Public Health On Call

About this episode:

June 8 would mark the 80th birthday of Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr., a cardiothoracic surgeon at Johns Hopkins known for being part of the first team to implant an automatic defibrillator in a human patient. But Dr. Watkins was so much more: a civil rights and political activist, a champion of Black and other people who are underrepresented in medicine, and a snappy dresser with a great sense of humor. Today, two people who knew and worked with Dr. Watkins share their memories as we celebrate his legacy.

Guests:

Dr. Lisa Cooper is a public health physician, a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, and a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and School of Medicine.

Steven Ragsdale is a former senior administrator at Johns Hopkins Hospital and a faculty member in Health, Behavior and Society 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:

• Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Dr. Levi Watkins Jr.—YouTube

• Levi Watkins, 70, Dies; Pioneering Heart Surgeon Pushed Civil Rights—New York Times

• Levi Watkins Jr., pioneering Hopkins cardiac surgeon and civil rights activist, dies at 70—Johns Hopkins Hub

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About the episode:

Colorectal cancers are rising among people under age 50. There are a number of theories as to why and also promising data around early detection. In today’s episode: A deep dive into the epidemiology of colorectal cancers including who is most at risk, a look at the screening tools currently available, and why blood tests may be even more valuable than costly and invasive colonoscopies.

Guest:

Dr. Otis Brawleyis a globally-recognized expert in cancer prevention and control whose work focuses on developing cancer screening strategies and ensuring their effectiveness. He is a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor and faculty at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in epidemiology with a joint appointment in oncology at Johns Hopkins Medicine. He was the former Chief Medical Officer of the American Cancer Society.

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:

• Effect of Colonoscopy Screening on Risks of Colorectal Cancer and Related Death—The New England Journal of Medicine

• A Cell-free DNA Blood-Based Test for Colorectal Cancer Screening—The New England Journal of Medicine

• The Minnesota Colon Cancer Control Study

Contact us:

Have a question about something you heard? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.

Follow us:

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About this episode:

One in five U.S. adults is taking five or more prescription drugs at a time, often for years without reassessment of need, dosage, or possible interactions. Today, a look at polypharmacy and why it’s important for physicians to periodically check in with patients about all the prescription—and nonprescription—drugs they’re taking. The guests also discuss the importance of considering non-pharmaceutical treatments like physical or talk therapy, and empowering patients and their care partners to ask questions about what they’re being prescribed.

Guests:

Dr. Cynthia Boyd is a geriatrician and faculty at Johns Hopkins Medicine. She is also a senior associate with the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health.

Dr. Ariel Green is a geriatrician and faculty at Johns Hopkins Medicine. She is also a core faculty member of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness.

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:

• Taking Multiple Medications? You May Need to Scale Back.—The New York Times

• Taking more than 5 pills in a day? ‘Deprescribing’ can prevent harm—especially for older people—The Conversation

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Have a question about something you heard? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.

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Cruise ships are congregate settings where infectious diseases can quickly spread. But, there’s a lot that the industry and individuals can do to stay healthy and avoid, shall we say, explosive outbreaks. In today’s episode, learn about the most common culprits—including norovirus, food-borne illness, and COVID-19—and how people can think about safety from initial booking to final disembarkment and all the ports of call in between.

Guest: Dr. Tara Palmore is an infectious disease physician at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

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:
The CDC’s Cruise Ship Travel Information

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Have a question about something you heard? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or on our website.

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It’s graduation time at the Bloomberg School! Doctoral candidate Francesca Marino joins the podcast to talk about how her interest in neuroscience led her to pursue a degree in epidemiology, and about her research looking into whether and how daily patterns of physical activity tracked through a wearable device could indicate cognitive health or decline.

Guest: Dr. Francesca Marino is a recent graduate of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health whose research focuses on the epidemiology of aging.

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:

Associations of Physical Activity and Heart Rate Variability from a Two-Week ECG Monitor with Cognitive Function and Dementia: the ARIC Neurocognitive Study—PubMed

Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Activity, Sleep & Dementia—Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine

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Armed internal conflict in Sudan has created a humanitarian crisis with millions of people displaced both internally and to neighboring countries. Dr. Salim Mohamednour, a medical epidemiologist with expertise in emergency response and the national health coordinator at the WHO country office in Sudan, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the unfolding catastrophe and what needs to be done. Special thanks to Aseel Salih, Hassan Salih, and Laila Zomorodian, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health students who assisted with the production of this podcast. A note that Dr. Mohamednour is not representing the WHO on the podcast. Content warning: this episode contains depictions of violence. Listeners interested in contributing can consider supporting theWorld Food Program,theSudanese American Physicians Association,andSadagaat.

The planetary health crisis can’t be ignored in hospitals where patients are sick from climate-driven things like asthma from air quality emergencies, COVID-19 from a zoonotic spillover event, and cardiovascular complications from heat waves. Chris Lemon, an ER doctor and Bloomberg Health Initiative fellow who focuses on the intersection of climate change and health, talks with Stephanie Desmon about his work bringing planetary health dialogue to hospital staff while also looking at ways health systems can lower their massive carbon footprints.

From mushrooms to microscopic organisms, fungi represent a serious—and still relatively unexplored—threat to human health. Dr. Arturo Casadevall returns to the podcast to talk about his new book,What If Fungi Win? which looks at why certain fungal infections take off, why they’re so hard to treat, and why we will most certainly see more of them with climate change and treatment-resistant strains. Learn more: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/53673/what-if-fungi-win

Johnson v. Grants Pass, a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, raises the question of whether homelessness can be criminalized. Ashley Meehan, a doctoral student at Johns Hopkins, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the public health dimensions of this issue. They discuss her research looking into what happens to people after encampment sweeps and what policies would benefit not only people experiencing homelessness but their communities and cities as well. Listen to our previous episode on this issue: https://johnshopkinssph.libsyn.com/621-the-health-consequences-of-displacing-people-experiencing-homelessness

Dengue, or “break-bone fever”—a disease transmitted by mosquitoes that can cause serious fever, rash, muscle and joint pain and even problems with bleeding and shock—is surging around the world and popping up in new places like the U.S. Vaccine expert Anna Durbin returns to the podcast to talk with Stephanie Desmon about these trends and the general status of vaccines, treatments, and prevention. Learn more:https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2024/what-is-dengue-fever