Healthy You

There is a threat to America's public health that is as insidious as the spread of COVID. It runs through social media.  It surfaces in cable news, podcasts, newspapers - and even in the public statements of elected officials and health professionals. In this concluding episode of the series, we hear from the experts about tangible, workable, scalable solutions to our disease of disinformation..  

There is a threat to America's public health that is as insidious as the spread of COVID. It runs through social media.  It surfaces in cable news, podcasts, newspapers - and even in the public statements of elected officials and health professionals. In this episode we consider the impact of mis and disinformation. We talk to a woman whose father got Covid after hearing that it was safe to go out. And we discuss the rapid erosion of trust in science, medicine, and public health.

In this special podcast series we hear from people whose lives have been forever changed by Covid disinformation. And we look at what can be done to turn the tide. In this episode - who is responsible for spreading the lies?  And how can they be held accountable?  

There is a threat to America's public health that is as insidious as the spread of COVID. It runs through social media.  It surfaces in cable news, podcasts, newspapers - and even in the public statements of elected officials and some health professionals. This disease of disinformation causes confusion, sickness, even death.  And no one seems to be able to stop it.  It is a pandemic in its own right. Today we are going to look at what disinformation is, where it's coming from and how to hold those responsible accountable.

Many states are relaxing mask mandates and rethinking pandemic era restrictions. Today on the podcast we recalibrate for the new normal: relaxed workplace rules, and changes to masking in schools, airports and restaurants. What do public health officials make of all this? We check in with Dr. Georges Benjamin, Executive Director of  the American Public Health Association and Dr. Lynn Goldman, Dean of the Milken Institute of the GWU School of Public Health.  

If there's one thing we've learned about the pandemic it's that,  just when we think when we're out of the woods, it throws us for or a loop. Today we talk to Dr. Catherine Troisi, an epidemiologist and professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston.  Professor Troisi shares with us her perspective on the Omicron surge in Texas and its effects on hospitals, schools and health workers across the state.  

As the pandemic enters its third year, we consider the possibility that we will be living with the Covid-19 virus indefinitely. Today on the podcast host Frank Sesno talks to Dr. David Michaels, an epidemiologist and professor at  George Washington University's Milken School of Public Health. He is also one of the longest serving heads of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Michaels and five other experts who advised Biden's transition team, have called on President Biden to adopt an entirely new domestic pandemic strategy geared to better prepare us for what comes next.

“Public health saved your life today, you just don't know it,” That was the original title Dr. Leana Wen gave the book she wrote about her career as the Health Commissioner in Baltimore, Maryland. But when Covid 19 hit, Wen rewrote it and turned it into a personal story about public health, visible only when it is underfunded, ignored and laid bare by the devastation of Covid 19. On the next Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic host Frank Sesno talks to Dr. Leana Wen about her book, “Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health.”

We've seen so many important advances in our fight against Covid in 2021. And yet it is impossible to forget the struggle and the anguish over so many lives lost. In this episode of Healthy You – Surviving a Pandemic, host Frank Sesno talks to Lauren Weber, Midwest Correspondent for Kaiser Health News. Lauren shares her perspective on the pandemic from Missouri, a state she describes as having some of the worst public health infrastructure in the nation.

There's a dedicated group of health professionals that are exhausted and overwhelmed and working harder than ever before: school nurses. Since Covid hit they have been dealing with an array of new issues, from contact tracing, to administering virus tests to helping children who are suffering the stress of the Pandemic. In this episode of Healthy You we meet Gloria Barrera.  She is a certified school nurse for a public high school in Illinois and President of the Illinois Nurses Association.  She has also recently been honored with a 40 under 40 award from the de Beaumont foundation.   

Parents have been waiting for this moment. To send their children to school in the morning without worrying that they will come back with Covid at the end of the day. The FDA has authorized the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.  On this episode of Healthy You - Surviving a Pandemic, we're going talk about the Covid vaccine for young children with pediatrician Dr. Paul Offit. Offit sits on the FDA vaccine advisory board and is the Director of the Vaccine Education Center and an attending physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. 

There is one profession that we trust more than any other. We trust nurses. And during the pandemic they have become our lifeline. But what about the lives and well-being of the nurses who take care of us? On this episode of Healthy You - Surviving a Pandemic we talk to Ernest Grant the Director of the American Nurses Association – and Lucas Pieper, an ICU nurse who works with Covid patients in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Dr. Thomas Dobbs has one mission in life right now. And that's to try and help people survive the Covid Pandemic. He is responsible for public health in Mississippi – a state with one of the highest Covid death rates in the country.  He struggles with low vaccination rates, rampant misinformation, and hospitals that have overflowed their capacity.  On the next Healthy You we talk to Dr. Dobbs about his struggles fighting Covid and learn why he is thankful for a handful of important victories.

The pandemic has made Sven Lindblad, founder of Lindblad Expeditions, think lot about the safety of the passengers traveling on his fleet of small ships.  So the pushback against vaccine mandates in the cruise industry is to him, non sensical. Host Frank Sesno talks to Sven about new Covid protocols - and the joy of travel after lockdown.

The speed with which the news about Covid-19 changes is truly astounding.  And now – we're trying to make sense of conflicting information about boosters.  Does everyone need boosters?  And when should we get them? On the next Healthy You – Surviving a Pandemic host Frank Sesno is joined by Dr. Georges Benjamin the Executive Director of the American Public Health Association and Dr. Lynn Goldman Dean of the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University to help us take some of the confusion out of booster shots.  

Today we talk to Dr. Christopher Mores – a global health professor at George Washington University and the director of GW's new infectious diseases lab.  Mores talks to host Frank Sesno about the risks and extreme transmissibility of the delta variant, the rising incidences of breakthrough infections and his work developing therapeutic treatments with monoclonal antibodies.

Day in and day out, public health workers are fighting Covid-19 on the front lines of their local communities.  And who is there to tell their stories?  Journalists.  Today we talk to Lauren Weber, Midwest correspondent for Kaiser Health News in St. Louis, Missouri and Michelle Smith, a correspondent for the Associated Press in Providence, Rhode Island, about their award winning series “Underfunded and Under Threat” which features in-depth stories of public health workers battling the pandemic across the U.S.

Hospitalizations and deaths due to Covid-19 are on the rise again in the U.S. On the next Healthy You – Surviving a Pandemic, we talk to Dr. Alice Chen about her efforts this summer to promote vaccination with her organization Made to Save, a national grassroots effort to ensure communities hardest hit by the pandemic have access to the Covid-19 vaccines and accurate timely information. Dr. Chen is also a practicing physician and has served as the executive director of the organization “Doctor's for America” - a movement that mobilizes thousands of physicians and medical students in all fifty states to work toward access to affordable, high-quality health care for everyone          

There will be a next pandemic. Right now we are in the position to ask what can we do to better prepare for it. Healthy You – Surviving a Pandemic host Frank Sesno talks to Tara Kirk Sell, assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering and a Senior Associate at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security about communicating more effectively going forward, and ways to mitigate public health disinformation.

If Covid infection rates are going down, do we risk becoming complacent?  Host Frank Sesno joins Dr. Leana Wen for an engaging discussion about the possible resurgence of Covid in unvaccinated sections of the country, the urgency of getting our kids vaccinated, and the increasing polarization of news coverage about the pandemic. 

The city that was once the epicenter of the pandemic is back.  New York City has reopened. Dr. Oxiris Barbot, the New York City health commissioner who led the city at the onset of Covid-19 joins us to share a cautionary tale of the city she knows and loves. 

On today's Healthy You Podcast, we celebrate the start of summer with some timely information about vaccinating your kids against Covid-19.  Today we ask is it possible to travel this summer when your kids are too young to be vaccinated?  Can you send your kids to summer camp? Today we find some answers with Dr. Peter Hotez, the dean of the National School of  Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, and the Co-Director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development. 

The pandemic has shined a spotlight on so many disparities in public health, but few more so than in maternal and infant mortality. This week, Frank speaks to William Moore, lactation expert and the first certified male doula in the state of Minnesota, about how the pandemic has affected the birthing process and what steps we can take to bridge the gap and create a more equitable health system.  

In March of 2020, we couldn't imagine how serious the pandemic would be, and over a year later, we reflect on the toll it's had - in terms of experiences, jobs, and most importantly, lives lost. In dedication to those who have lost their lives to the coronavirus, this episode features the very personal story of Amber and her mom, Marilyn – a story of loss, resilience, and remembrance. 

When it comes to vaccine hesitancy among Trump voters, can minds be changed? In this episode, Dr. Brian Castrucci, CEO of the de Beaumont Foundation, and Frank Luntz, renowned political pollster and communicator, discuss how messaging around the pandemic has contributed to the polarization of the COVID vaccine, and how changing how we communicate can change the minds of those who refuse to get the vaccine to unbelievable effect.

Marking the one-year anniversary of the podcast, we are excited to announce new partnerships with the American Public Health Association (APHA) and the de Beaumont Foundation. In this episode, Frank speaks with Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of APHA, sharing reflections on this past year of the pandemic and what is in store for the future of the podcast. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs in association with the American Public Health Association and the de Beaumont Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has the United States emergency healthcare workforce underwater. An average ICU physician will normally see eight patients per shift, but because of the pandemic, we are seeing doctors having to care for over twenty. In this episode, Dr. Patricia Pittman, the Fitzhugh Mullan Professor of Health Workforce Equity at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University, joins Frank to discuss her research into the dire shortages of healthcare workers and how those shortages have pushed hospitals and workers to the limit. 

With states reopening and lifting mask mandates, workers are at increased risk of exposure to COVID-19. Is it too soon to lift the mask mandates and how do workers protect themselves when employers won't? In this episode, Frank speaks with Dr. David Michaels, professor at GWSPH and former assistant secretary of OSHA, about actions the government and employers can take to protect workers and help turn the tide of the pandemic.  

People are going to great lengths to get the COVID-19 vaccine shot. They are going online the instant a website opens, waiting outside pharmacies for hours, and even making appointments in other states. But while national attention is on the COVID vaccine, the use of other vaccines is dropping in the US and around the world, posing new threats to public health. In this episode, Frank speaks with pediatrician and vaccine expert Dr. William Moss about the different COVID-19 vaccines and how the neglect of other vaccines could lead to the next big public health crisis. 

New variant strains of the COVID-19 virus threaten to undermine vaccination efforts and herd immunity. In response, public health experts have been sounding the alarm that COVID anywhere is COVID everywhere, and to beat the virus in the US, we need to beat the virus around the world. In this episode, Frank speaks with epidemiologist and vaccinologist Dr. Jon Andrus about the challenges in dealing with the new COVID variants and how vaccine diplomacy can help or spell disaster for global vaccination efforts. 

COVID-19 is everywhere in the media, but how do journalists decide how to cover it and can all media sources be trusted to report the facts? Having covered pandemics and emerging diseases for over 20 years, Maggie Fox, a Senior Editor at CNN, shares invaluable insights into how other potential pandemics such as swine flu, SARS, and bird flu were covered in the media, and how increasing political polarization in the US has impacted coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

West Virginia is winning the COVID arms race - that is, the race to get vaccines for the virus into arms. In this episode, Frank speaks with Krista Capehart, Director of Regulatory Affairs for West Virginia's Board of Pharmacy and one of the architects of the state's vaccine distribution plan about the strategy behind West Virginia's success and how lessons learned can be replicated to increase vaccination rates across the country. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.  

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenging time for all of us, but for none more than people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. In this week's episode, Heather LaTorra, President and CEO of Marrakech Inc., joins Frank in an intimate discussion about how the pandemic has affected people with disabilities and how frontline workers have stepped up to help them get through it.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

With the rollout of the vaccine, we are at an inflection point within the COVID pandemic. If people get vaccinated and we reach herd immunity, we can beat it. If not, we won't. In this week's episode, we speak with Dr. Brian Castrucci, president and CEO of the de Beaumont Foundation, about how the language we use around the vaccine can impact people's willingness to get vaccinated, and ultimately, save lives.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

The approval and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine mark a potential turning point in the pandemic, but according to polls, much of the public is still hesitant to get vaccinated. Dr. David Broniatowski, Associate Professor at the George Washington University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Associate Director of the George Washington University Institute for Data, Democracy & Politics, shares his research on the misinformation and disinformation around COVID and discusses how bad information can sew public distrust in the vaccine and the country’s larger public health response to the pandemic. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

While COVID-19 dominates national headlines, the opioid crisis continues to ravage communities throughout the US and is getting worse. In this episode, we speak to Dr. Anika Alvanzo, an addiction medicine physician and Eastern Medical Director of Pyramid Health Care, about how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the opioid epidemic, and more importantly, what needs to be done to address it. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs. 

A COVID-19 vaccine is on the horizon and a new Administration is on the way. With a wave of COVID-19 infections plaguing the country, questions on what needs to be done in the coming months to save lives are at the forefront of national conversations. Dr. Georges Benjamin, Executive Director of the American Public Health Association and Professorial Lecturer at the George Washington University, discusses the critical next steps our country needs to make to conquer this pandemic.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.  

COVID-19 is surging in the United States. States are setting single-day COVID records and hospitals in some places are at capacity, bordering on record admittances. In this episode, we have a follow-up appointment with Dr. Leana Wen, who served as the Health Commissioner for the City of Baltimore and is a visiting professor of health policy and management at GWSPH, to discuss the current state of affairs of the COVID crisis and how we, as a nation, can move forward and save lives.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.     

During this pandemic, sitting at home and watching tv can be considered good public health practice, but is it really healthy? Many experts have voiced concern about weight gain and loss of activity during this time of quarantine. Dr. Loretta DiPietro, a professor in the Department of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences at the GWSPH, discusses current trends in physical activity during this pandemic and how the need for people to move more and sit less.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.  

Professor and the Maternal and Child Health Program director Amita Vyas joins Frank to discuss how COVID-19 is affecting the dynamic of families and parents across the nation. She also shares what it was like to work with Mother Theresa in Calcutta, India early in her career. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

As we have witnessed this year, vulnerable populations have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Research has also shown that these same populations are targeted by industries that promote products that are fundamentally detrimental to their health, such as alcohol, tobacco, and guns. Director and Associate Director of the GWSPH Center for Commercial Determinants of Health Dr. Adnan Hyder and Dr. Nino Paichadze discuss this newer field of research and how they plan to hold these industries accountable. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

Will our work environments ever return to “normal”? Dr. Melissa Perry, professor and chair of the department of environmental and occupational health discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic has created higher demands during the workday, increased feelings of isolation in work settings, and why people are feeling more anxious and depressed than ever before. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

In live conversation during Research! America’s 2020 Virtual National Health Research Forum Frank is joined by CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield to talk about pressing community health threats such as COVID-19, vaccine confidence, the opioid crisis, and more. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

Many are anxiously awaiting a COVID-19 vaccine so that our lives can return to normal. Jon Andrus, adjunct professor in global health and expert in vaccinology, shares when we can expect a vaccine, how leaders will determine who gets the vaccine first, and why our lives will never “go back to normal” even after the vaccine is distributed nationwide. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

One of the leading and most important voices of the coronavirus pandemic is Dr. Anthony Fauci. As the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Fauci has faced many viral diseases in his career including HIV/AIDS, SARS, Ebola, and now the deadly coronavirus. During this special live episode of “Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic,” Dr. Fauci shares his thoughts on opening schools safely, vaccine availability and effectiveness, and how he maintains his ethics and values during this trying time. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

Hospitals around the United States have been impacted financially for many reasons including a decrease in elective surgeries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rick Pollack, President, and CEO of the American Hospital Association projects a 20 billion dollar monthly revenue loss in hospitals across the country from now through the end of the year. He shares which hospitals he thinks are most at risk of shutting down why it is important to “follow the science” to prevent the virus from further spreading. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

COVID-19 is creating a financial crisis for families including the inability to pay basic bills like mortgage and car payments and utility bills. Ellen Lawton, lead research scientist at George Washington University and co-leader of the National Center for Medical Legal Partnership discusses the impending eviction tsunami that will burden millions and how this will only add to the global health emergency.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

COVID-19 is impacting both black and brown communities disproportionately. This pandemic has brought attention to health disparities, specifically in the Latino population. Carlos Rodriguez-Diaz director of the Community Oriented Primary Care Program at GWSPH discusses his upcoming study on the Latino community and coronavirus and why infections and deaths are so high among this minority group.  Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

Many of us are questioning what our “new normal” will look like at GW this fall. GWSPH Dean Lynn Goldman shares how the University plans to reconfigure campus to ensure the safety and health for all faculty, staff, and students and what new policies we can expect to help stop the spread of COVID-19. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

Amid the COIVD-19 global pandemic and social unrest, we are seeing people around the world be more sensitive and understanding to one another. Today we’re joined by Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and author of The Empathy Effect Helen Riess. As someone who studies and coaches empathy, she shares what role empathy is playing in today’s society. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, protests against racism and police brutality have swept through cities and towns across the country following the death of George Floyd. Wendy Ellis, director of the Building Community Resilience Collaborative shares how the impact of certain policies in America were designed to have the wealthy succeed and people of color and those economically disadvantaged get further and further behind. For more information about the Center for Community Resilience visit go.gwu.edu/ccr. Hosted by Frank Sesno, Healthy You: Surviving a Pandemic is a co-production of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and the School of Media and Public Affairs.