KCBS Radio In Depth

It’s been a long slow journey, but it’s looking a lot like the Bay Area has indeed managed to bend the curve on this pandemic, but the question now is, what’s going to happen as we begin to reopen?

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we consider the work that's been done to step up preparedness since the lockdown began -- from boosting hospital capacity, to buying up protective gear, to expanding testing and tracing -- and then ask how far that effort has gone toward making us safer. 

Guests: 

• Dr. John Swartzberg, emeritus professor of public health at UC, Berkeley’s Division of Infectious Disease 
• Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

Host: Keith Menconi 

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we focus on just one corner of the Bay Area: San Francisco’s Bayview District, which has been among the city’s hardest hit by the virus, but with a strong network of community groups already present before the pandemic began, it’s also been the site of a whirlwind of organizing and outreach. We speak with the community leaders behind that work to find out what it's taken to meet the needs of their community during this trying time. 

Guests: 

• Shamann Walton, San Francisco Supervisor whose district includes the Bayview and Hunters Point neighborhoods
• Joi Jackson-Morgan, executive director, 3rd Street Youth Center and Clinic 
• Kristin Houk, owner and operator of three restaurants in Bayview, All Good Pizza, Tato, and Cafe Alma

Hosts: Keith Menconi, Melissa Culross 

For nearly two months now life here in the Bay Area has been kept to a near standstill, but this time is being used in important ways. Even as most residents shelter-in-place at home, armies of health workers and medical professionals are hard at work, helping to prepare the region for the day when the lockdown is lifted.

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we discuss that work and why health officials say to reopen safely a lot more of it still needs to be done. Then in the second half of the program we take a deep dive into just one of the major efforts underway: contact tracing. We'll hear what it is and why state officials are racing to train thousands of workers to make it happen. 

Guests: 

• Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County health officer 
• Dr. George Rutherford, professor of epidemiology at UC San Francisco

Host: Keith Menconi 

We’ve had a few months now to get to know this new coronavirus and because it is so new there’s been a lot to learn - how it infects new people, how it changes over time, just how deadly it might be. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we check in with some of the Bay Area scientists who have been studying this pandemic to hear from them what they’ve managed to learn so far. 

Guests: 
Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, chief of infectious diseases at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and professor of epidemiology at Stanford's School of Medicine
Dr. Marm Kilpatrick, who studies infectious diseases at UC Santa Cruz’s Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology 

Host:
Keith Menconi 

Since the pandemic began, the Bay Area has been racing to protect one of its most vulnerable populations: the homeless. And a lot of work has already been done -- hotel rooms have been opened, tests have been administered, shelters have stepped up social distancing -- but in the face of historic risks, will these efforts be enough?

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we speak with one researcher who has applied some science to that question, and has some major concerns about the current pace of change. But speed isn't everything, and in the second half of the program, we also hear from an advocate warning of dire consequences for those placed in emergency shelters if authorities fail to also provide adequate services and support.

Guests:
Coco Auerswald, community health science professor at UC Berkeley's School of Public Health 
Sam Cobbs, chief executive officer of Tipping Point Community

Host:
Keith Menconi