The Happy Pod: The simple plastic sheet saving lives
Global News Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 8.3K Ratings
🗓️ 30 May 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Researchers say a simple sheet of plastic is helping to prevent women dying after childbirth. The drape measures blood loss, which allows doctors to provide faster treatment. It's been successful in Nigeria, and now the health professionals want it used across the globe.
Plus, meet Joy and Diane who have been friends for 60 years. It all started with one letter when they were 12 years old and they have been pen pals ever since. Also, the fishing group helping people with breast cancer. The woman trying to save endangered Indian Skimmer water birds. The rare rainforest that is being restored in Northern Ireland over the next 100 years, and the homes in Australia which are being adapted to help people with ADHD.
Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world.
Presenter: Holly Gibbs. Music composed by Iona Hampson
Picture credit: Gates Foundation/Nelson Owoicho
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is the Happy Podopards, music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:05.7 | This is the Happy Pod from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:14.7 | I'm Holly Gibbs and in this edition. |
| 0:17.6 | I haven't seen any intervention that is saving women as much. So it's amazing. |
| 0:24.5 | The simple plastic sheet that is saving the lives of thousands of women after childbirth. |
| 0:31.0 | Also, the friendship spanning six decades and thousands of kilometres. Well, she's just a very |
| 0:36.8 | special person in my life. |
| 0:38.2 | I'm very blessed to have her. |
| 0:39.6 | We don't have the same blood running in our veins, but we are like sisters. |
| 0:44.1 | It's really special. |
| 0:45.6 | The fishing group supporting people with cancer. |
| 0:48.8 | I'm here in this moment in time, and it's just lovely. |
| 0:53.3 | I get peace and separation from all the doctor's appointments. |
| 0:58.9 | You just want it to go on forever. |
| 1:00.8 | And? |
| 1:01.5 | I can be myself and it's just I can control what I can do. |
| 1:09.9 | Adapting homes to help people with ADHD. |
| 1:16.0 | We start with a simple plastic sheet that is saving the lives of tens of thousands of women all over the world. |
| 1:23.7 | Every year, around 14 million women globally have excessive bleeding after birth and 70,000 die. |
| 1:31.4 | But researchers found that using a plastic drape to measure blood loss and then giving faster treatments |
| 1:37.0 | has led to a 60% lower risk of serious complications. |
| 1:41.7 | In fact, the findings were so extraordinary that the World Health |
... |
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