Public Health On Call Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Why was smallpox eradicated but COVID-19 can’t be? What do we know about the risks of long COVID and omicron? Is it ok to use expired rapid tests? Is it more likely to get severe COVID from someone who is unvaccinated? Should people who continue to test positive after taking paxlovid be treated again?
Dr. Crystal Watson of the Center for Health Security returns to the podcast to talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about your COVID-19 questions - plus a bonus question on where we are with the response to monkeypox.

When Matt Ford, an actor, writer, and video producer in LA, had flu-like symptoms a few weeks ago, he never would have suspected monkeypox if a close contact hadn’t told him they’d tested positive. Still in isolation, Ford talks with Lindsay Smith Rogers about his experience with the disease, where we are in terms of treatment and prevention, and how to lessen stigma towards the LGBTQ community where monkeypox seems to be spreading the fastest.

COVID-19 sent shock waves through the tourism industry, shutting down the economic engine of many popular destinations. But for some residents and tourism workers, it also brought a welcome break from swelling crowds and a rare chance to slow down and rethink their priorities. In a special episode, Lindsay Smith Rogers and Annalies Winny take a virtual tour to Aruba, Jamaica, Hawaii, and Senegal to learn how popular destinations have weighed economic stability against the risks of COVID outbreaks—and how they’re rethinking some longstanding environmental and economic issues around tourism.

In 2020, scientists working on injury analytics expanded to COVID-19 epidemiology to help create and monitor the NBA bubble. Dr. Christina Mack, an epidemiologist with IQVIA Real World Solutions, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about how the team continues to monitor the health and safety of players and staff, and some of the findings with real-world implications such as how long people can shed COVID-19 virus, if people with asymptomatic infections are less likely to transmit COVID, and whether boosters really work.

For immediate reaction to the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe versus Wade, Dr. Josh Sharfstein speaks to Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley, an obstetrician-gynecologist who leads Power to Decide, a nonprofit organization with the goal of ensuring that all people "have the power to decide if, when, and under what circumstances to get pregnant and have a child."

First identified 50 years ago, Lyme disease is a tick-borne illness endemic to many parts of the U.S. While the acute infection can be treated with antibiotics if diagnosed in time, 10-20% of people still go on to experience persistent symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, and pain. Lyme expert John Aucott talks with Stephanie Desmon about how to prevent Lyme disease, what we know about chronic Lyme, and how long COVID is helping to draw attention to it and other diseases like chronic fatigue.