Vanessa Rampton
Academic and author specializing in intellectual history and the medical humanities, affiliated with the University of St. Gallen and McGill University; author of Making Medical Progress: A History of a Contested Idea (Cambridge UP, 2025).
Top 3 podcasts with Vanessa Rampton
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Feb 15, 2026 • 34min
Vanessa Rampton, "Making Medical Progress: History of a Contested Idea" (Cambridge UP, 2025)
Vanessa Rampton, historian of medicine and ideas affiliated with University of St. Gallen and McGill, explores how the notion of medical progress has been shaped over time. She traces shifting meanings from ancient debates to WWII and AI. The conversation examines patient empowerment, tensions between costly tech and public health, and visions of sustainability and justice for future medicine.
Feb 15, 2026 • 34min
Vanessa Rampton, "Making Medical Progress: History of a Contested Idea" (Cambridge UP, 2025)
Vanessa Rampton, intellectual historian in the medical humanities at University of St. Gallen and McGill, discusses how the idea of medical progress has been shaped across time. She traces roots from the Enlightenment to postwar optimism, probes ethical tensions around new technologies and patient autonomy, and considers social justice, sustainability, and who benefits from progress.
Feb 15, 2026 • 34min
Vanessa Rampton, "Making Medical Progress: History of a Contested Idea" (Cambridge UP, 2025)
Vanessa Rampton, historian and philosopher of medicine at the University of St. Gallen and McGill, explores how the idea of medical progress has been shaped by religion, war, bioethics and politics. She traces shifts from Enlightenment hopes to postwar innovation, tensions between high-tech care and public health, and contemporary drivers like AI and genomics. The conversation ends with futures centered on justice and sustainability.
