Biography:Jeremy Howick

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Short description: Canadian-UK philosopher of science
Jeremy Howick
Jeremy Howick.jpg
Born
Jeremy Howick

NationalityCanadian and British
CitizenshipCanadian and British
EducationDartmouth College
London School of Economics
University of Oxford
OccupationPhilosopher, Epidemiologist
Years active2009–present
Known forDoctor You
The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine
Medical career
ProfessionPhilosopher, clinical epidemiologist, teacher
InstitutionsUniversity of Leicester and University of Oxford
Sub-specialtiesevidence-based medicine, placebo and nocebo effects, empathy in medicine
Websitewww.jeremyhowick.com

Jeremy Howick is a Canadian-born, British residing clinical epidemiologist and philosopher of science. He researches evidence-based medicine, clinical empathy and the philosophy of medicine, including the use of placebos in clinical practice and clinical trials.[1][2] He is the author of over 100 peer-reviewed papers, as well as two books, The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine in 2011,[3] and Doctor You in 2017.[4] In 2016, he received the Dawkins & Strutt grant from the British Medical Association to study pain treatment.[5] He publishes in Philosophy of Medicine and medical journals.[6] He is a member of the Sigma Xi research honours society.[7]

Early life and education

Howick, a native of Montreal, Canada, is a graduate of Westmount High School. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Engineering from the Dartmouth College, and graduate degrees from The London School of Economics and the University of Oxford. His PhD in Philosophy of medicine at the London School of Economics was conducted under the supervision of Professors Nancy Cartwright and John Worrall, with a thesis entitled Philosophical essentials in evidence-based medicine: Evaluating the epistemological role of double blinding and placebo controls, published in 2008.[8] He is the Director of the Oxford Empathy Programme[9] at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Oxford.

International Rowing

As a freshman at Dartmouth College, Howick learned to row. He subsequently competed in internationals for Canada at the 1994 World Championships, and won a silver medal at the 1994 Commonwealth Games.[10] He also competed in The Boat Race 1996 representing Oxford.[citation needed]

Professional background

Howick has worked at the University of Oxford, including at the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine since 2007. Together with Muir Gray, he founded the Oxford Empathy Programme,[9] and the Oxford Philosophy and Medicine Network.[11]His main post now is at the University of Leicester where he is the director of the Stoneygate Centre for Excellence in Empathic Healthcare.[12]

Broadcasting

Howick designed a trial of placebo treatments for back pain for a BBC Horizon documentary.[13]

Research

Howick is known for his research which combines Philosophy of medicine with medical research (especially Evidence-based medicine, which he mostly defends.[14] Howick's book, "The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine" came to define a sub-discipline within the Philosophy of Medicine[3] and has been used to develop a course on the History and Philosophy of Medicine at the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine. The book is a critical defense of the Evidence-based medicine Hierarchy of evidence.

His research currently focuses on empathy, where his main contribution has been to evaluate empathy in healthcare the same way drugs are evaluated, namely with systematic reviews of randomised trials.[15][16]

His work on placebo effects culminated in a book The Power of Placebos: How the Science of Placebos and Nocebos Can Improve Health Care.[17] His research in this area also includes a systematic review suggesting that the magnitude of placebo effects is similar to the magnitude of drug effects, most notably for treating pain (although the latter includes the placebo effect).[18] and another suggesting that 'honest' placebos (that patients know are placebos) can also be effective.[19]

His research has been translated for popular audiences in his book Doctor You.[20]

References

  1. "Dr Jeremy Howick" (in en). http://www.ox.ac.uk/news-and-events/find-an-expert/dr-jeremy-howick. 
  2. Fleming, Nic (2017-05-22). "'I knew they were sugar pills but I felt fantastic' – the rise of open-label placebos" (in en). https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/22/knew-they-were-sugar-pills-felt-fantastic-rise-open-label-placebos. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 Jeremy Howick (2011-02-23). The Philosophy of Evidence-based Medicine. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-4443-4266-6. https://books.google.com/books?id=O8djbHBva5IC&pg=PA15. 
  4. "Homepage" (in en-US). http://www.jeremyhowick.com/. 
  5. "Scientists awarded research grants by the British Medical Association". University of Oxford (Press release). 2016-11-29. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
  6. Barthel, W.; Markwardt, F. (1975). "Jeremy Howick PubMed citations" (in en-US). Biochemical Pharmacology 24 (20): 1903–4. doi:10.1016/0006-2952(75)90415-3. PMID 20. 
  7. "Sigma Xi Member Directory" (in en). https://www.sigmaxi.org/members/member-directory?fn=Jeremy&ln=Howick&disc=0&match=False. 
  8. Howick, Jeremy (2008). Philosophical essentials in evidence-based medicine: Evaluating the epistemological role of double blinding and placebo controls (phd thesis). London School of Economics and Political Science.
  9. 9.0 9.1 "Oxford Empathy Programme" (in en). https://www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk/oxford-empathy-programme-new-design-draft. 
  10. "World Rowing" (in en). http://www.worldrowing.com/athletes/athlete/4854/howick-jeremy. 
  11. "Oxford Philosophy and Medicine Network" (in en). https://www.philosophy.ox.ac.uk/oxford-philosophy-and-medicine-network. 
  12. "Stoneygate Centre for Excellence in Empathic Healthcare" (in en). https://le.ac.uk/empathy. 
  13. "Placebos and Back Pain". BBC. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0bmblb8. Retrieved 20 February 2019. 
  14. Howick, Jeremy H. (2011-02-23). The Philosophy of Evidence-based Medicine. Wiley. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-4443-4266-6. 
  15. "Positive messages may reduce patient pain: A meta-analysis". European Journal of Integrative Medicine 11: 31–38. August 2017. doi:10.1016/j.eujim.2017.03.005. https://philpapers.org/rec/HOWPMM. 
  16. "Effects of empathic and positive communication in healthcare consultations: a systematic review and meta-analysis". Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 111 (7): 240–252. July 2018. doi:10.1177/0141076818769477. PMID 29672201. 
  17. Howick, Jeremy (2023-11-14). The Power of Placebos: How the Science of Placebos and Nocebos Can Improve Health Care. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 9781421446387. 
  18. "Are Treatments More Effective than Placebos? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis". PLOS One 11 (1): e62599. May 2013. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0062599. PMID 23690944. Bibcode2013PLoSO...862599H. 
  19. "Effects of placebos without deception compared with no treatment: A systematic review and meta-analysis". Journal of Evidence-Based Medicine 10 (2): 97–107. May 2017. doi:10.1111/jebm.12251. PMID 28452193. http://create.canterbury.ac.uk/17318/1/17318_OpenLabel_placebo_final%20050117%20Clean.pdf. 
  20. Howick, Jeremy H. (2017-10-19). Doctor You. Hachette. ISBN 9781473654235. 

External links