Public Health Faculty Scholars Lindsay Stark, Ilana Seff & Byron Powell will use a National Institute of Mental Health grant to study a humanitarian program for young girls in Columbia who have been forcibly displaced from Venezuela.
Category: Faculty Scholar in the News
How to Stay Profitable While Giving Back (Links to an external site)
How do entrepreneurs stay profitable while giving back to our community? The Michael B. Kaufman Professor of Practice in Social Entrepreneurship and Public Health Faculty Scholar, Heather Cameron, PhD, explains.
Kwon receives CDC grant to study viral transmission within households (Links to an external site)
Assoc. Professor of Medicine & Public Health Faculty Scholar, Jennie Kwon won a $3.6M grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to evaluate whether vaccines affect the transmission of flu and COVID-19 within households.
Detecting the Viral Elephant in the Room (Links to an external site)
Aerosol scientist and Public Health Faculty Scholar, Rajan Chakrabarty, PhD, discusses the process behind his lab’s development of real-time air monitor, which can detect virus aerosols in a room within minutes.
Inside long COVID’s war on the body: Researchers are trying to find out whether the virus has the potential to cause cancer (Links to an external site)
Epidemiologist and Public Health Faculty Scholar, Ziyad Al-Aly says there is no “empiric evidence that COVID can lead to cancer” but the possibility is also not yet ruled out.
WashU Expert: Navigating political discussions at holiday gatherings (Links to an external site)
Public health Faculty Scholar and political scientist Taylor Carlson offers ways to have open, respectful conversations during holidays with guests with opposing viewpoints!
Missouri to keep kids enrolled in Medicaid for 12 months starting next year (Links to an external site)
Co-Director of the Center for Advancing Health Services , Policy & Economics Research Timothy McBride, PhD, discusses the benefits of keeping kids enrolled in Medicaid for a year at a time rather than requiring reapplication.
Universities pushed to address mental health concerns on campus after student suicides (Links to an external site)
As universities are being pushed to address mental health and particularly, student suicides, Asst. Professor and Public Health Faculty Scholar, Jessi Gold, MD offers suggested strategies.
My Child Had a Child. But Don’t Call Me Grandma! (Links to an external site)
In this article in the WSJ, Friedman Center for Aging Director, Nancy Morrow Howell says women may struggle with being called “Grandma”. What do you want to be called at this stage of life?
Illinois health officials fail to help Cahokia Heights residents as sewage floods their homes (Links to an external site)
Sewage in Cahokia Heights is still making people sick. Asst. Professor in Arts & Sciences, Theresa Gildner, a public health Faculty Scholar has been studying the problem since 2022.
Scientists are beginning to understand how long COVID symptoms affect the brain (Links to an external site)
Ziyad Al-Aly recently spoke with National Public Radio about the latest findings on how long COVID symptoms affect the brain.
Pain, fatigue, fuzzy thinking: How long COVID disrupts the brain (Links to an external site)
Public Health Faculty Scholar and Asst. Professor at the School of Medicine, Ziyad Al-Aly weighs in on how long COVID disrupts the brain.
Study Finds Challenges, Support For Harrisonburg MENA Students (Links to an external site)
Professor Lindsay Stark, also a Public Health Faculty Scholar led a study evaluating the mental health and well-being of high school students who’ve been resettled from the Middle East and N. Africa.
‘A Letter to My Abuser’: A nurse’s tragic experience resonates across the country (Links to an external site)
Psychiatrist and Public Health Scholar, Jessi Gold, MD, discusses the stigma surrounding health care worker mental health issues. She says suicide as an outcome is not as simple an explanation as people might assume.
Patients needed for Washington University’s long COVID-19 treatment study (Links to an external site)
Head of WashU Psychiatry, Dr. Eric Lenze says long COVID patients may have manifestations in the brain because of a depletion of serotonin. He’s conducting a 12-week trial to see if an antidepressant helps long COVID patients show improvement.
As open enrollment begins, BJC announces Aetna health plan after Cigna exits marketplace (Links to an external site)
Associate Director for Policy Partnerships, Center for Advancing Health Services, Policy & Economics Research, Abby Barker, spoke with STL Public Radio about Cigna departing the STL health insurance market.
A $3.8 million federal grant will help people in St. Louis Promise Zone improve their health (Links to an external site)
Public Health Faculty Scholar, Diana Parra Perez, directs a program that has rec’d a $3.8M grant to improve health in communities with limited access to fresh food. Read more about this program that provides “power over the food system”.
A $3.8 million federal grant will help people in St. Louis Promise Zone improve their health (Links to an external site)
WashU Public Health Faculty Scholars Denise Wilfley & Diana Parra Perez & community partner, Andwele Jolly, of STL Integrated Health Network, will use a $3.8M CDC grant to help improve health, reduce disparities in the in the STL Promise Zone.
It’s Time to Stop Daylight Saving Time Forever, Says Wash U Expert (Links to an external site)
Biology Professor & Public Health Faculty Scholar says we should say “buh-bye” to daylight savings time. We agree!
A new cure for sickle cell disease may be coming. Health advisers will review it next week (Links to an external site)
Allison King, MD, PhD, a national sickle cell expert and public health faculty scholar weighs in on a possible cure for the painful disease that strikes children and adults alike.
WashU Expert: Some parasites turn hosts into ‘zombies’ (Links to an external site)
They may not cause a zombie apocalypses, but there are brain-intrusive parasites that have evolved to manipulate their hosts! Asst. Professor of Biological Anthropology, and public health Faculty Scholar, Theresa Gildner in Arts & Sciences, explains.
Integrating health in urban and territorial planning: a sourcebook (Links to an external site)
This article on a study led by Diana Parra Perez, assistant professor at WashU’s Prevention Research Center, is some of the latest research in the Global South appearing in publications like the WHO’s-UN Habitat sourcebook.
Anesthesiologist volunteers with group that treats Ukrainian pediatric burn patients (Links to an external site)
Anesthesiologist Justin G. Knittel, MD, at the School of Medicine, volunteers for the nonprofit Doctors Collaborating to Help Children. The medical team provides care for Ukrainian children with burn injuries.
Antibiotic treatment in malnourished children improves gut microbiome development (Links to an external site)
School of Medicine Professor & Public Health Faculty Scholar, Guantam Dantas leads a new study published in the Lancet Microbe, which shows that treating malnourished children with antibiotics can improve gut microbiome development.
Afrocentrism and Help-Seeking for Emotional Distress Among Black Men (Links to an external site)
In this podcast, Asst. Professor of Social Work & Public Health Faculty Scholar, Husain Lateef, discusses the Afrocentric worldview on collectivism, community & compassion in promoting improved mental health among Black men.
New RSV immunizations for infants and pregnant women hard to come by as season starts (Links to an external site)
Obstetrician/Gynecologist, and Public Health Faculty Scholar, Jeannie Kelly says new RSV vaccines available for infants and mothers are vital but the Post-Dispatch reports low supply.
Ellebedy to develop next-generation coronavirus vaccines with broad protection (Links to an external site)
Congratulations to Public Health Faculty Scholar and School of Medicine Assoc. Professor, Ali Ellebedy and team, who received a $13M NIH grant for their project to create better vaccines in the fight against emerging coronaviruses.
Machine learning could help predict risk of preterm birth using wearables data (Links to an external site)
Erik Herzog, the Viktor Hamburger Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences discusses the role of activity and sleep in premature birth and how machine learning may determine preterm birth risks in our future.
AI girlfriends are ruining an entire generation of men (Links to an external site)
Check out this interesting opinion piece by data scientist at Olin Business School & Public Health Faculty Scholar, Liberty Vittert, about how men are turning to AI to find virtual companionship
Your Fitbit and Apple Watch may wind up hurting you (Links to an external site)
Can your Fitbit hurt you? A new study by Public Health Faculty Scholar & Assoc. Professor of Surgery, Yin Cao, shows the average adult spend more hours sitting down than is healthy.
Study Shows Patient-Centered Care Matters for Inpatient Psychiatry Patients (Links to an external site)
A first-of-its-kind study led by Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Morgan Shields, PhD, shows that psychiatric patients who experienced good patient care while hospitalized are more likely to trust their mental healthcare providers.
Raising awareness of Sickle Cell Disease (Links to an external site)
Hematologist and Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Allison King, MD is raising awareness about Sickle Cell Disease, which currently affects 2.5 million people in the U.S.
Some Metro drivers make more than $40,000 in overtime pay amid labor shortage (Links to an external site)

How much overtime would you work to earn $40K in overtime pay? Asst. Prof. of Psychiatry & Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Jessie Gold says watch out for burnout!
Partnership key to chronic disease prevention, study finds (Links to an external site)

A new WashU study by Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholars Maura Kepper and Amy Eyler and team, finds that collaborative partnerships are critical to responding to our community’s complex health inequities.
Wait goes on for effective long Covid treatments (Links to an external site)

WashU study co-author and epidemiologist, Ziyad Al-Aly, MD discusses the “staggeringly high burden” of long COVID in the past two+ years.
Ssewamala awarded $3.5M to study interventions in Uganda (Links to an external site)

Fred Ssewamala, the William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor at the Brown School, and Byron Powell, co-director of the Center for Dissemination & Implementation at the Institute for Public Health, have won a five-year $3.5 million grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NIH-based) for a new study in Uganda.
PHP Unit Debuts Training to Assess the Health of Built Environments in Neighborhoods (Links to an external site)
Rodrigo Reis, public health faculty scholar & Brown professor and team, are reviving an online resource that determines how conducive a community is for walking, biking and other physical activities. Read about it!
Gabapentin Use Among Individuals Initiating Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (Links to an external site)
A study by Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Matthew Ellis, PhD and Kevin Xu, MD shows Gabapentin prescriptions have drastically increased due to off-label prescribing for OUD treatment to manage withdrawal symptoms, despite a lack of evidence.
Amarasinghe awarded grant for Ebola virus research (Links to an external site)
Gaya Amarasinghe, the Alumni Endowed Professor of pathology and immunology at the School of Medicine, and Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, received a five-year, $16.8 million grant renewal from the NIAID (NIH) for Ebola virus research.
Cure Violence helped cut violent crime in only 1 of 3 affected St. Louis areas, new study finds (Links to an external site)
The Institute for Public Health conducted a city-funded assessment of the Cure Violence St. Louis effort and found that the program had a positive effect in the Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood in N. STL.
Meet Mark Manary, founder of Project Peanut Butter (Links to an external site)

Mark Manary, MD, founded Project Peanut Butter to treat children suffering from malnutrition. Read about him and the project featured in Feast Magazine.
How to save your infant a trip to the doctor this fall (Links to an external site)

Pediatric Infectious Diseases doc and Institute Faculty Scholar, Jason Newland, MD says 300 infants die each year in the U.S. Here’s how that alarming statistic can be lowered.
X, formerly Twitter, to collect biometric and employment data (Links to an external site)

Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Liberty Vittert, PhD, says we should be wary of Twitter’s updated collection of biometric and employment data.
COVID-19 cases on the rise in St. Louis (Links to an external site)

Kids are back in school, which could be a source of the steadily increasing cases of COVID-19 in STL, says Infectious Disease physician and Institute for Public Health Faculty Scholar, Steven Lawrence, MD.
Should You Take Low-Dose Aspirin Daily? Experts Weigh Pros and Cons (Links to an external site)

A study published in JAMA by author Sang Gune Yoo, MD, including Global Health Center co-Director, Mark Huffman, MD, says just 65% of adults who should be taking aspirin to prevent a 2nd heart attack or stroke, are actually doing so.
Center for Aging director says we should normalize intimacy at ANY age (Links to an external site)

Center for Aging Director, Nancy Morrow-Howell discusses the new Golden Bachelor series and normalizing intimacy in the media and society, as we age.
Psychiatrists like us cannot keep up with their inboxes (Links to an external site)

Asst. Professor and Institute Faculty Scholar, Jessi Gold, MD, has written an article published in STAT News about the need to fix the system in which psychiatrists & other docs are overwhelmed with messages from patients.
Half Those Losing Medicaid in MO are Children (Links to an external site)

Professor of Public Health and center co-director, Timothy McBride explains why Medicaid recipients are dropping off the rolls, likely due to procedural violations.
New study suggests people who tested negative for Covid-19 can still develop long Covid (Links to an external site)

Ziyad Al-Aly, WashU epidemiologist and Institute for Public Health faculty scholar says a new study shows that people can still show symptoms of long COVID even if they originally tested negative.
Aspirin can help reduce risk of second heart attack, but study finds less than half of eligible adults take it (Links to an external site)

A study by Cardiovascular Disease Fellow, Sang Gune (Kyle) Yoo & team–that includes Global Health Center co-Director, Mark Huffman, MD, finds that even though aspirin can help reduce risk of 2nd heart attack, many don’t take it.