Infectious Disease
by Jenna Ogilvie | May 31, 2016 | Discussion Paper, Perspectives
In a list of 17 high-income countries, the United States ranks last in terms of life expectancy for males and second-to-last for females. The U.S. population also experiences worse outcomes compared with its peers in nine key areas: infant mortality and...
by Jenna Ogilvie | Mar 29, 2016 | Discussion Paper, Perspectives
Background Morbidity and mortality resulting from influenza have remained high in the United States despite efforts to vaccinate high-risk populations, leading public health officials to expand their vaccination recommendations to include schoolchildren (Fiore...
by Laura DeStefano | Apr 12, 2013 | Commentary, Perspectives
The obvious answer of “no” to the question of readiness is not just due to the ongoing loss of experienced staff. Loss of infrastructure is bad enough, but even a well-staffed health department needs safe and effective treatment tools when more than 100 high school...
by Laura DeStefano | Mar 22, 2013 | Commentary, Perspectives
Support for core public health capacity is diminishing; outbreaks of microbial threats are not. In 2012 there were a number of high-profile threats (see the box below) that demanded public health intervention to protect the public. It is well understood that the role...
by Laura DeStefano | Mar 15, 2013 | Commentary, Perspectives
In October 2007, HSPD 21 called for a nationwide biosurveillance capability. Biosurveillance “in the context of human health is the science and practice of managing health-related data and information for early warning of threats and hazards, early detection of...
by Laura DeStefano | Feb 7, 2013 | Commentary, Perspectives
The first test of penicillin on a human, Constable Albert Alexander in 1941, illustrated the remarkable power of antibiotics to control bacterial infection, only to end in tragedy when all available penicillin was exhausted and Alexander’s infection recrudesced...
by Laura DeStefano | Feb 10, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
Despite past efforts to improve patient safety—and there has been effort and activity aplenty—routine safety processes continue to fail routinely. Poor hand hygiene remains a major vector of health care-associated infection. Medication errors lead to adverse drug...
by Laura DeStefano | Jan 27, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
As is the case every year, millions of Americans will contract influenza this flu season, and thousands will die. During the 2009–10 season alone, when H1N1 set off the world’s first flu pandemic in 40 years, more than an estimated 12,000 Americans lost their lives to...
