2014 Video Archive

January 2014

Science Impact

Dr. Tanja Popovic and Dr. Mary Ari discuss efforts to measure the impact of CDC science. This exciting project provides an opportunity for scientists to more efficiently track and monitor the impact of public health work on health outcomes. Why is this so important? The CDC Science Impact Framework:

• Helps us track and monitor the impact of our work
• Measures impact retroactively and in real time
• Aids in making improvements in public health practice or policy
• Useful for anyone, and can be adjusted to fit many organizations and areas of work

February 2014

Preventing Youth Violence

Dr. John Iskander and Dr. Howard Spivak discuss youth violence prevention strategies. Effective prevention should involve a combination of strategies that focus on several levels of influence:

• Individual – wraparound services and mentorship
• Parents – modeling proper conflict resolution
• Community – development of green space and volunteerism activities
• Policy – economic development and economic empowerment zones

March 2014

Multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis: Tools for Tackling a New Face of an Old Foe

Dr. John Iskander and Dr. Sarita Shah discuss the public health burden of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) and the new tools that are available for more accurate diagnosis and treatment of MDR TB. Revolutionary tests will allow for faster diagnosis and new drugs offer better treatment with fewer side effects, but patients and providers must also do their part to combat this health epidemic

Patients must:

• Come to their providers in a timely fashion and
• Complete the full course of treatment

Providers must:

• Improve diagnosis and treatment of drug susceptible TB and
• Emphasize proper Infection control practices

April 2014

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Dr. John Iskander and Jon Baio discuss some of the complex challenges of understanding and diagnosing autism spectrum disorder. Most recent data shows that prevalence estimates have more than doubled and a much larger number of children are being diagnosed, while the median age of first diagnosis remains older than age 4. The greatest potential for long term impact in this area lies in earlier diagnosis, from older than 4 years old to 2 years old, and starting treatment sooner to get maximum benefit.

May 2014

Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for Prevention of HIV

Dr. John Iskander sits down with Dr. Dawn Smith and Dr. Melanie Thompson to discuss Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) as an HIV prevention tool. When taken consistently, PrEP has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV infection by up to 92%.

Patients should know that

• PrEP is very well tolerated
• No serious side effects were observed and
• When taken as directed, PrEP is effective

Practitioners should be aware that

• PrEP is approved for use in populations with substantial risk of ongoing exposure
• Several resources are available to aid in learning about and prescribing PrEP and
• Talking to patients about medication adherence and risk reduction is key to efficacy

June 2014

The 25th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Hepatitis C Virus

Dr. Phoebe Thorpe and Dr. John Ward discuss the latest curative breakthroughs in treating chronic Hepatitis C infection.

• These new developments are making history in medicine<br />
• The "baby boomer" generation (individuals born between 1945 and 1965) is at substantially higher risk
• High risk individuals should ask for a Hepatitis C screening test during their next scheduled visit.
• Data shows that it is very cost effective to treat and cure HCV infected

October 2012

Infant Mortality

Dr. John Iskander and Dr. Wanda Barfield discuss important new updates in infant mortality reduction. Since the initial presentation of “Public Health Approaches to Reducing U.S. Infant Mortality” in 2012:

• Overall rates of infant deaths have continued to decline
• Risk factors for mortality such as preterm birth have been reduced
• CDC has launched the tips from former smokers campaign focusing on the need to stop smoking during pregnancy
• Large collaborative initiatives were started to address geographic disparities and improve quality of care to pregnant women

August 2014

Time for Public Health Action on Infertility

Dr. Phoebe Thorpe and Dr. Lee Warner discuss infertility as a public health issue.

Individuals should know that:

• Infertility is personally devastating and results in several quality of life challenges
• It is a disease that affects both men and women
• There are organizations that provide support – RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association and The American Fertility Association

Providers must:

• Focus on preconception care, including encouraging patients to stop smoking and weight management
• Preserve fertility of individuals being treated with chemotherapy, especially adolescents

Public health can:

• Continue efforts to reduce preventable risk factors such as sexually transmitted diseases, obesity and smoking
• Improve surveillance to identify and address racial and geographic disparities in both risk factors and access to treatment

September 2014

Beyond the Data — Preventing A Million Heart Attacks and StrokesT

Dr. John Iskander and Dr. Janet Wright discuss the progress that has been made with Million Hearts®, along with the work that is still needed to reach the goal of preventing one million heart attacks and strokes by 2017.

Providers should:

• Utilize electronic health records to proactively reach individuals with elevated blood pressure or cholesterol
• Place emphasis on detecting cases of uncontrolled high blood pressure which are hiding in plain sight

Communities can:

• Implement smoke-free policies to lower exposure to smoke
• Adopt food procurement policies that make healthier foods more readily available
• Encourage and train individuals to self-monitor their blood pressure

September 2014

Beyond the Data — How Pharmacists Can Improve Our Nation’s Health

Dr. John Iskander and Dr. Lori Hall explore the impact of pharmacists on health care and public health when included as contributors to a patient’s healthcare team. Pharmacists:

• Tend to be underutilized, despite their training and experience
• Are medication experts, but they do more than just dispense medication

Involving pharmacists in expanded roles:

• Increases the quality of care
• Improves patient control of disorders and illnesses
• Reduces healthcare cost

November 2014

Beyond the Data — Unusual Transplant-associated Infections: Just How Unusual?

Dr. Phoebe Thorpe and Dr. Sherif Zaki discuss the important work being done to further reduce the risk of unusual transplant-associated infections.

Ensure that organs are safe requires:

• Involvement by many disciplines including: pathologists, epidemiologists, clinicians, and others
• Global collaboration between federal and state agencies as well as academic institutions
• Continued focus on improving regulations and screening procedures

CDC and its organ transplantation partners encourage viewers to consider organ donation – it really is a gift of life.

November 2014