Public Health On Call

Water fluoridation is considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the 20th Century. Yet for as long as there has been fluoride in the water, some have raised concerns about its safety. In this episode: the history of water fluoridation, its enormous benefits for preventing tooth decay, and the recent wave of interest in whether fluoridation policies should change.

Dr. Charlotte Lewis is a pediatrician at Seattle Children’s, a professor at UW Medicine, and an expert on infant and child nutrition and oral health.

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.

• Skeletal Fluorosis Due to Excessive Tea Drinking—The New England Journal of Medicine

• Fluoride Exposure: Neurodevelopment and Cognition—National Toxicology Program

• AAP stands by recommendations for low fluoride levels to prevent caries—American Academy of Pediatrics

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

For nearly 30 years, Judge David Tatel served on the the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. But his rising legal career corresponded with his declining vision–a fact he tried to hide. Now, Tatel credits his blindness (and his guide dog Vixen) for helping him evolve as a judge and a person. In this episode: a look at Judge Tatel’s astonishing career, his take on how SCOTUS is blurring the lines between judging and policymaking, what science and the legal system have in common, and his experience learning to live with blindness.

Judge David Tatel served nearly 30 years as a Clinton appointee in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. His recent book is “Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice.”

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.

• A Supreme Court Case That’s a “Big Deal” For Public Health—Public Health On Call (January, 2023)

• This Judge Is Blind. He Wishes Our Justice System Were, Too—The New York Times

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

In the wake of the presidential election, many people are feeling big emotions like shock, disbelief, anger, and fear. Psychological first aid is a process that can help “take the sting out of injury” and chart a way forward after disruptive, upsetting events. In this episode: an explanation of the process and how people can use the framework to start to regain control and feel empowered to meet the moment and construct a better future. Note: If you or someone you know is struggling, you can call 988 for immediate emotional support.

Dr. George Everly is a world-renowned expert in disaster mental health, crisis intervention, and psychological first aid.

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

• Psychological First Aid—Coursera (free course)

• The Power of Psychological First Aid—Hopkins Medicine

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

A new documentary, “Shot in the Arm,” looks at the modern anti-vaccine movement from its opposition to the measles vaccine in 2019 through the pandemic and its opposition to COVID vaccination. Filmmaker Scott Kennedy joins the podcast to talk about about the five-year project of creating the film, including details from his hour-long interview with a leading voice in the movement, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Scott Kennedy is an Academy Award nominated writer, director, producer, and documentarian. He is known for films such as The Garden and Our Town. Shot in the Arm is his most recent film.

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.

• Shot in the Arm—PBS

• Deadly measles outbreak hits children in Samoa after anti-vaccine fears—Washington Post

• Once struggling, antivaccine groups have enjoyed a pandemic windfall—NBC News

• 7 things about vaccines and autism that the movie ‘Vaxxed’ won’t tell you—Washington Post

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

There’s a lot of speculation in the media about what Trump’s second term might mean for health and health policy. In this episode: a look at some of the headlines from this week and what we might see in the next four years around vaccines, the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, contraceptives, the federal workforce, immigration, and global health programs.

Dr. Josh Sharfstein served in a number of political roles in his career including as the Secretary of the Maryland Department of Health, the Principal Deputy Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as Commissioner of Health for Baltimore City, and as a Congressional health policy advisor.

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

• After Trump win, RFK Jr. says he won’t ‘take away anybody’s vaccines’—NBC News

• With ACA subsidies set to expire in 2023, millions of Americans stand to lose health insurance—CBS News

• Trump’s win could accelerate the privatization of Medicare—NPR

• What Trump has said about birth control, and what he could do as president—ABC News

• How Trump Could Upend DC’s federal workforce—Axios

• A Trump second term could bring another family separation crisis—Vox

• What a Trump presidency means for global health—The Conversation

• The 2024 Election Series: What’s At Stake For Immigrants and Immigration—Public Health On Call (October, 2024)

• The Mental Health of Migrant Children—Public Health On Call (July, 2024)

• The Health Care Crisis at The U.S.-Mexico Border Part 1: Children and Families—Public Health On Call (April, 2024)

• The Health Care Crisis at The U.S.-Mexico Border Part 2: Border Walls and Traumatic Brain and Spinal Injuries—Public Health On Call (May, 2024)

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

In this episode: an update on the resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and pertussis (whooping cough) in the U.S. Globally, a look at the mpox vaccine and exciting news about two brand new vaccines for malaria and TB in the pipeline.

Dr. Bill Moss is the executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

• With Cases Rising, What You Need To Know About Whooping Cough—U.S. News & World Report

• Measles cases are up and childhood vaccinations are down—NPR

• Mpox cases in Congo may be stabilizing. Experts say more vaccines are needed to stamp out virus.—AP News

• Candidate malaria vaccine provides lasting protection in NIH-sponsored trials—NIH

• Every year, tuberculosis kil

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

From frozen waffles to deli meat and even fast food burgers, outbreaks of foodborne illnesses seem to be everywhere. But are they happening more often or is our surveillance system just getting better? And how do bacteria like listeria and E. coli survive the manufacturing process, and persist long enough to sicken and even kill consumers? In today’s episode: a look at foodborne pathogens and how they persist, the U.S. food safety system, and how you can take precautions at home and when you go out to eat.

Dr. Meghan Davis is a veterinarian and public health researcher at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health with a joint appointment at the School of Medicine.

Dr. D’Ann Williams is a former food safety official and an assistant scientist at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future.

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.

• Active Investigations of Multistate Foodborne Outbreaks—CDC

• Food recalls in the U.S. spike due to Listeria, Salmonella, and allergens—Food Safety News

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

CRISPR technology can edit genetic codes, making it possible to cure people of terrible diseases, among other uses. But its power is not fully understood—even by the scientists and researchers who use it—and the technology far outpaces conversations about ethics and regulations. In this episode: that we know and don’t know about CRISPR, and why it’s critical for these conversations to happen everywhere from boardrooms to legislative assemblies to film and TV scripts.

Dr. Neil Baer is a lecturer in global health and social medicine at Harvard Medical School, an award-winning television writer and producer, and editor of a new book: The Promise and Peril of CRISPR.

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.

• ‘Who are we to say they shouldn’t exist?’: Dr. Neal Baer on the threat of CRISPR-driven eugenics—Live Science

• His baby gene editing shocked ethicists. Now he’s in the lab again—NPR

• Seven diseases CRISPR technology could cure—Labiotech

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

Dr. Jirair Ratevosian was a high level global health official in the State Department—a job he left to pursue a Congressional seat in California’s 30th district. In this episode, he details what it takes to run for Congress (including knocking on more than 30,000 doors) and how he talked about public health with voters. Spoiler alert: He didn’t win, but he did learn a lot and is hopeful that Congress can again be a place where people go to solve problems.

Dr. Jirair Ratevosian is an associate research scientist at Yale, an infectious disease fellow at Duke, and a graduate of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

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.

• What Running For Congress As An HIV Activist Has Taught Me—The Body

• Congressional Hopeful Jirair Ratevosian on Armenia, LGBTQ+ Rights, and the American Dream—Advocate

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed

The rise of misinformation and the appeal of “alternative medicine” is coupled with a decline in trust of the U.S. health care system. In a new book, Dr. Sara Gorman explains how an inaccessible health care system has fed the rise of misinformation and what policymakers and providers need to do to earn back some credibility.

Dr. Sara Gorman is a public health researcher and author of a new book called “The Anatomy of Deception: Conspiracy Theories, Distrust, and Public Health in America.”

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.

• Who is most vulnerable to misinformation?—Psychology Today

• The burden of medical debt in the United States—Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

• A Playbook For Addressing Health Misinformation—Public Health On Call (March, 2024)

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

• @‌PublicHealthPod on X

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Instagram

• @‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

• @‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

• Here's our RSS feed