Rotavirus, a highly contagious virus that causes severe diarrhea and vomiting, used to kill more than half a million children annually. But the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine has slashed that number dramatically, saving hundreds of thousands of lives each year. 

Joining us in this episode is Paul Offit, MD, a co-inventor of one of the two most widely used rotavirus vaccines worldwide. Dr. Offit is a professor of pediatrics and vaccinology at the University of Pennsylvania and director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. A leading world expert on vaccines, he served on the FDA Vaccine Advisory Committee during the COVID-19 pandemic. He is the author of more than 15 books, most recently Tell Me When It's Over: An Insider's Guide to Deciphering Covid Myths and Navigating our Post-Pandemic World (2024). 

Over the course of our conversation, Dr. Offit shares what drew him to pediatrics, how he developed a vaccine that now saves hundreds of kids every day, the stringent process by which new medications are approved, the origins of vaccine hesitancy. Why public health communication failed during the COVID-19 pandemic, what we can do to restore public trust in medicine, and more.

In this episode, you’ll hear about: 

2:24 - The harrowing experience Dr. Offit endured as a young child that inspired him to a seek a career in pediatrics

6:40 - How Dr. Offit’s research led to a successful rotavirus vaccine in 2006 

10:46 - A brief history of vaccines

16:40 - Why Dr. Offit chose to become a public advocate for vaccines 

20:14 - Why vaccines have garnered such intense backlash from large proportions of the public 

26:44 - Factors that have led to an erosion of trust in public health over the past four years

33:01 - What Dr. Offit means when he talks about “following the science”

40:35 - How public health officials can speak about scientific knowledge in a way that acknowledges uncertainty

47:37 - The future of vaccines mandates in our society 

54:16 - Dr. Offit’s advice for building trust with skeptical parents 

Dr. Paul Offit is the author of 13 books, including Tell Me When It's Over: An Insider's Guide to Deciphering Covid Myths and Navigating our Post-Pandemic World (2024).

Dr. Offit can be found on Twitter/X at @DrPaulOffit.

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