Public Health On Call

Early in the US's COVID-19 outbreak, Michigan experienced a surge in cases that led to the governor issuing an aggressive stay-at-home order. Despite pushback, the state successfully flattened the curve and is now trying to address gaping health disparities and prevent another surge. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Michigan's Chief Medical Executive and Chief Deputy Director for Health, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the pandemic's uneven impacts, visibility as a public health official during a pandemic, Michigan's current prognosis, and the importance of data in identifying solutions.

New evidence points towards likelihood that the virus may be spread through aerosols that linger, not just droplets that fall. Dr. Elizabeth Matsui, a pediatric allergist and immunologist, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the growing evidence of aerosol spread, why it's been controversial, and what it means for safety measures to limit viral transmission.

In some areas of the globe, people are seeing blue skies for the first time during COVID-19 lockdowns. But is this really indicative of a major shift in the reduction of air pollution? Dr. Urvashi Narain, lead economist at the World Bank of South Asia, recently authored a report: "Air Pollution: Locked Down by COVID-19 But Not Arrested." Dr Narain talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about how activity restrictions have and have not reduced air pollution, how pollution can contribute to the transmission and severity of COVID-19, and why bluer skies should not lead to complacency in regulating emissions.

Patients who have spent time in the ICU because of COVID-19 face a long recovery. Comprehensive rehabilitation that starts early and continues after release can make all the difference in getting patients back to day-to-day activities. Johns Hopkins physiatrist Dr. April Pruski talks with Stephanie Desmon about the team of physical, occupational, and speech therapists, psychologists and more performing early interventions with COVID-19 patients and what recovery looks like after the ICU.

What are the mental health challenges for people living in areas where cases are spiking? How can parents help younger children who are missing school and camps or college-aged children who aren't sure when they can return to campus life? How can people deal with work-from-home stress while feeling grateful about having a job? Dr. Laura Murray talks with Stephanie Desmon to answer your COVID-19 mental health questions.

Communities of faith can be integral in supporting the health of individuals, especially when partnered with health care organizations. Guest host Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos talks with Dr. Daniel Hale, director of Johns Hopkins's Health Community Partnerships, and Imam Hassan Amin, the founder and director of the Muslim Social Service Agency in Baltimore, about how health organizations can partner with religious leaders to provide basic but critical health information. The collaboration can also help leaders de-stigmatize and demystify care for congregants to prevent and manage chronic and infectious diseases, including COVID-19.

Most higher-ed institutions closed and shifted to online instruction last spring but many are now considering how to safely bring students back to campuses this fall. Reopening schools will never be 100% risk-free, but there are steps that colleges and universities can take to ensure the safest possible experience. Lucia Mullen and Dr. Crystal Watson of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security talk with Stephanie Desmon about the Center's reopening toolkit for colleges and universities and what administrators, students, and parents should consider about returning to campus.

Brown University economist and bestselling author Dr. Emily Oster is probably best known for her writing about parenting and childbirth. Now, she's taken her data-centric approach to demystify the COVID-19 pandemic on a new website, explaincovid.org. Oster talks with Stephanie Desmon about the most frequently asked questions, what the data says about childcare facilities that have remained open, how schools should approach reopening in the fall, and why this virus has been so confusing for so many.

From January to May, Cambodia had only 125 coronavirus cases—70% of which were from people traveling from outside of the country, and the rest of which could be linked to those cases. Even as sporadic cases continue to be detected in travelers returning at the border, Cambodia's implementation of WHO guidelines—test, isolate, trace, quarantine, and care —has kept numbers low. Dr. Kumanan Rasanathan, Health Systems Coordinator for WHO in Cambodia (and Incident Manager for COVID-19 from March to June), talks with guest host Dr. Sara Bennett about Cambodia's response and what has contributed to its relative success.

Early in the pandemic, the National Institutes of Health launched a response against the new virus that has expanded to include basic and clinical research, and research into vaccines and treatments. Dr. Emily Erbelding, director of the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about NIH's role in supporting the scientific community, what treatments are currently gaining attention and scrutiny, and how the race to produce a vaccine needs multiple contenders.