How an Afghan refugee became an NHS telemedicine pioneer

Dr Waheed Arian escaped from Afghanistan and came to the UK as a child refugee in 1999. Since then, he has become an A&E doctor and founded global telemedicine charity ‘Arian Teleheal’.

In this episode Annabelle Collins is joined by Dr Arian, who discusses why simplicity was key when it came to launching a successful telemedicine charity, how his formative experiences in Afghanistan inspired its creation and why the NHS must do more to improve global health inequalities.

We also discuss the impact of the pandemic on the NHS workforce and why it is ill-equipped to deal with staff suffering from PTSD – a condition Dr Arian has personal experiences recovering from.

Dr Arian’s memoir ‘In the wars’ is published on June 17th.