EPIDEMIC with Dr. Celine Gounder

Latest Episodes:

S1E4 / Our Health System’s in Trouble / Andy Salvitt & Dan Diamond Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

“I think as we get testing capability out, and we get the ability to treat the population, we can't forget that there's many people that don't have the choice to self-isolate. They have to go to work every day because they get paid by the hour, and we have to do our best to keep them healthy.” - Andy Slavitt

In today’s episode, co-hosts Dr. Celine Gounder and Ron Klain speak with Dan Diamond, a health journalist for Politico in Washington. They discuss what the coronavirus relief bill currently passing through Congress includes. They also discuss how conflict within the White House administration may be complicating the pandemic response in the United States. The co-hosts are also joined on this episode by Andy Slavitt, head of Medicare and Medicaid during the Obama administration. Andy speaks about how COVID-19 testing will be paid for in the United States, as well as how those without insurance or those who are undocumented will be cared for during the pandemic. He also discusses the impact that COVID-19 will have on Medicare and Medicaid, and how we can act now to build more resilience into our systems for future pandemics.

Listener Q&A: What are the risks of contracting the virus via mail or via deliveries of groceries or prepared food from restaurants? Should parents limit their children's exposure to all other children, or are playdates and neighborhood interactions alright? How important will it be to expand testing in order to track the mutation rates of the COVID-19 virus?

This podcast was created by Just Human Productions. We're powered and distributed by Simplecast. We're supported, in part, by listeners like you.

#SARSCoV2 #COVID19 #COVID #coronavirus

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S1E3 / Flatten the Curve / Craig Spencer & Helen Branswell Mar 13, 2020

Show notes

Transcript

“The goal is to try to keep as many people from being infected for as long as possible to try to effectively stretch this thing out so that the hospitals are dealing with fewer cases.” - Helen Branswell

In today’s episode, co-hosts Dr. Celine Gounder and Ron Klain discuss the concept of flattening the curve and what impact this can have on healthcare workers and hospitals. They speak with Helen Branswell, a leading infectious disease reporter at STAT. Helen speaks about what other countries are doing to fight against the pandemic and flatten their own curves, and how these measures compare to measures currently being taken in the United States. The co-hosts also speak with Dr. Craig Spencer from Columbia University Medical Center, a member of the Board of Directors of Doctors Without Borders for the United States. Dr. Craig Spencer discusses his own experiences in working as a healthcare worker during other infectious disease outbreaks, including the Ebola epidemic in Guinea, where he himself became infected, but was successfully treated back home in the United States. He also talks about the kinds of tough choices that healthcare workers in the United States will soon have to face.

Listener Q&A: Should my 89-year old mother come to live with me in order to decrease her chances of becoming infected with COVID-19, or is it safer for her to isolate herself in her apartment? Why don't state health departments take public health guidance on COVID-19 from WHO or academia, rather than the CDC and federal government? Would there be legal repercussions if states were to follow the recommendations of their own experts? Is there any evidence that moving college courses online will really slow the spread of the virus?

This podcast was created by Just Human Productions. We're powered and distributed by Simplecast. We're supported, in part, by listeners like you.

#SARSCoV2 #COVID19 #COVID #coronavirus

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S1E2 / The Test Kit Debacle / Tom Frieden Mar 05, 2020

Show notes

Transcript

Our special guest this week is Dr. Tom Frieden, the former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and former commissioner of the New York City Health Department. As head of the CDC during the Ebola epidemic in 2014, he played a critical role in the CDC’s unprecedented and heroic deployment of personnel to West Africa and was President Obama’s top public health advisor. Dr. Frieden is currently the President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a global non-profit initiative of Vital Strategies, working with countries to prevent 100 million deaths and make the world safer from epidemics. You can find him on Twitter @DrTomFrieden.

This podcast was created by Just Human Productions. We're powered and distributed by Simplecast. We're supported, in part, by listeners like you.

#SARSCoV2 #COVID19 #COVID #coronavirus

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S1E1 / Do We Need a Coronavirus Czar? / Céline Gounder, Ron Klain Feb 28, 2020

Show notes

Transcript

“We cannot build a wall, a real wall, or a metaphorical wall to keep this disease out. We have to understand it's coming. It's here already. It's going to come to a greater extent and we need to be preparing to deal with that.” -Ron Klain

In today’s episode, our co-hosts Dr. Celine Gounder and Ron Klain discuss whether the U.S. should be appointing a coronavirus czar to oversee and coordinate the national response to COVID-19. They share thoughts on the U.S. response so far, including travel restrictions, social distancing, and the decision to appoint Vice President Mike Pence to head the coronavirus response. They end by answering listener questions on traveling for spring break and address discrimination against Chinese Americans.

Is it time to call #SARS-CoV-2 #COVID-19 #coronavirus epidemic a pandemic?

This podcast was created by Just Human Productions. We're powered and distributed by Simplecast. We're supported, in part, by listeners like you.

#SARSCoV2 #COVID19 #COVID #coronavirus

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Trailer Feb 27, 2020

Show notes

EPIDEMIC is a new, weekly podcast on the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19). Hear from some of the world’s leading infectious disease and public health experts. We’ll help you understand the latest science, the bigger context, and bring you diverse angles—from history and anthropology to politics and economics—depth and texture you won’t get elsewhere.

Hosted by Dr. Celine Gounder, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist who has worked on tuberculosis and HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, and was an Ebola worker during the West African epidemic. And co-hosted by Ron Klain, the U.S. Ebola czar from 2014 to 2015.
As we transition from regional epidemics to a full-on pandemic, we’re likely to see coronavirus spread here in the U.S. There are things we can do to prepare, to care for ourselves, our families, and our communities.
Email us your questions at hello@justhumanproductions.org or tweet us @celinegounder and @ronaldklain. We’ll answer a couple of questions on the show each week.

#SARS-CoV-2 #COVID19 #coronavirus

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