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525 - Bivalent COVID-19 Booster Updates: Dr. Andy Pekosz on Efficacy, Recommendations, and More Oct 03, 2022

Show notes

Who should get a bivalent booster? How effective are they? How should people space out shots after infection, original strain boosters, and a host of other combinations of immunity and exposure? Can you get a bivalent booster and a flu shot at the same time and are there any benefits to spacing them out? How long did it take for us to get these boosters, and what's the hope for longer-term immunity? Virologist Dr. Andy Pekosz talks with Stephanie Desmon about bivalents and answers listener questions sent to publichealthquestion@jhu.edu.

524 - Just How Far Did Students Fall Behind During COVID-19? Sep 30, 2022

Show notes

Pandemic disruptions led to serious learning loss in K-12 education, and new research shows just how serious. Peggy Carr, the commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, talks with Stephanie Desmon about what the data shows in terms of student performance, why these historic declines will have impacts for years to come, and what can be done to start closing the gaps.

523 - Methadone Prevents Overdose, So Why Is It So Hard to Access? Sep 28, 2022

Show notes

A 2019 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine lays out irrefutable evidence that medications like methadone can save lives when used for opioid use disorder, but decades of policy rooted in racism and stigma keeps methadone largely out of reach for those who need it. Alan Leshner, CEO emeritus of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and chair of the planning committee for the report talks with Lindsay Smith Rogers about these policies and why this is a moment of opportunity to enact major reform in the methadone system and address the opioid epidemic. Read the full report here.

522 - Malaria Mondays Miniseries Part II: Why Haven't We Eradicated Malaria? Sep 26, 2022

Show notes

Malaria, a mosquito-borne infection, affects some 228 million people globally each year, killing over 400,000 of them—primarily children under the age of 5. In part two of a miniseries, Thomas Locke, host of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute podcast "Malaria Minute" looks back at 1955 when the WHO launched its "Global Malaria Eradication Programme" that was expected to end malaria worldwide in five years. What went wrong, and where are we now in terms of efforts to fight back against one of the world's most entrenched diseases? You can learn more about groundbreaking malaria research at malaria.jhsph.edu.

521 - All About COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates Sep 23, 2022

Show notes

How effective have federal vaccine mandates for COVID-19 been? Will litigation impact other vaccine requirements, such as those for school attendance? What might happen during future pandemics? Michelle Mello, a professor of law and public policy at Stanford, talks with Stephanie Desmon about the mixed success of COVID vaccine mandates.

520 - A COVID Snapshot with Dr. Tom Inglesby: Where We've Been, Where We Are, and Where We're Headed Sep 21, 2022

Show notes

Tom Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security returns to the podcast to talk with Josh Sharfstein about the current state of COVID. They discuss the pandemic situation in the US and around the world, and how they are managing their own lives at a moment when it seems like most people are ready to move on.

519 - Malaria Mondays Miniseries Part I: How Malaria's Weird Biology Is Its Secret to Success Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

Malaria, a mosquito-borne infection, affects some 228 million people globally each year, killing over 400,000 of them—primarily children under the age of 5. In part one of a miniseries, Thomas Locke, host of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute podcast "Malaria Minute," breaks down the parasite's unique lifecycle which allows it to adapt rapidly to drugs and to our immune system's efforts to fight it off. You can learn more about groundbreaking malaria research.

518 - Why the FDA's Approval of OTC Hearing Aids is a Game Changer Sep 16, 2022

Show notes

Hearing loss affects two-thirds of people over age 70 and is the single largest modifiable risk factor for dementia and other health problems later in life. Frank Lin, director of the Cochlear Center for Hearing & Public Health at Johns Hopkins, talks with Stephanie Desmon about the links between hearing loss and dementia, why the new approval means hearing aids will be better, cheaper, and far more available, and how to find your own "hearing number."

517 - Expanding Health Care Access for Undocumented Individuals Sep 14, 2022

Show notes

Undocumented individuals often can't or are afraid to seek health care due to a lack of insurance or fears that services could interfere with their immigration status. Luvia Quiñones, senior director of health policy at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, and Mervin Dino, who runs a safety net health care program at Advocate Aurora Health in Chicago, talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about advocacy efforts to expand health care access to undocumented immigrants, how providers should consider making services more welcoming for this population, and how COVID-19 became a case study in the importance of extending care to all.

Bonus - Not Just a Water Crisis: The Decline of Jackson, Mississippi Sep 13, 2022

Show notes

Dr. Mauda Monger is a lifelong resident of Jackson, Mississippi. She is also a community advocate and public health professional. She talks with Dr. Sharfstein about how the water crisis is the most visible sign of a profound decline in her hometown and perhaps could help bring about a brighter future. Dr. Monger runs an initiative for young women of color in Jackson called the S-H-E Project. Learn more

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