Time to End Non-Medical Exemptions of Vaccination: Our Editorial in the Richmond Times Dispatch

Source: Richmond Times Dispatch

Along with  Dr. Pam Bailey (3rd year infectious diseases and hospital epidemiology fellow) we published this op-ed essay on ending non-medical vaccine exemptions for childhood vaccinations.

The essay is available here in the Richmond Times Dispatch

In the face of a national measles resurgence and with a recent case in the state of Virginia, the time is now for the Virginia General Assembly to prohibit non-medical exemptions of vaccination.

Career Exploration: So You Want To Be A Hospital Epidemiologist? Flashback from 2009

Wow! 

So you want to be a Hospital Epidemiologist? Featured in Career Exploration in the Richmond Times Dispatch in 2009....recovered from the dustbin today during an office clean out.

I am not so sure if this really worked out is a recruitment tool....

Humans: A Brief History of How We F****! It All Up

Kudos to Tom Phillips for a masterful book, one that is is equal parts an academic history lesson with a perfect blend of wit and comedy.

I particularly enjoyed the chapters on science and the age of discovery. To quote the author:

“Confirmation bias is our annoying habit of zeroing in like a laser-guided missile on any scrap of evidence that supports what we already believe, and blithely ignoring the possibly much, much larger piles of evidence that suggest we might have been completely misguided.”

Spot on.

This book is well worth reading.

The Kardashian Index For Scientists

Figure 1 from Hall, N. (2014). Genome biology, 15(7), 424

It is true that a journal's Twitter following is strongly linked to its impact factor and citations,  suggesting that higher quality research receives more mainstream attention.  This perspective is neatly summarized here.

However, just in case you were unaware, the Kardashian (K) Index (referenced here), is a measure of discrepancy between social media profile and publication record for scientists.

Although high quality scientific publications, particularly if newsworthy, are associated with increased Twitter activity, not all scientists with large Twitter profiles produce high quality scientific work.

Much like scientific inquiry, Twitter should be approached critically.

Merry Christmas.

Justinianic Plague: Beware of Scholarship From Untested Hypotheses

Source: Ancient-Origins.net

Every now and then, in my literary meanderings, I come across a truly intriguing read.

This paper, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, beautifully researches the socioeconomic impact of the Justinianic (Bubonic) Plague (circa 541 to 750 CE), an epidemic which presumably precipitated the Dark Ages.

The scholars reviewed papyri, inscriptions, coins (currency), pollen, Yersinia pestis DNA  and burials concluding that no convincing evidence exists to support the assertion that the Justinianic Plague reduced the population of Europe by one third.

No doubt, the Justinianic plague, also known at the "First Pandemic, was significant, yet not nearly as much as the Second Pandemic and the Black Death.

To quote the authors- "More broadly,  the scholarly treatment of the JP demonstrates the dangers of uncritical multidisciplinary." Bravo.

Beware the dangers of scholarship from untested hypotheses.

I Am a Specialist But I Seek Range

Yes, I am an infectious diseases specialist, however, I seek range, especially after reading the book Range by David Epstein.  A spectacular read.

There is an inherent danger to specialization, particularly too early in the process of development- whether you are an athlete, musician or even a physician.

Specialization has a limiting effect. Analogical reasoning comes from a diversity of learning experiences. This results in greater creativity and problem solving skills.

Stay curious.

Physician Burnout and Healthcare Epidemiology: Dual Implications Worthy of Greater Scrutiny

Physician burnout is a hot topic of discussion.

We explore the topic of physician burnout in hospital epidemiology, a nuanced subject worthy of greater scrutiny. Our research brief was just published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, available here (PubMed Indexed here).

Hospital epidemiologists face different pressures than front-line physicians, these may drive burnout. On the flip side, our demands for infection prevention standardization, checklists, time-outs, audits and feedback may drive burnout in colleagues, by way of a perceived erosion of autonomy.

Further studies are needed.