Public Health On Call

About this episode: When should you get your COVID/flu shots? How long can a COVID vaccine really protect you from infection? Why do we have summer waves of COVID but not flu or RSV? Will we ever see a flu/COVID combo shot? A virologist answers questions as we gear up for respiratory virus season. Guest: Andy Pekosz is a virologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health with appointments in Molecular Microbiology and Immunology and Environmental Health and Engineering. Host: Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, the largest center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Show links and related content: What to Know About the Updated COVID Vaccine for Fall, Winter 2024-25—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Why COVID Surges in the Summer—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: School nurses are charged with helping to maintain the health and well-being of every student in their care which goes way beyond providing basic first aid. Today, the podcast goes back to school at KIPP Baltimore, an open enrollment charter school serving pre-K to 8th grade students. Nurse Erica and Nurse Lily talk about their work providing health care to nearly 1,000 students, and what they're thinking about for the year ahead for everything from infectious diseases to eye screenings. Guest: Erica Johnson and Lily Mendelson are school nurses at KIPP Baltimore. Host: Dr. Josh Sharfstein is vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a faculty member in health policy, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. Show links and related content: What School Nurses Want Parents to Know—The New York Times More Cases of Measles in the United States—Public Health On Call (June, 2024) Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: Now in its 21st year, PEPFAR—the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief which launched in 2003 under President George W. Bush—still has ending the HIV epidemic in its sights. It's now at a critical juncture with an expanding toolbox of exciting treatments and, simultaneously, eroding bipartisan support from Congress. Guest: Dr. Mike Reid is the Chief Science Officer in the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy. Host: Dr. Josh Sharfstein is vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a faculty member in health policy, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. Show links and related content: Twice-Yearly Lenacapavir or Daily F/TAF for HIV Prevention in Cisgender Women—The New England Journal of Medicine Why The World's Most Lifesaving AIDS Program is in Danger—Public Health On Call podcast (December, 2023) A Conversation With The Experts on Ending The HIV Epidemic—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: The discovery of a new clade of C. auris—a fungus the WHO has declared a "critical pathogen"—has ignited new fears about the fungi's ability to evolve beyond infection control measures. C. auris already poses significant—and lethal—risks to hospitals and patients worldwide and, with global warming, medicine should expect more emerging fungal infections that are resistant to existing treatments. In today's episode: C. auris's evolution, the climate change factor, and what's needed to prevent infections before treatment options fail. Guest: Arturo Casadevall is chair of the department of Microbiology and Immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a global expert in host defense mechanisms, fungi, and antibody-based therapies. He is also co-author of the book What If Fungi Win? with Stephanie Desmon. Host: Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, the largest center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is also co-author of the book What If Fungi Win? with Dr. Casadevall. Show links and related content: Worsening Spread of Candida auris in the United States, 2019-2021—Annals of Internal Medicine What If Fungi Win? (book)—Johns Hopkins Press Candida auris: A Yeast to Fear—Public Health On Call Podcast (archive) The Rise of Invasive Fungi—Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine Why Fungal Diseases Are An Increasing Threat–Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine On the Emergence of Candida auris: Climate Change, Azoles, Swamps, and Birds—mBio Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: When evaluating programs, policies, and interventions, how do you know if they're working? In today's episode: The science (and art!) of biostatistics, and an exploration of the question: How can we design studies to find out if there really is a relationship between A and B? Guest: Elizabeth Stuart is the chair of the department of Biostatistics at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Host: Dr. Josh Sharfstein is vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a faculty member in health policy, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. Show links and related content: Better Debates, Better Decisions: Causality Assessment in Population Health—The Milbank Quarterly Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: Health diplomacy is how countries work together to advance global health. What does health diplomacy look like in 2024—a post-pandemic time marked by multiple violent crises and zoonotic disease outbreaks? Loyce Pace is America's top health diplomat within the Department of Health and Human Services. In today's episode: a conversation about the agenda for US and global health. Guest: Loyce Pace is the Assistant Secretary for Global Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Ms. Pace is an alum of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Host: Dr. Josh Sharfstein is vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a faculty member in health policy, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. Show links and related content: Loyce Pace: U.S. Priorities at the 77th World Health Assembly—Global Health NOW Assistant Secretary Loyce Pace on X Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: World Mosquito Day, observed annually on August 20th, commemorates British doctor Sir Ronald Ross's discovery in 1897 that female Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria to humans. More than a century later, major advancements like genetically modifying mosquitoes—AKA gene drives—have the potential to reduce malaria cases and deaths dramatically, but not without hurdles. This special episode is an extended version of Malaria Minute, a podcast from the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute. Host: Thomas Locke is the host of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute's podcast, Malaria Minute. Show links and related content: The Malaria Research Institute Editing Out Malaria, One Mosquito at a Time Gene Knockout Using New CRISPR Tool Makes Mosquitoes Highly Resistant to Malaria Parasite The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute Podcast Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: Since 2015, 1,939 individuals experiencing mental health crises have been killed during encounters with police in America, accounting for 20% of all police killings. The first episode of "The Fifth Branch"— a three-part special series by Tradeoffs and The Marshall Project— examines what it looks like when one community dramatically changes how it responds to people in crisis. Episodes 2 and 3 can be found on the Tradeoffs website. Host: Dan Gorenstein is the founder and executive editor of the Tradeoffs podcast. Show links and related content: Introducing HEART, Durham's crisis response program About HEART Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: Violence Reduction Councils review huge quantities of data to pinpoint how homicides and shootings can be prevented. They include diverse stakeholders from a city or community including first responders, community-based organizations, and elected officials—all of whom come together to review cases and identify policies or interventions to prevent future violence. A new toolkit supported by the Bloomberg American Health Initiative can help groups get started, sort and store data, form cross-divisional partnerships, and more. Guest: Mallory O'Brien is an associate scientist with the Center For Gun Violence Solutions. Host: Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Show links and related content: Violence Reduction Councils Toolkit—Bloomberg American Health Initiative Violence Reduction Councils Can Help Communities Identify and Implement Long-Term Solutions—Bloomberg American Health Initiative Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed

About this episode: A concerning and deadly outbreak of mpox is spreading across central Africa and the world's response has been lackluster. In this episode: an overview of the virus and a brief history of mpox outbreaks, a breakdown of the different clades, and why this particular epidemic is so concerning—not just for the regions impacted but for the rest of the world. Guest: Dr. Chris Beyrer is the director of the Duke Global Health Institute and an epidemiologist who has worked on the front lines of infectious diseases like HIV and human rights issues across Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe for more than 30 years. Host: Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, the largest center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Show links and related content: How the hard lessons of the AIDS crisis are reshaping the response to the monkeypox outbreak—STAT News Bonus Episode: A Conversation With an Mpox Patient—Public Health On Call Archive Ep 500: How Did Mpox Become a Public Health Crisis?—Public Health On Call Archive Contact us: Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website. Follow us: @‌PublicHealthPod on X @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube Here's our RSS feed