Public Health On Call

During the pandemic, many found solace outdoors on hikes and in city parks. Dr. Mamie Parker , ecologist, activist, and the first Black Head of Fisheries for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service talks with Josh Sharfstein about how getting back in touch with nature offers an opportunity to see just how connected we are to the earth, how much we depend on a healthy environment for our own physical an...

As a zoonotic disease, COVID-19 can infect animals. Some, like farmed mink, are more susceptible to disease while others, like white-tailed deer, may only be carriers. But there's always the chance that a new variant of COVID could impact more animals, potentially endangering wild and captive creatures. Veterinarian Dr. Meghan Davis returns to the podcast to talk with Stephanie Desmon about what w...

How does a health department cope with a pandemic surge that coincides with one of the largest hurricanes to make landfall in 150 years? State health commissioner Dr. Joseph Kante r talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the challenges of dual emergencies, how the pandemic and storm responses impacted one another, and how the health department is coping nearly 19 months into the pandemic.

Where are we with our mental health these days given that we're past the initial panic of the COVID-19 pandemic and into a more long-term fallout phase? Clinical psychologist Dr. Laura Murray returns to the podcast to talk with Stephanie Desmon about COVID as a collective trauma; overlap with other "high impact events" like Afghanistan, hurricanes, refugee crises, and more; what's contributing to...

Dr. Shaun Truelove , an infectious disease epidemiologist, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub's models for the next six months into early 2022. Researchers projected what could happen under four scenarios of vaccination rates, including authorizing vaccines for children, and the possibility for new variants. Spoiler alert: It's not all bad news. Learn more: htt...

What, exactly, is a booster shot? For which groups has the FDA authorized Pfizer boosters? What about boosters for Moderna and J&J? Will we need a fourth shot in the future? Will there be a delta-specific booster? Would it make a difference in world vaccine supply if the US refrained from giving any boosters? Stephanie Desmon interviews cohost Dr. Josh Sharfstein about these and more COVID-19 boos...

Last spring, India experienced a catastrophic wave of COVID-19 infections with more than 100,000 cases per day, exceeding hospital capacity in some areas and leading to oxygen shortages. What has happened since? From their homes in India, infectious disease researchers Dr. Vidya Mave and Dr. Brian Wahl talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the state of the pandemic and the return to daily life.

With the rollout of vaccines earlier this year, the concept of "herd immunity"—the idea that enough people would become immune to COVID-19 that we could more or less "return to normal"—seemed plausible. But a number of factors are complicating the US's fight against the pandemic and we're still seeing thousands of people dying every day. Epidemiologists Amber D'Souza and David Dowdy return to the...

Where are we with testing technology? Why is the demand for testing surging and are there enough tests? When is the best time to use at-home testing given the cost? What's the difference between PCR and rapid antigen tests and how accurate are they in different circumstances? Dr. Gigi Gronvall gives an update on testing and answers questions with Stephanie Desmon. Note: Dr. Gronvall references the...

Mississippi is leading the nation in the rate of COVID deaths. Dr. Thomas Dobbs , the state's health commissioner, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the state's pandemic crisis, including its impact on pregnant women, the role of misinformation, and the impact on the health care system.

How can we help the planet by rethinking our diets? In a new book, Can Fixing Dinner Fix the Planet?, Dr. Jessica Fanzo , a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Global Food Policy and Ethics points out how our food options are often unhealthy for human bodies—and for the planet. Dr. Fanzo talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about making changes at both policy and individual levels, from the responsible...

There is a long history of protecting health care workers during conflict, beginning with an 1859 battle in Italy that gave rise to the first Geneva Convention. But there's never been a "golden age of compliance" and health care workers continue to face considerable risk while trying to reduce human suffering in war zones. Len Rubenstein , a public health and human rights lawyer and faculty at the...

For a year and a half, Johns Hopkins infectious disease doctor Kelly Gebo has been working with people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Gebo and a team of medical professionals triage COVID outpatients in a "pod" outside of the hospital where people diagnosed with COVID can come for convalescent plasma and care. Gebo talks about seeing patients in sleet and extreme heat, the parallels of her...

There are over 50 million Americans who are eligible to vote but are not registered. VoteEr is an organization at the intersection of health and voting, providing kits for health care offices and ERs that help patients check their registration status or easily register via a text message code while waiting to be seen. Dr. Alister Martin , VoteER's founder and executive director, talks with Dr. Jos...

In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks and the Anthrax events in the weeks that followed, Dr. Josh Sharfstein talks with Dr. Tom Inglesby of the Center for Health Security about the transformational impacts these events had on public health. They discuss what the attacks revealed about the US's vulnerabilities, how an influx of funding helped establish better public h...

Stephanie Desmon talks to Dr. Stephen Patrick , a pediatrician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee, about why the focus of COVID-19 right now needs to be kids, who have suffered mightily since the pandemic began and who are now filling up children's hospitals as many are sickened by the Delta variant. They discuss how politicians and religious leaders need to step up to protect ch...

This year, National Suicide Prevention Week coincides with the 20th anniversary of 9-11. Amelia Noor-Oshiro , a Hopkins PhD candidate, is conducting research at the intersection of suicide prevention and Muslim Americans' experiences with trauma, violence, and oppression. Stephanie Desmon talks with Noor-Oshiro about the importance of studying this underrepresented population, unique risk factors...

Bloomberg Assistant Professor of American Health Tiara Willie studies the HIV epidemic among Black women in the American South, particularly among those in abusive relationships. In conversation with Dr. Josh Sharfstein , Dr. Willie discusses how to make HIV prevention a standard of care to help women by improving and expanding access to trauma-informed services.

What is a microbiome? Are they helpful or are they harmful? Do they cause disease or can they cure disease? And what does diet soda have to do with them? In this episode, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein speaks to Dr. Jotham Suez from the W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology about the trillions of microorganisms that live inside us and all over our skin.

Research shows that conservatives are significantly less likely to get a COVID vaccine than liberals. Timothy Callaghan of Texas A&M's school of public health tells Stephanie Desmon about the impact this has right now, given the Delta variant, and the implications for the future in a country where politics and science are at odds in many circles. What are the best strategies to decouple partisansh...

This week, Stephanie Desmon and Josh Sharfstein are teaming up to talk to experts about COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Today, they look through the ethical lens with Nancy Kass , a leading ethicist at Johns Hopkins. They discuss why vaccine mandates should never be Plan A, when mandates can become critically necessary and how mandates shouldn't be put in place for frivolous reasons or settings, just w...

As pandemic-related, federal unemployment insurance is set to expire, Stephanie Desmon talks to Mallika Thomas, PhD , of Brookings Institution about its impacts, what will happen to those who remain unemployed but will no longer be eligible for weekly checks, and how the program was actually designed to keep people at home during the early days of COVID-19 so they'd be less likely to spread the vi...

What goes into the decision to mandate a vaccine? Today, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein and Stephanie Desmon continue the conversation on COVID-19 vaccine mandates and speak to the senior director of infection prevention at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Lisa Maragakis , who is leading the implementation of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Maragakis explains the history of vaccine mandates, the decis...

Why has it come to mandates as a way to get people vaccinated against COVID-19? Stephanie Desmon and Dr. Joshua Sharfstein talk to Saad Omer, MBBS, MPH, PhD, FIDSA , director of the Yale Institute for Global Health, about vaccine hesitancy, as well as the benefits and risks of vaccine mandates.

I am fully vaccinated with the Moderna vaccine. If I catch the delta variant will I acquire additional immunity—in addition to the immunity to the vaccination? If I received the COVID-19 vaccine and I'm now breastfeeding, will my baby receive antibodies? Do masks get less effective depending on how long they're worn? Dr. Amesh Adalja of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security addresses your q...