Speakers

Dr Deborah Cohen is a Senior Visiting Fellow at LSE Health, and an award-winning medically qualified broadcaster, journalist and author. 

Earlier in her career, Deborah trained as a doctor before choosing to pursue investigative journalism and health reporting—hence her self-described label as an “escapee medic.”

At The BMJ, she founded and led its investigations unit, combining rigorous data analysis and forensic journalistic inquiry to unearth serious issues in medicine and health policy.  She later served as Science Editor at ITV News and as UK & Health Correspondent for BBC Newsnight, including leading coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Her investigative work spans major programmes—BBC Panorama, Channel 4 Dispatches, ITV Tonight, BBC’s File on Four—and has spurred changes in clinical practice, regulatory reform, and parliamentary inquiries.  Her reporting has been incorporated into global investigations and even Netflix documentaries. 

As a speaker, Deborah bridges medicine, journalism and policy. She brings deep expertise in navigating complexity, communicating science to broad audiences, and interrogating power in health and research.