American Contagions- A Must Read For Those Who Seek A Deeper Understanding

 

American Contagions, hot off the press, by Yale University Professor John Fabian Witt, is a concise (150 pages) must read for those who seek a deeper understanding of the US response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To quote the author: Our institutions powerfully constrain the pathways of our response to epidemic….the decentralized police power channels epidemic policy into state governments and private actors rather than the federal government.

The end result is a heterogeneous, poorly coordinated national response to the greatest infectious diseases threat of the last 100 years.

Podcast in The Abstract Athlete: Where Ron Johnson and I Explore COVID-19, Soccer, Drumming, Rock n Roll and Wellness

Thank you to VCU (Art) Professor Ron Johnson, for the honor to appear in the The Abstract Athlete. 

Our podcast can be accessed here, where we explore matters such as COVID-19, soccer, drumming, rock n roll and wellness.

An Academic Book That Supposedly No One Read: Newton's 'Principia'

 As a bibliophile, this article in the New York Times caught my eye today. 

Yes, there are many academic books that "no one reads" and Newton's "Principia" may have been one of them,  or may be not. Apparently there are 386 copies of the original printing in existence and a recent study published in the Annals of Science, available here, suggests that initial readership was much greater than previously understood. Of course, over time, this was one of the most influential scientific publications ever.

So, academicians, keep writing. as first prints may not always predict the impact of your work.  The "immediacy index"  of a publication can only go so far.

The Impact of Unconscious Bias in Healthcare

This high quality supplement article that was published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases is worth reading if you seek an academic perspective on the impact of unconscious bias in healthcare.

 A section that was particularly on point was the concept of going beyond cultural competency towards cultural humility- one that starts from a condition of empathy and proceeds through asking open ended questions to better understand others.

This is paper is now mandatory reading for the VCU Infectious Diseases service.

Fall/Winter 2020 Issue of the Medical Literary Messenger Now Published

Thank you contributors and a special thank you to the amazing editorial team!

The Fall/Winter Medical Literary Messenger is published, available free and open access to all here.

ID Week 2020: What I Learned

As ID Week 2020 draws to an end here is what I learned:

• Virtual conferences may lack a personal touch, travel and networking experience but they are still effective and engaging, we need to be continuously nimble with our educational platforms
• All policy is health policy
• Addressing health disparities is more important than ever
• Despite an surge in anti-science, expert opinion is invaluable
• The lack of a coordinated response to COVID-19 is a public health dumpster fire
• My colleagues are amazing
• Although we are small in number, the importance (and value) of infectious diseases specialists grows exponentially

See you next year.

Beautiful Data: A Primer On Data Visulaization

For those seeking a concise and relevant review  the presentation of visual data in infection prevention,  check out this masterful article in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.

I must agree with Jorge Salinas et al, the visual representation of infection prevention data is human factors engineering for the eye.

Like visual abstracts,  the well designed graph or figure should require little background information to convey complex data in an easy to digest and aesthetically pleasing manner.