Raise the Line

It’s been one year since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in an unprecedented move, dismissed all the members of its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), kicking off what would turn out to be a very concerning and busy year for infectious disease specialists.  We’re going to recap this turbulent period – which includes a resurgence of measles, an unusually rough flu season, the emergence of a new COVID strain and outbreaks of hantavirus and Ebola – with Dr. William Schaffner, one of the country’s most frequently quoted medical experts on infectious disease, vaccination, and public health.

As a member of ACIP for decades, Dr. Schaffner brings unique insight into the dismantling of the committee and the distrust of vaccines that lies at the root of the changes. As he explains to Raise the Line host Lindsey Smith, while many vaccine critics are beyond reach, there are those he describes as vaccine hesitant that may be persuadable if the right approach is taken. “Beyond providing facts, we have to listen to them and respond to their concerns and make them feel comfortable. Information is fundamental, but behavior change only comes with a change in attitude.”

Tune in for a wealth of wisdom and context that includes observations on:

What’s complicating containment of the Ebola outbreak;

Challenges in public health communication in the current social media environment;

What grade health authorities should get on their response to the hantavirus outbreak.

Mentioned in this episode:
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine

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"Do nothing for us without us." According to today’s guest Robyn Bussey, that operating principle is the basis for effective community health work. "You don't go into a community and dictate. You go and listen and trust and be a partner," she adds. As you’ll learn in this enlightening conversation, Bussey is following that approach in her current work as Just Health Director at the Partnership for Southern Equity, an Atlanta-based nonprofit advancing racial equity and shared prosperity across the South. 

On this episode of Raise the Line from Elsevier, Bussey provides illuminating  examples of community-rooted work in South Fulton County and rural Georgia, and explains why community health workers may be the most underutilized asset in addressing health disparities.

This wide-ranging interview with host Michael Carrese also explores:

Bussey’s candid perspective on what happened to the surge of interest in health equity that occurred during COVID;

Why life expectancy gains in many Southern states have lagged behind the rest of the country;

Her advice to students and early-career clinicians about where they're needed most.

 

Mentioned in this episode:  Partnership for Southern Equity

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As concerns escalate about the deadly Ebola virus outbreak in Africa, we bring you the unique insights of Dr. Peter Piot, a renowned microbiologist who co-discovered the virus 50 years ago during the first recorded outbreak of the disease. His on-the-ground account of that crisis was provided to us in April before the current outbreak was declared, but it contains valuable historical perspective and shares lessons learned that he carried forward in his consequential career.  “What I saw from the beginning is the most important thing is to listen to people and that you need to act fast to save lives, before you have the evidence you would like to have.”   

He followed his contributions on Ebola by diving into the fight against HIV/AIDS, eventually reshaping global response in leadership roles at the World Health Organization and United Nations. As he shares with host Lindsey Smith, the learnings in that case were more pragmatic than scientific. “We had to redefine HIV/AIDS not as a medical problem but as an economic and security problem in order to get it on the political agenda.” 

Tune in for a fascinating episode that takes you from the gritty frontlines of public health crises to the battles for funding and attention in the halls of power as Dr. Piot shares what it actually takes to move the world to respond effectively to health threats.

Mentioned in this episode:

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

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The ongoing outbreak of hantavirus infections that originated with passengers on the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius in April has generated concerns across the globe. This very rare occurrence has led to a number of deaths, required quarantining of passengers and prompted emergency responses from public health authorities in multiple countries. 

On this episode of Raise the Line from Elsevier, we’re tapping the expertise of a leading authority on the subject, Dr. Jamie Childs of Yale University, to provide you with a scientific understanding of hantaviruses and what level of threat is posed by this situation. In short, Dr. Childs believes this is not the start of a pandemic. “The Andes variant involved here is one of the most dangerous hantaviruses, but it is totally controllable with contact tracing.”

This timely conversation with host Lindsey Smith is informed by Dr. Childs’ decades of hantavirus research as well as learnings from his role leading the CDC’s environmental investigation during the landmark 1993 hantavirus outbreak in the Four Corners region of the American Southwest. And be sure to stay tuned to hear his concerns about the factors complicating containment of the current Ebola outbreak in East Africa.

Note: this conversation was recorded on May 19th, 2026.

Mentioned in this episode:

Yale School of Public Health

Yale Institute for Global Health

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We mark National Mental Health Awareness Month on this episode by tapping the expertise of Dr. Steve Strakowski, an internationally recognized expert in bipolar disorder, who has spent decades studying the neurobiology and treatment of mood conditions while pushing just as hard on the structural barriers that keep effective treatments out of reach for more than half the people who need them.

In this conversation with Raise the Line from Elsevier host Michael Carrese, Dr. Strakowski explains why access, not science, is now the biggest obstacle to improving mental health outcomes. He also addresses the heavy toll society pays for underfunding mental health prevention and treatment programs. “The money is spent eventually, but in the most expensive places like emergency rooms and prisons, and there is the human cost of suffering and suicides."

This important discussion also covers:

The persistent problem of Black patients presenting with mania being misdiagnosed with schizophrenia; 

Why he describes bipolar disorder as a reward-processing illness; 

The emerging therapies he finds encouraging.

Mentioned in this episode:
Indiana University School of Medicine

If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast