular how these beliefs can impact their response to various antimicrobial stewardship interventions. Esmita also shares her research journey into broader human rights issues including bias and imbalance in low and middle income countries. Esmita is an Associate Professor at the University of Cape Town where she is undertaking a Wellcome Trust ...
Apr 13, 2024•38 min•Ep. 160
Join Kristin as she talks with Dr Mark Horowitz about how to deprescribe psychotropics like antidepressants, what is known about the causes of depression, what evidence is behind the antidepressants commonly used, what the symptoms of antidepressant withdrawal look like and the origins of the phrase "it's Bedlam here." The Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines: Antidepressants, Benzodiazepines, Gabapentinoids and Z-drugs are available for purchase here: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/The+Maudsley+Depre...
Mar 16, 2024•51 min•Ep. 159
