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Rapid responses to health questions for fact-checkers and journalists.
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Rapid responses to health questions for fact-checkers and journalists.
Wearing a face mask does not put you at a higher risk of cancer. There is no current evidence linking the use of face masks to cancer, and science shows that any risks associated with wearing masks are low overall, while the benefits are high. Because of how tiny oxygen and carbon dioxide molecules are, face masks neither decrease the amount of oxygen that enters a mask nor increase the amount of carbon dioxide that stays in a mask. As a result, face masks do not disrupt the body’s pH levels, affect the bloodstream, or alter one’s body in any way that would put someone at higher risk of cancer. The claim that wearing face masks causes cancer has been circulating on Facebook and other social media platforms, citing a January 2021 study that did not study face masks or mask wearing in general. An article from Blacklisted News falsely suggested that mask wearing can lead to reproduction of bacteria, which then leads to cancer. The articled stated that harmful microbes can grow in a moist environment, like the ones created around the mouth and face because of constant mask wearing. The article suggests that microbes can grow and replicate before traveling through the trachea into blood vessels in the lungs. From there, they allege the the microbes cause an inflammatory response. It's true that oral bacteria can contribute to oral infections, dental plaque, and cancer. However, bacteria is also a normal part of our skin and other organs. It can contribute to health in positive and negative ways. The study that linked mask wearing to the development of advanced lung cancer did not involve long-term mask wearing as part of the study. The article that wrote about it falsely assumed that masks could be the cause of this bacteria, rather than its normal presence in the human body and microbiome. There is no evidence that mask wearing can pose a danger to health, including altered carbon dioxide and oxygen levels. Bacteria can build up over time in a mask, so they should be cleaned and dried properly. This build up does not cause cancer. The American Lung Association verified that masks cannot cause lung cancer and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that any carbon dioxide build up in masks should not impact people who wear face masks in order to prevent COVID-19 infections and transmission.
While holding your breath without coughing during an at-home lung test might give you some very basic indication about your lungs' capacity, these tests are not accurate or reliable indicators about your overall lung health or a COVID-19 infection.
There is no evidence to suggest that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines or non-mRNA COVID-19 vaccines would result in cytokine storms. Cytokine storms happen when outside pathogens trigger an overproduction of proteins called cytokines. This overproduction can result in damaged lung tissue, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and death. While no single definition of cytokine storm is widely accepted, three features of cytokine storms are commonly shared: elevated levels of cytokines, acute systemic inflammatory symptoms, and either secondary organ dysfunction or any cytokine-driven organ dysfunction. Although the mechanisms of lung injury and organ failure in COVID-19 are still being studied, data suggest that cytokine storms contribute to the development and severity of COVID-19 in some patients. One hypothesis about cytokine storms is that they are a consequence of a process through which antibodies bind to viruses and give them easier entry to cells instead of attacking them, which incites a harmful immune response. This is called antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE). Scientists are not yet completely sure if ADE actually promotes cytokine storms and are also considering other factors that may play a role. ADE and cytokine storms can result naturally due to a range of underlying causes; however, there is no evidence that they would result from an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, or any COVID-19 vaccine. In very rare cases, ADE has resulted from vaccines, such as the Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine in the 1960s and the Dengue vaccine in 2016, due to Dengue's four strains. Today’s routinely recommended vaccines, however, do not cause ADE, and Phase 3 trials are designed to specifically detect such negative outcomes. Neither Moderna nor Pfizer-BioNTech, the two leading biopharmaceutical companies that produced the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines being distributed, found any evidence of ADE or cytokine storm from any trial phase. In addition, rates of disease were significantly lower in the vaccinated group, and among those who did contract COVID-19 in the vaccinated group, rates of severe disease were lower than in the placebo group. Scientists and public health professionals will continue to closely monitor vaccinated individuals to ensure that ADE and cytokine storms can be entirely ruled out as a side effect of COVID-19 vaccines. For the moment, however, there is no evidence that shows the vaccines to have such effects.
COVID-19 delirium occurs in patients who have a sudden onset of mental disturbances that results in confusion and a lack of accurate perceptions regarding their environment and current state. Delirium itself is a change in mental abilities that results in the inability to think clearly, reduced awareness, and often emotional shifts. Delirium often occurs rapidly in patients and is frequently attributed to severe or chronic illness, changes in metabolism (the reactions and processes in your body that convert food into energy), infections, and other factors. Researchers and doctors have been drawing attention to the fact that regardless of age, potentially 1/3 of COVID-19 patients can develop symptoms of delirium. More recent studies have seen delirium in 20-30% of hospitalized patients with higher rates occurring in critically ill patients (upwards of 60-70%). For example, Vanderbilt University Medical Center launched a study in July 2020 that will study delirium, among other impacts on the brain, in patients who have been hospitalized with COVID-19. The researchers share that in previous studies of intensive care patients similar to COVID-19 patients, 33-50% experience dementia. Delirium can lead to longer hospital stays, which increases the risk for complications. _This entry was updated with new information on August 20, 2020._
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 doesn't easily spread from contaminated surfaces to humans. While it is not likely, it is still possible for the virus to spread through contaminated surfaces. Recent studies suggest that the more humid a region may be, the longer the virus may survive on surfaces. Another study found that the virus can remain on surfaces like plastic and steel for 48-72 hours, and for up to 24 hours on cardboard. If a person touches a contaminated surface with traces of the virus and then proceeds to touch their eyes, nose, or mouth, they could still become infected if the surface contains large amounts of the virus. Washing your hands for 20 seconds, avoiding touching your face, and cleaning surfaces often is an important step in stopping the potential spread of the virus. The virus that causes COVID-19 primarily spreads through close, person-to-person contact, not through surface contamination, so continuing to maintain six feet (two meters) of distance, wearing a cloth mask over a surgical mask, and staying home as much as possible are the key steps in combatting the virus. The risk of contracting the virus from the surfaces of animals and pets is also considered to be low. The U.S. CDC noted in June 2020 that there is currently no evidence that animals have a significant role in spreading COVID-19 and the risk of animals spreading it to humans is low. However, more studies are needed to determine if and how a variety of animals might be impacted by the virus.
If a pregnant person becomes infected with COVID-19 there is a higher chance they will require hospitalization and suffer more serious symptoms of the disease. In early November 2020, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. CDC) released a report on 400,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44 with symptomatic COVID-19 which found that admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), invasive ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and death were more likely in pregnant women than in non-pregnant women. The report includes that increased risk for admission to the ICU was "particularly notable" among Asian and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander pregnant women, and that both disproportionate risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection and higher risk for death was observed for pregnant Hispanic women. Highlighting the racial/ethic disparities, the report states that "regardless of pregnancy status, non-Hispanic Black women experienced a disproportionate number of deaths." This report adds to the current knowledge around increased risks related to COVID-19 for pregnant women, particularly pregnant women of color, and suggests that pregnant women should be counseled about increased risks of severe illness or death related to COVID-19 as well as measures to prevent infection in their families. Preterm birth has also been associated with COVID-19, according to another report released by the U.S. CDC in early November 2020. The U.S. CDC encourages people to take preventive measures while pregnant and to seek prenatal care throughout pregnancy. If a person is infectious during labor, it is possible for them to spread the virus to the baby. Outside of the U.S., the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that emerging international research suggests pregnant women with COVID-19 are more likely to need intensive care if severely ill, and more likely to give birth prematurely. The latest findings also suggest that pregnant women with COVID-19 who have pre-existing medical conditions, who are older, or who are overweight are more likely to suffer severe health complications due to COVID-19.
Wearing a mask with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) does not increase your risk of getting cancer or any other negative health outcome. PTFE is the polymer that also makes Teflon, the brand name of a non-stick chemical coating commonly used on kitchen appliances such as pots and pans. While some masks are sprayed with PTFE or have a PTFE filter, as PTFE has widely been used in the field of air filtration, it would take a mask with PTFE to 1) be heated to an extremely high temperature — 300 to 400 degrees celsius or 572 to 752 degrees Fahrenheit, 2) for fumes to be released, and 3) for those fumes to be breathed in, for any ailment to be caused. The specific condition the highly unlikely hypothetical scenario would cause is not a cancer, but rather is a flu-like ailment known as “[polymer fume fever](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4544973/),” informally known as Teflon flu. Most surgical face masks do not contain PTFE, and are made out of a different type of plastic called polypropylene. If you do have a mask that contains PTFE, there is no evidence that wearing the mask would cause any flue-like symptoms or other negative outcomes when worn properly and normally.
Scientists and public health practitioners are considering vaccination tactics that differ from those that the FDA and other country’s health regulatory bodies approved. The tactics being considered are primarily halving doses of vaccines and delaying second doses to get first doses to more individuals, but also include reducing the number of doses and mixing and matching doses. Health officials in the UK have already decided to delay second doses of two vaccines, one made by AstraZeneca and one made by Pfizer and BioNTech, and to mix and match the two vaccines for the two doses under limited circumstances. This decision has received mixed responses from scientists and public health practitioners, many of whom are concerned about the lack of data, particularly with regards to a mix-and-match approach. Moncef Slaoui, scientific adviser of Operation Warp Speed, the U.S. effort to accelerate COVID-19 vaccine development and distribution, proposed distributing half-doses of the Moderna vaccine (50 micrograms versus 100 micrograms) on Sunday, December 3, as an approach to increasing the amount of vaccinations available. In support of this approach, Slaoui cited that the Moderna study compared the immune response in people given 50 micrograms against those given 100 micrograms of the vaccine, and that the doses yielded identical responses. However, the trials primarily focused on studying 25 micrograms and 100 micrograms, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which would have to approve the shift in vaccine distribution stated that this data was insufficient to justify a shift to halving doses or other proposed regimen changes designed to stretch out doses at this point, as of January 6, 2020. The data on the 50 microgram doses comes from the Phase 2 study by Moderna, that was tested on hundreds of people versus tens of thousands tested with the 100 micrograms in Phase 3, and was designed to test only for immune response and not efficacy of the vaccine. On the evening of late Monday, January 4, 2021, the U.S. FDA critiqued the idea of halving the doses of the Moderna vaccine, saying that the idea was “premature and not rooted solidly in the available science.” Studies are underway to determine whether doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine can be halved to 50 micrograms in order to double the supply of the vaccination doses in the U.S., according to the National Institutes of Health and Moderna.
There is no evidence that flu shots (influenza vaccines) increase someone's chances of getting COVID-19. Flu shots are widely considered a safe way to help prevent someone from getting sick with the flu. A September 2020 publication in the Journal of Clinical and Translational Science by researchers from the Cleveland Clinic analyzed data from 13,000+ COVID-19 tests, comparing people who received flu shots with people who did not receive flu shots. The researchers found that people who received flu shots were not at higher risk of being hospitalized, being admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), or dying from COVID-19. Doctors and public health experts recommend flu shots for the general public as a safe way to protect against severe illness and death from the flu, which is important during the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce strains on health systems and healthcare workers.
Chloroquine is a medication that is taken to prevent or treat malaria, which is transmitted by mosquitoes bites. It's also used to treat some intestinal infections. On the other hand, hydroxychloroquine is a medication that is also taken to prevent and treat malaria, but it can also treat other diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus. Both of these medications are antimalarials, but hydroxychloroquine is a newer, slightly altered version of chloroquine that has fewer side effects and dissolves more easily in the body, so it is often considered a safer medication for patients to take. Despite recent media coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, neither chloroquine nor hydroxychloroquine are approved treatments against COVID-19. Several research studies conducted around the world have demonstrated that hydroxychloroquine is likely not effective against COVID-19.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 mostly spreads from person to person. The virus is transmitted via tiny droplets from infected people when they cough, sneeze, talk or sing. An individual who might be in close proximity to an infected person can then inhale the virus and get infected themselves. The virus can even spread through people who do not show any symptoms, but are infected with COVID-19. It is not only important to stay home and maintain social distance if you have symptoms, but it is necessary to maintain physical distance even when one may not have symptoms, in order to keep oneself and others around safe from getting infected through any asymptomatic or presymptomatic cases. U.S. CDC and WHO, therefore, recommend that social distancing should be maintained indoors and outdoors between people who are not from the same household. Social distancing, along with other preventative measures, like hand washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and using face masks (the U.S. CDC now recommends wearing a cloth mask over a surgical mask), can reduce the spread of COVID-19 to a great extent.
Early data on whether the COVID-19 vaccines are able to reduce transmission look positive, but more research is needed to get to a conclusion. A person who is vaccinated for COVID-19 may still be able to transmit the virus.
India enacted one of the toughest nationwide lockdown policies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and shut down all travel and movement with barely four hours notice on March 24, 2020. The lockdown disproportionately impacted the informal sector of India (the part of any economy that is not regulated by the government), and left thousands of migrant laborers and daily wage earners stranded. With buses and trains shuttered, migrant laborers had to walk hundreds of kilometers back to their villages, and many died along the way. India's COVID-19 response has been criticized for inadequately accounting for the needs of the most marginalized and vulnerable residents who lacked resources to cope with the abrupt lockdown. Now that the lockdown has ended, the Supreme Court of India has ordered states to identify stranded migrant laborers and facilitate their return to their hometowns. Several states, including West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, and Jharkhand, have reported spikes in infections as more than 10 million migrant workers return to their homes following the easing of lockdown measures. The actual impact of migration on COVID-19 cases is difficult to ascertain, since testing has also improved, but the sudden influx of migrant laborers has made it even more difficult for the state healthcare institutions to treat and care for COVID-19 cases.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), wearing masks is part of an overall strategy to suppress the transmission of COVID-19, along with maintaining at least 2 meters (6 feet) distance and frequently washing your hands. A recent study conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that by wearing two masks, people's protection against the virus in the air dramatically increased. The study demonstrated that wearing any kind of mask provides significantly more protection against infectious COVID-19 aerosols than not wearing a mask. When dummies wearing two masks - like cloth face masks over surgical masks - were exposed to infectious aerosols, their level of protection was roughly 92%. The CDC now recommends fitting a cloth mask over a medical procedure mask, and knotting the ear loops of a medical procedure mask and then tucking in and flattening the extra material close to the face. However, the U.S. CDC does not recommend wearing two disposable masks at one time or another mask on top of a KN95 or N95 mask. There are generally two kinds of face masks that are available: medical masks and non-medical (or fabric) masks. Medical masks can protect people from getting infected as well as prevent people who are infected from spreading disease to others. Therefore, WHO recommends medical masks to be worn by health workers, care givers of patients infected with COVID-19, anyone who has mild symptoms of COVID-19, people with other health conditions which make them more susceptible to COVID-19, as well as people who are 60 years or older because they have a higher risk of getting infected with COVID-19. The WHO advises that non-medical masks should be worn in areas where there is high transmission of COVID-19, crowded places where at least 2 meters (6 feet) physical distancing is not possible, on public transport, in shops and other closed areas. COVID-19 can spread from people without symptoms, as they may not know that they are infected but are equally capable of spreading the virus. Hence, masks should be worn in public settings. The U.S. CDC warns that masks with exhalation valves or vents may not help prevent the spread of COVID-19 from the person wearing such a mask to others, therefore these masks should not be used for that purpose. The U.S. CDC also does not recommend face shields as substitutes for masks because of the large gaps below and alongside the face. Ideally, face shields should be used in combination with face masks. Wearing a face mask protects others from you when you cough, sneeze, talk, or just breathe, particularly indoors or when standing close to someone. Face masks also protect the wearer by preventing people from touching their mouth and nose, as well as reducing the amount of virus inhaled from other people nearby and reducing the risks of severe illness. In addition to social distancing measures (maintaining 6 feet or 2 meters between people), face masks are recommended to prevent the spread of COVID-19, even in hot climates. There is no evidence that surgical masks or cloth masks lower oxygen levels at all. It is important to use a mask that allows you to breathe comfortably while talking and walking and that fits well on your face. For safety, there are exceptions to wearing masks for children under the age of 2, for people with certain medical conditions or who have trouble breathing, and for anyone who is unconscious or unable to remove the mask without assistance. Mask wearing is a fundamental element of pandemic response for respiratory illnesses because masks act as a physical barrier from the release of infectious respiratory droplets that may come from your mouth or nose when you speak, sing, sneeze or cough.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. CDC) recently changed quarantine guidelines. They now recommend that most people who test positive for COVID-19 isolate themselves for 10 days after their symptoms begin. The CDC previously recommended isolation for 14 days for the general population. They changed it because the latest data shows that people with mild to moderate COVID-19 (the majority of patients) are not likely to be infectious for longer than 10 days after first experiencing symptoms. In some cases, people who are experiencing more severe or critical symptoms from COVID-19 may need to quarantine for a longer period of time (up to 20 days after symptoms have started). Asymptomatic patients (individuals who never experience any symptoms, but still test positive for COVID-19) can discontinue quarantine or self-isolation precautions 10 days after their first positive test for COVID-19. Sometimes detectable levels of the virus can still be found in recovered patients, but there is no evidence to indicate that those patients are actually able to transmit the virus to other people. As a result, the U.S. CDC recommends ending quarantine or isolation measures after symptoms have ended. In general, given the limited testing availability in the United States and many other countries, the U.S. CDC does not recommend re-testing patients repeatedly if they have completed a 10-day quarantine if they have no symptoms or if symptoms have gone away, as long as the patient does not have other health conditions that leave them immunocompromised. It is important to note that isolation should only end at 10 days if the person hasn’t had a fever for at least 24 hours or any other symptoms have not improved. Patients with severe immune deficiencies may require additional tests in consultation with public health and infection control experts before to ending their quarantine. The World Health Organization (WHO) still recommends a 13-day period of self-isolation for any person who has tested positive for COVID-19. For asymptomatic patients who test positive for COVID-10, WHO recommends isolating for 10 days after testing positive. If countries decide to implement testing as part of their isolation strategy, the WHO recommends allowing people to stop isolating after two negative rapid tests at least 24 hours apart. Overall, most public health experts recommend a 10-day quarantine after a positive COVID-19 test, or after the start of symptoms.
Health Desk provides on-demand and on-deadline science information to users seeking to quickly communicate complex topics to audiences.
In-house scientists provide custom explainers for critical science questions from journalists, fact-checkers and others in need of accessible breakdowns on scientific information. Topics range from reproductive health, infectious disease, climate science, vaccinology or other health areas.
Meedan's Health-Desk.org makes every effort to provide health- and science-related information that is accurate and reflects the best evidence available at the time of publication. To submit an error or correction request, please email our editorial team at health@meedan.com. All error or correction requests will be reviewed by the Health Desk Editorial and Science Teams. Where there is evidence of a factual error or typo, we will update the explainer with a correction or clarification and follow up with the reader on the status of the request.
Our scientists, writers, journalists, and experts do not engage in, advocate for, or publicize their personal views on policy issues that might lead a reasonable member of the public to see our team’s work as biased. If you have concerns or comments about potential bias in our work, please contact our editorial team at health@meedan.com.
Health Desk provides on-demand and on-deadline science information to users seeking to quickly communicate complex topics to audiences.
In-house scientists provide custom explainers for critical science questions from journalists, fact-checkers and others in need of accessible breakdowns on scientific information. Topics range from reproductive health, infectious disease, climate science, vaccinology or other health areas.
Meedan's Health-Desk.org makes every effort to provide health- and science-related information that is accurate and reflects the best evidence available at the time of publication. To submit an error or correction request, please email our editorial team at health@meedan.com. All error or correction requests will be reviewed by the Health Desk Editorial and Science Teams. Where there is evidence of a factual error or typo, we will update the explainer with a correction or clarification and follow up with the reader on the status of the request.
Our scientists, writers, journalists, and experts do not engage in, advocate for, or publicize their personal views on policy issues that might lead a reasonable member of the public to see our team’s work as biased. If you have concerns or comments about potential bias in our work, please contact our editorial team at health@meedan.com.
Nat Gyenes, MPH, leads Meedan’s Digital Health Lab, an initiative dedicated to addressing health information equity challenges, with a focus on the role that technology plays in mediating access to health through access to information. She received her masters in public health from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, with a focus on equitable access to health information and human rights. As a research affiliate at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, she studies the ways in which health information sources and outputs can impact health outcomes. She lectures at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health on Health, Media and Human Rights. Before joining Meedan, Nat worked at the MIT Media Lab as a health misinformation researcher.
Megan Marrelli is a Peabody award-winning journalist and the News Lead of Health Desk. She focuses on news innovation in today’s complex information environment. Megan has worked on the digital breaking news desk of the Globe and Mail, Canada’s national newspaper, and on the news production team of the Netflix series Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj. She was a Canadian Association of Journalists finalist for a team Chronicle Herald investigation into house fires in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On top of her role at Meedan Megan works with the investigative journalism incubator Type Investigations, where she is reporting a data-driven story on fatal patient safety failures in U.S. hospitals. She holds a Master of Science from the Columbia Journalism School and lives in New York.
Anshu holds a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and a Humanitarian Studies, Ethics, and Human Rights concentrator at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative. She is a Harvard Voices in Leadership writing fellow and student moderator, Prajna Fellow, and the John C. and Katherine Vogelheim Hansen Fund for Africa Awardee. Anshu’s interests include: systemic issues of emergency management, crisis leadership, intersectoral approaches to climate risk resilience, inclusion and human rights, international development, access and sustainability of global health systems, and socio-economic equity. Anshu has worked at the United Nations, UNDP, UNICEF, Gates Foundation, and the Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
Dr. Christin Gilmer is a Global Health Scientist with a background in infectious diseases, international health systems, and population health and technology. In the last 15 years, Christin has worked for the WHO, University of Oxford, World Health Partners, USAID, UNFPA, the FXB Center for Health & Human Rights and more, including volunteering for Special Olympics International’s health programs and running health- and technology-based nonprofits across the country. She obtained her Doctor of Public Health Degree at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, her MPH at Columbia, and spent time studying at M.I.T., Harvard Kennedy School, and Harvard Business School. Christin has worked in dozens of countries across five continents and loves running programs and research internationally, but she is currently based in Seattle.
Dr. Jessica Huang is currently a COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fellow with the Harvard Kennedy School’s Bloomberg City Leadership Initiative. Previously, she worked and taught with D-Lab at MIT, leading poverty reduction and humanitarian innovation projects with UNICEF, UNHCR, Oxfam, USAID, foreign government ministries and community-based organizations across dozens of countries. She also co-founded a social enterprise that has provided access to safe drinking water to thousands in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Formerly trained as an environmental engineer, she earned a Doctorate of Public Health from Harvard and a Master’s in Learning, Design and Technology (LDT) from Stanford. Her projects have won multiple awards, including the top prize in A Grand Challenge for Development: Technology to Support Education in Crisis & Conflict Settings, and led to her being recognized for Learning 30 Under 30. She enjoys being an active volunteer, supporting several non-profits in health, education, environmental sustainability and social justice.
Jenna Sherman, MPH, is a Program Manager for Meedan’s Digital Health Lab, an initiative focused on addressing the urgent challenges around health information equity. She has her MPH from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Social and Behavioral Sciences, with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health. Prior to her graduate studies, Jenna served as a Senior Project Coordinator at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School, where she worked on tech ethics with an emphasis on mitigating bias and discrimination in AI and health misinformation online. Previous experiences include helping to develop accessible drug pricing policies, researching access to quality information during epidemics, and studying the impact of maternal incarceration on infant health.
Nour is a Global Health Strategy consultant based in Dakar (Senegal) and specialized in health system strengthening. Most recently, she worked with Dalberg Advisors focusing on Epidemic Preparedness & Response and Vaccination Coverage and Equity across 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Her previous work experiences include researching the clinical needs in point-of-care technology in cancer care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston; and coordinating the implementation of a colonoscopy quality assurance initiative for a colorectal cancer screening program at McGill University in Montreal. Nour has a Master of Public Health from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, a Master of Arts in Medical Ethics and Law from King’s College London, and a Bachelor of Science from McGill University. She is fluent in French and English.
Shalini Joshi is a Program Lead at Meedan and formerly the Executive Editor and co-founder of Khabar Lahariya - India’s only independent, digital news network available to viewers in remote rural areas and small towns. Shalini transformed Khabar Lahariya from one edition of a printed newspaper to an award-winning digital news agency available to over ten million viewers. She has a sophisticated understanding of local media and gender, and the ways in which they can inhibit women from participating in the public sphere in South Asia. Shalini was a TruthBuzz Partner & Fellow with the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ). She is a trainer in journalism, verification and fact-checking. She has designed, implemented and strengthened news reporting & editorial policies and practices in newsrooms and fact-checking organisations. Shalini set up and managed the tipline used to collect WhatsApp-based rumors for Checkpoint, a research project to study misinformation at scale during the 2019 Indian general elections.
Mohit Nair currently serves as Partnerships Director at FairVote Washington, a non-profit organisation based in Seattle, WA. Previously, he worked with the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Vienna Evaluation Unit and with MSF Operational Centre Barcelona in India. He has conducted research studies on diverse topics, including the drivers of antibiotic resistance in West Bengal and perceptions of palliative care in Bihar. Mohit has also worked as a research consultant with Save the Children in Laos to identify gaps in the primary health system and develop a district-wide action plan for children with disabilities. He holds a Master of Public Health from the Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University.
Seema Yasmin is an Emmy Award-winning medical journalist, poet, physican and author. Yasmin served as an officer in the Epidemic Intelligence Service at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention where she investigated disease outbreaks. She trained in journalism at the University of Toronto and in medicine at the University of Cambridge. Yasmin was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in breaking news in 2017 with a team from The Dallas Morning News and received an Emmy Award for her reporting on neglected diseases. She received two grants from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and was selected as a John S. Knight Fellow in Journalism at Stanford University iin 2017 where she investigated the spread of health misinformation and disinformation during epidemics.
Dr. Saskia Popescu is an infectious disease epidemiologist and infection preventionist with a focus on hospital biopreparedness and the role of infection prevention in health security efforts. She is an expert in healthcare biopreparedness and is nationally recognized for her work in infection prevention and enhancing hospital response to infectious diseases events. Currently, Dr. Popescu is an Adjunct Professor with the University of Arizona, and an Affiliate Faculty with George Mason University, while serving on the Coronavirus Task Force within the Federation of American Scientists, and on a data collection subcommittee for SARS-CoV-2 response with the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. She holds a PhD in Biodefense from George Mason University, a Masters in Public Health with a focus on infectious diseases, and a Masters of Arts in International Security Studies, from the University of Arizona. Dr. Popescu is an Alumni Fellow of the Emerging Leaders in Biosecurity Initiative (ELBI) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Health Security. She is also an external expert for the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC), and a recipient of the Presidential Scholarship at George Mason University. In 2010, she was a recipient of the Frontier Interdisciplinary eXperience (FIX) HS-STEM Career Development Grant in Food Defense through the National Center for Food Protection and Defense. During her work as an infection preventionist, she managed Ebola response, a 300+ measles exposure resulting in an MMWR article, and bioterrorism preparedness in the hospital system. More recently, she created and disseminated a gap analysis for a 6-hospital system to establish vulnerabilities for high-consequence diseases, helping to guide the creation of a high-consequence disease initiative to enhance readiness at the healthcare level.
Ben Kertman is a behavior change scientist and public health specialist who became a user research consultant to help organizations design experiences that change behaviors and improve human well-being. Impatient with the tendency of behavior change companies to use a single discipline approach (e.g. behavioral economics) and guard their methods behind paywalls, Ben spent the last 7 years developing an open-source, multi-discipline, behavior change framework for researchers and designers to apply to UX. Ben is an in-house SME at Fidelity Investments and consults for non-profits on the side. Ben holds a masters in Social and Behavior Science and Public Health from Harvard.
Emily LaRose is a Registered Dietitian and Nutrition and Global Health Consultant who, in addition to her work with Meedan, currently works as a Technical Advisor for Nutrition for Operation Smile. She has been a dietitian for more than 18 years and, over the past 10 years, she has worked for the World Bank, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), PATH, Johnson & Wales University, and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. In her work, she has conducted analytical research and written specialty reports on infant and young child malnutrition, health misinformation, global human milk banking practices, and innovative food system programs; developed tools and protocols for clinical nutrition care delivery in humanitarian hospitals; taught university-level nutrition courses; and provided nutritional care for critically ill hospitalized patients. Emily earned her Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree with a Nutrition and Global Health Concentration at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, her Master of Science in Dietetics at Kansas State University, and her Bachelor of Science in Culinary Arts Nutrition at Johnson & Wales University.
Bhargav Krishna is a Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research in Delhi, and adjunct faculty at the Public Health Foundation of India and Azim Premji University. He previously managed the Centre for Environmental Health at the Public Health Foundation of India, leading research and teaching on environmental health at the Foundation. He has been a member of Government of India expert committees on air pollution and biomedical waste, and has led work with Union and State governments on air pollution, climate change, and health systems. His work has been funded by the World Health Organization, Rockefeller Foundation, Packard Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, and others. He holds bachelors and masters degrees in Biotechnology and Environmental Science respectively, and graduated recently from the Doctor of Public Health program at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. Bhargav also co-founded Care for Air, a non-profit working on raising awareness related to air pollution with school children in Delhi.
Dr. Christine Mutaganzwa is a medical doctor pursuing a Ph.D. program at the Université de Montréal in Biomedical Sciences. She holds a Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery (MMSc-GHD) from Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, and a Master of Sciences (MSc) in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. She graduated from the University of Rwanda with a degree in General Medicine and Surgery. Christine has worked with referral hospitals in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda, during her medical training and after graduation. In addition, she has extensive experience working with rural communities in the Eastern province of Rwanda, where she organized clinical and research activities in active collaboration with colleagues within and outside Rwanda. Her research portfolio cuts across maternal and child health to infectious and chronic diseases. Christine is an advocate for children's healthcare services, especially for underserved populations. She is part of a community of scientists translating scientific findings into understandable and accessible information for the general population. Christine is an avid reader and a lover of classical/contemporary music.
Ahmad is an experienced physician, who earned his medical degree from Cairo University, Faculty of Medicine, in Egypt. He practiced medicine between 2012 and 2017 as a general practitioner where he was involved in primary care, health quarantine services, and radiology. He then taught medicine in Cairo for two years prior to starting his MPH program, at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where he supplemented his experience with knowledge on epidemiology, health systems and global health issues. Additionally, Ahmad has an interest in nutrition, which started as a personal curiosity to how he can improve his own health, then quickly saw the potential for public health nutrition in the prevention and management of multiple, lifelong diseases. His enrollment at Harvard started his transition towards learning about food, and public health nutrition. Ahmad now combines the knowledge and experience of his medical career, with the learnings of his degree to navigate public health topics in his writing and his career. He is a life-long learner and continues to gather knowledge and experience, and works towards maximizing his impact through combatting misinformation through his work with Meedan.
Dr. Uzma Alam is a global health professional working at the intersection of infectious diseases and healthcare delivery in the international development and humanitarian contexts. She focuses on the use of evidence and innovation to inform strategies and policies. Her work has appeared globally across print and media outlets.She has international experience with roles of increasing responsibility across the science value chain having served with academic, non-profit, corporate, and governmental agencies, including advisory commissions and corporate counsel. Uzma is the former secretary of the Association of Women in Science and editor of the Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics. Currently she serves on the Board of the Geneva Foundation. She also leads the Biomedical and Health Sciences Portfolio of the Developing Excellence, Leadership and Training in Science in Africa program (DELTAS-Africa). A US$100 million programme supporting development of world-class scientific leaders on the continent. Plus heading the African Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) Priorities Programme. A programme that engages Africa’s science and political leaders to identify the top STI priorities for the continent that if addressed, offer the highest return on investment for Africa’s sustainable development.
