Speaker: Dr Daniel Hurt is a GP registrar at Stockton Heath Medical Centre and will shortly qualify as a General Practitioner. He first became involved in philosophy while studying at the University of Cambridge, where he ran the main student philosophy society for several years.
After moving from Saddleworth and founding another group, he now leads the Halton Amateur Philosophy Society. His interests range from the philosophy of medicine and psychiatry to broader questions in metaethics and the philosophy of religion. Having previously worked at Warrington and Oldham hospitals, Daniel is now settled in Sandymoor with his wife and their two young children, and values opportunities to bring people together in thoughtful discussion.
Synopsis: This talk examines what it means to be healthy and how medicine can risk turning normal life into illness. We will explore competing definitions of health and the challenges of overdiagnosis and medicalisation. We will consider how diagnostic labels can clarify or complicate people’s lives, shaping both understanding and identity. Finally, we will look at how belief, expectation, and the doctor–patient relationship influence healing through placebo and nocebo effects.
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