Public Health On Call

10 minutes 54 seconds
Juneteenth: Celebration, Reflection, and Recommitment with Janice Bowie
About this episode:
Juneteenth is a holiday that asks Americans to balance celebration with the continued pursuit of freedom and equality. In this classic episode from 2022: Professor Janice Bowie talks about the meaning of Juneteenth and issues a call to reflect and recommit to championing progress within our own communities.
Guest:
Janice Bowie, PhD, MPH, is professor emeritus in Health, Behavior, and Society at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.
Show links and related content:
- Juneteeth: Sun, Sounds and the Spirit of Freedom—Smithsonian Institution
- Juneteenth National Independence Day Act—Congress.gov
- Where Research Meets the Street—Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine
- The Concepts Behind the Language of Equity—Public Health On Call (February 2025)
Transcript information:
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
18 June 2026, 10:00 am
11 minutes 51 seconds
A New Test for Lyme Disease, Developed by High Schoolers
About this episode:
A group of students from suburban Atlanta has developed a new method for detecting Lyme disease using the gene-editing tool CRISPR. In this episode: why there's such a desperate need for a new diagnostic, how the students' model works, and why it's so promising for the treatment of Lyme and other diseases.
Guest:
Nicole Baumgarth, PhD, DVM, is Bloomberg Distinguished Professor in Molecular Microbiology and Immunology and the director of the Lyme and Tickborne Disease Research and Education Institute at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Sankalp Yeleti is a recent graduate of Lambert High School and a rising freshman at New York University, where he plans to study biomolecular science.
Host:
Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Show links and related content:
- Teens may have come up with a new way to detect, treat Lyme disease using CRISPR gene editing—CBS News
- Lancet—Lambert iGEM 2025
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
17 June 2026, 10:00 am
15 minutes 42 seconds
The Rise of "Big Wellness"
About this episode:
The wellness industry covers everything from fitness to biohacking, yoga to peptides, and it's backed by culturally and financially powerful players. In this episode: a new paper in the Milbank Quarterly covers how social media fuels the industry's proliferation, the growing skepticism of traditional medicine that allows it to thrive, and the tension between the concepts of wellness and public health.
Guest:
Nancy Karreman, PhD, is a researcher of public health interventions at the University of Cambridge.

Nason Maani, PhD, MPH, is a senior lecturer in inequalities and global health policy at the University of Edinburgh.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.
Show links and related content:
- The Political Economy of Wellness: Commercial Determinants of a Burgeoning Industry—Millbank Quarterly
- The Outlook on Direct-to-Consumer Health Care—Public Health On Call (February 2026)
- Dietitian Influencers On Social Media Are Being Paid By the Food Industry to Promote Products and Messages—Public Health On Call (October 2023)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
15 June 2026, 10:00 am
16 minutes 3 seconds
The Race for a Bundibugyo Ebolavirus Vaccine
About this episode:
Vaccines for the Zaire ebolavirus have been licensed since 2019, but no such treatment exists for the current outbreak of Bundibugyo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In this episode: Anna Durbin, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Immunization Research, introduces listeners to three candidate vaccines and discusses the hurdles to deploying new treatments.
Guest:
Dr. Anna Durbin is a professor of International Health and the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Immunization Research.
Host:
Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
Show links and related content:
- Three Ebola vaccines in development amid growing outbreak fears—BBC
- USAID's closure led to 'entirely preventable' deaths, latest Ebola outbreak: House Dem report—The Hill
- HHS confirms Americans with high-risk Ebola exposures will have access to experimental therapy—STAT
- Regeneron's Ebola Antibody Recommended by World Health Organization for Investigational Use in Response to Current Bundibugyo Ebolavirus Outbreak—Regeneron
- What Will It Take to Contain the Central Africa Ebola Outbreak?—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- The Use of Investigational Drugs in an Outbreak: Separating Science and Politics With Hydroxychloroquine and COVID-19—Public Health On Call (May 2020)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
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Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
11 June 2026, 10:00 am
17 minutes 39 seconds
An Unlikely Alliance to Lower Healthcare Costs
About this episode:
Two health policy experts could not disagree more about the Affordable Care Act. Yet they're working together to tackle what they see as a root cause of unaffordability. In this episode: A 1954 change to federal tax code made employer-provided health benefits tax-free, incentivizing employers to cover workers' health insurance—but this policy is one explanation for high healthcare costs for Americans today.
Guests:
Michael F. Cannon, JM, MA, is the director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute.

Elizabeth Fowler, PhD, JD, is a distinguished scholar in Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.
Show links and related content:
- This policy is at the root of unaffordable health care—Washington Post
- The New Reality Facing Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA—Public Health On Call (August 2025)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
10 June 2026, 10:00 am
23 minutes 42 seconds
What We Must Learn From Ebola—A "Disease of Compassion"
About this episode:
Dr. Craig Spencer became sick with Ebola while treating patients in West Africa in 2014. He ultimately recovered at a treatment center back in the United States before returning to Guinea to continue his work. In this episode: he talks about what scares him about the current Ebola outbreak, what it's like to treat the disease on the ground, and what lessons he fears we still haven't learned about this "disease of compassion."
Guest:
Dr. Craig Spencer, MPH, is an emergency medicine physician, public health researcher, and associate professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice at Brown University School of Public Health.
Host:
Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
Show links and related content:
- I Survived Ebola. This Is What Scares Me Most About This Outbreak.—The New York Times
- Is The U.S. Stepping Up In The Fight Against Ebola?—KFF
- HHS confirms Americans with high-risk Ebola exposures will have access to experimental therapy—STAT
- White House resisted letting doctor with Ebola return to U.S.—Washington Post
- Guinea families transport bodies in public taxis—Associated Press
- Protests against US Ebola facility in Kenya turn deadly—ABC News
- An Ebola Outbreak in Central Africa—Public Health On Call (May 2026)
- The Use of Investigational Drugs in an Outbreak: Separating Science and Politics With Hydroxychloroquine and COVID-19—Public Health On Call (May 2020)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
8 June 2026, 2:59 pm
16 minutes 44 seconds
How College Campuses Can Support Students in Recovery
About this episode:
Recovering from a substance use disorder while in college is a unique challenge mired by stigma and social pressures to drink or use drugs. But collegiate interventions for young adults can change the trajectory and even save lives. In this episode: Noel Vest, an addiction recovery researcher, explains what makes a good collegiate recovery program and why now is a great time for higher education institutions to expand support for students.
Guest:
Noel Vest, PhD, is an assistant professor of community health sciences at the Boston University School of Public Health.
Host:
Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Show links and related content:
- Drug recovery is now US national policy. Campuses need to step up—Times Higher Education
- ADDRESSING ADDICTION THROUGH THE GREAT AMERICAN RECOVERY INITIATIVE—The White House
- Association of Recovery in Higher Education
- What is SAFE Campuses?—SAFE Project
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
4 June 2026, 10:00 am
14 minutes 44 seconds
Violence Against Healthcare in Conflict: 2025 Report
About this episode:
An annual report from the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition assesses attacks on healthcare facilities and workers in conflict. In this episode: the implications for international humanitarian law as drone warfare surges, state forces increasingly perpetrate attacks, and cuts to foreign aid exacerbate healthcare gaps.
Guest:
Joe Amon, PhD, MSPH, is the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Public Health and Human Rights.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.
Show links and related content:
- Care in the Crosshairs: Violence Against Health Care in Conflict 2025—Safeguarding Health in Conflict
- Rethinking Humanitarian Health—Public Health On Call (May 2026)
- Violence Against Health Care in Conflict: 2024 Report—Public Health On Call (June 2025)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
3 June 2026, 10:00 am
19 minutes 53 seconds
The Legal Challenges Facing Mifepristone
About this episode:
In May, the Supreme Court issued an order preserving access to the abortion medication mifepristone by telemedicine—for now. In this episode: a breakdown of Louisiana v. FDA and other cases involving mifepristone as legal and political battles continue after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Guest:
Joanne Rosen, JD, MA, is an expert in public health law and a co-director of the Center for Law and the Public's Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.
Show links and related content:
- Louisiana v. FDA: Access to Mifepristone Back at the Supreme Court—KFF
- What Is Mifepristone, aka "The Abortion Pill"?—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- How the FDA Regulates Mifepristone, "the Abortion Pill"—Public Health On Call (February 2026)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
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Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
1 June 2026, 10:00 am
41 minutes 11 seconds
1057 - Five Baltimore Health Commissioners Walk into an Auditorium
About this episode:
In the city of Baltimore, the health department works to prevent overdose, reduce violence, provide vaccinations, inspect restaurants, and so much more. In this episode: Host Stephanie Desmon leads a panel discussion with five Baltimore City Commissioners of Health who collectively served over three decades. They swap stories and speak candidly about the challenges and opportunities of the role.
Guests:
Dr. Peter Beilenson, MPH, is a lecturer at the Johns Hopkins Kreiger School of Arts & Sciences. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 1992 to 2005.

Dr. Letitia Dzirasa is the Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services with the City of Baltimore. She served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2019 to 2023.

Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009.

Dr. Michelle Taylor, DrPH, MPA, is the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health. She also serves in the Tennessee Air National Guard, and she previously led operations at the Shelby County Health Department.

Dr. Leana S. Wen, MSc, is a physician and professor of health policy and management at George Washington University. She served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2014 to 2018.
Host:
Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
Show links and related content:
- Health Commissioner Michelle Taylor is Betting on Baltimore—Public Health On Call (May 2026)
- Baltimore's Record Low in Homicides—Public Health On Call (November 2025)
- Baltimore's Back-to-Back Mass Overdoses—Public Health On Call (September 2025)
- B'More for Healthy Babies: A Look Back at 15 Years of Infant Mortality Reduction in Baltimore—Public Health On Call (May 2025)
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
22 May 2026, 10:00 am
13 minutes 50 seconds
1056 - An Ebola Outbreak in Central Africa
About this episode:
A deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda has been declared a global public health emergency by WHO. In this episode: infectious disease epidemiologist Emily Gurley explains why this outbreak is particularly concerning for a region managing existing crises and how public health systems are working to contain transmission and treat patients.
Guest:
Emily S. Gurley, PhD, MPH, is a professor in Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she focuses on infectious disease and outbreak investigation.
Host:
Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
Show links and related content:
Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
Follow us:
Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.
21 May 2026, 10:00 am
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