Honest Universe

Some rules need to change

Mark Hanna • Feb 20, 2019

• Births Deaths Marriages and Relationships Registration Act,
• media council,
• transgender

Content note: This article discusses transphobia, and includes examples of it. I’ve always been big on rules. When I was a kid, I had a lot of trouble grasping the idea that there was a difference between “right and wrong” and “following the rules”. My parents used to quip that I’d probably grow up to be a lawyer. I don’t … Read More

Official information kept secret too long

Mark Hanna • Aug 20, 2018

• government,
• information,
• official information act

Official information is being kept secret for longer than it should be. For the past few months, I have been gathering and analysing data from 12 government agencies, looking at how they handle requests made under the Official Information Act. My findings reflect what many have observed more anecdotally: responses to requests for information are often sent at the very … Read More

Chiropractors struggle to drop testimonials

Mark Hanna • Jul 01, 2018

• chiropractors,
• health claims,
• testimonials

The latest newsletter from the regulator of chiropractors offers an insight into the industry’s culture problems. In their June newsletter, the chair of the Chiropractic Board has admonished chiropractors for a discussion on how to circumvent consumer protection regulations: At a recent chiropractic function, a presentation was given on advertising, chiropractors’ responsibilities and the Advertising Standards Authority … Read More

NZ Police pursuits keep killing people

Mark Hanna • May 28, 2018

• police pursuits

Despite a repeated cycle of calls for change, people keep dying in police pursuits in New Zealand. Just today, a teenager and a child died as the result of a police pursuit in Palmerston North. News stories like these keep appearing. In February this year I asked NZ Police to release a number of statistics regarding police … Read More

Personalised Supplements

Mark Hanna • May 08, 2018

• natural health industry,
• personalised supplements

Can an online quiz give good recommendations for taking supplements? Stuff today published an article about two New Zealand companies that launched recently, Vitally and Wondermins, which each use online quizzes to sell “personalised vitamins”. Unfortunately, Stuff chose to focus on the question “What’s the point?” rather than “What’s the evidence?”. I thought it would be an … Read More

What we owe our pets

Mark Hanna • Mar 22, 2018

• Alternative,
• complementary,
• Health and Medicine,
• healthcare,
• Homeopathy,
• oxygen therapy,
• pets,
• responsibility,
• Treatment,
• vetenary association

I recently complained about a vet promoting quackery in the Bay of Plenty Times. In response to my complaint, the editor agreed to publish a response I wrote, regarding what we owe our pets. Now that it’s been up for a little while, I’m also publishing it here on my blog. The Bay of Plenty Times recently … Read More

New Rules for Pharmacists

Mark Hanna • Mar 07, 2018

• Alternative Medicine,
• enforcement,
• goods and services,
• government,
• healh products,
• Health and Medicine,
• Medicine,
• patient's rights,
• Pharmacy

The Pharmacy Council has (finally) published their new Code of Ethics 2018. I’ve written several times on the ongoing saga of the Pharmacy Council’s Code of Ethics. In late 2014 we put together a complaint at the Society for Science Based Healthcare arguing that their Code of Ethics 2011 had been violated by … Read More

Can you trust Band-Aids?

Mark Hanna • Nov 29, 2017

• adhesive plasters,
• band aid,
• consuming science,
• Health and Medicine,
• health products,
• johnson & johnson

Band-Aid is a household name, but can you trust the way they’re promoted? For years Johnson & Johnson, the manufacturers of Band-Aid adhesive bandages, have been making a simple claim about them. If you put a Band-Aid on a cut, it will heal faster than it would have if left uncovered. Specifically, they say it will heal twice … Read More

OIA Accessibility

Mark Hanna • Nov 20, 2017

• accessibility,
• Data,
• government,
• OCR,
• official information act,
• oia,
• pdf,
• Science and Society

The Official Information Act has an accessibility problem. I wrote recently about asking the government for information, having just published a guide to using the OIA. The OIA is a powerful tool, but it can be limited by how government agencies choose to follow it. One particular limitation that comes up, again and again, … Read More

Asking the government for information

Mark Hanna • Oct 31, 2017

• Data,
• government,
• information,
• official information act,
• oia,
• Science and Society

You have the right to ask the government for information. Because of a law called the Official Information Act (OIA), they’re obliged to give it to you unless there is a good reason not to. You’ve likely seen the OIA mentioned in the news. Phrases like “Documents released to [news outlet] under the Official Information Act” can often be found … Read More