Population Healthy Michigan Public Health

In Season 6 of the Population Healthy podcast from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, we look at the health benefits of living with purpose, unexpected sources of air pollution, weight stigma, declining childhood vaccination rates, cancer research, how math can be used to solve some of today's most pressing public health issues, and more!

In this episode of the Population Healthy podcast, Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for the State of Michigan, joins Matthew L. Boulton, senior associate dean for Global Public Health at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, in a thought-provoking conversation about childhood vaccination, the demands of the top doctor job, and more.

Together, they analyze the decline in routine childhood immunizations in Michigan following the COVID-19 pandemic. Discover more about the factors keeping some parents from vaccinating their children, and the ongoing efforts to ensure the health and well-being of Michigan's children and communities.

Dr. Bagdasarian, who has been in the top doctor role since 2021, sheds light on the importance of public health communication and shares some of the challenges and triumphs from her career in public health.

In this episode, two researchers from the University of Michigan School of Public Health outline some of the health and safety challenges faced by farmworkers in the state of Michigan.

Epidemiologists, Alexis Handal and Lisbeth Iglesias-Rios, describe findings from the Michigan Farmworker Project - their ongoing study on the precarious employment and labor exploitation of farmworkers. They share the struggles, exploitation, and health risks these workers endure, and underscore the vital need for data-driven solutions. The researchers discuss how documenting the experiences of this vulnerable population can lead to policy change and improved conditions in the agricultural sector.

In this episode of Population Healthy from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Professor of Epidemiology Celeste Leigh Pearce digs into her team's extensive work on cancer research, focusing on ovarian, breast, and cervical cancers. Pearce outlines the possibilities of eradicating cervical and potentially other cancers through vaccination, screening and early detection. Her team puts a strong emphasis on disease prevention, aiming to lessen the occurrence of cancer cases. The ultimate goal is to put oncologists out of business — in other words, to leverage screening and other prevention tools that Pearce believes could ultimately eradicate certain cancers altogether.

Pearce also discussed MI-CARES, a new project that aims to gather insights on the effects of environmental exposure on cancer risk and other health outcomes for people across Michigan.

In this empowering episode of the 'Ahead of the Curve' Speaker Series by University of Michigan, Dean DuBois Bowman and renowned civil rights activist, author, and lawyer Bakari Sellers deep dive into Sellers’ impactful journey packed with resilience, ambition, and public service.

Sellers recalls his childhood memories growing up in South Carolina in an activism-rich family and his trailblazing entrance into politics as the youngest member of the South Carolina State Legislature at just 22. He expresses his unyielding commitment towards progressive policies that aim at addressing entrenched issues such as education, poverty, and domestic violence. Sellers shares the invaluable lessons he learned from his family's traumatic healthcare experiences including his wife's childbirth complications and his daughter's liver transplant, which in turn strengthened his resolve to eradicate healthcare disparity.

He emphasizes how leadership can bolster the fight against health inequity, and the need for politicians to leverage personal narratives over macro data to draw attention to important issues. He emphasizes mental health within the Black community, his bold stance on police violence, calling for significant policy and societal changes, and his unwavering dedication towards the battle against miseducation and anti-intellectualism.

Bhramar Mukherjee, professor of Biostatistics at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, explains how biostatistics helps make sense of big data for medical prevention and treatment and how she encourages her students to stay patient, optimistic, and attuned to their own inner voices in their pursuits. You don't need to be a math person to enjoy her journey.

Mukherjee shares her professional journey, from her math-centered upbringing in a family of liberal arts scholars to her roles at Purdue University and the University of Florida, eventually leading her to her academic home at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. She discusses her involvement in launching an undergraduate summer program on big data and her work in modeling COVID-19's trajectory in India.