Case closed! Learn about the "Behind the Scenes" of your favorite episodes! Meera, Dina, and Vijeta have a nostalgic and fun conversation about the making of Case Confirmed and reveal tips for other podcasters. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of our 20 episode podcast series!

In the second episode of this two part special episode, Dina interviews Dr. Rachel Robitz on the mental health impact of human trafficking on survivors. Dr. Robitz is the director of the Family Medicine/Psychiatry residency program at UC Davis. In this episode, Dr. Robitz also delves into the historical context around human trafficking in the US.

Originally envisioned as a 20 episode podcast series, we are completing the podcast with a 2-part special episode on human trafficking. In Part 1, Vijeta interviews Dr. Hanni Stoklosa of HEAL Trafficking. As an emergency medicine physician, she discusses why human trafficking should be viewed through a public health lens. She discusses her own experiences in the ER and the various touchpoints that trafficking survivors have with the healthcare system. Join us as Case Confirmed explores why a paradigm expansion is necessary, and why human trafficking is a public health issue.

In this episode, Case Confirmed interviews Andrew Cross, engineer and CEO of Everwell Health. We talk about tuberculosis (a bacterial infection of the lungs)and how Everwell Health is helping patients adhere to the TB treatment protocol. TB treatment involves a long-term antibiotic regimen under the observation of a healthcare provider, which can make adherence challenging. Andrew talks about some of Everwell Health's innovations, including 99DOTS. To learn more, visit 99dots.org.

Meera asks Dr. Jagpreet Chhatwal about his COVID-19 simulator tool, which uses mathematical modeling to forecast the spread of COVID-19. In this episode, he also gives great career advice to public health students about their future careers. Dr. Chhatwal is the Associate Director of the MGH Institute for Technology Assessment and an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School.

Microfluidics is a new frontier in science with the potential to vastly transform healthcare. Check out this Case Confirmed interview where Meera talks with Dr. Katharine Elvira, chemist and Canada Research Chair for New Materials and Techniques in Health Applications, and learn more about this disruptive and innovative field. Potential applications include drug discovery, cancer research, rapid diagnostics, and more.

How has the COVID-19 pandemic shaped how we think about tracking infectious diseases? On this episode, Dina interviews Inder Singh, founder and CEO of Kinsa, a smart thermometer and data mapping software that can detect, in real time, where illness is spreading. Kinsa's data is verified to see illness trends over 2 weeks before the CDC. This conversation explores Inder Singh's motivations for founding Kinsa, how this innovative technology is being used, ethical considerations around in-home data tracking, and his vision for curbing the spread of infectious illnesses.   To learn more about Kinsa, please visit https://kinsahealth.com/ Through 9/30/21, Kinsa is offering Case Confirmed listeners 15% off any of their products with the code CONFIRMED: https://kinsahealth.com/shop

On this episode, Meera and Vijeta interview Jessi Kneeland to discuss body image and public health. Jessi Kneeland is a certified life coach and clinical sexologist, on a mission to help folks break free from body image issues, body anxiety, and body hatred. By digging deep into the root causes of their body image issues, she helps people move toward body neutrality, radical self-acceptance, and a deep sense of self-worth and confidence that has nothing to do with how they look.

What are the latest innovations in biomedical testing? Meera interviews Dr. Aysha Akhtar, a double-board certified neurologist, preventive medicine specialist, and U.S veteran. For a decade, Dr. Akhtar was a Medical Officer at the Food and Drug Administration. She's currently the President and CEO of the Center for Contemporary Sciences, which innovates biomedical testing methods to be more human-specific. Learn more about the Center for Contemporary Sciences: https://www.contemporarysciences.org/ Learn More about Human Organs on Chips (Harvard): https://wyss.harvard.edu/technology/human-organs-on-chips/

On this episode of Case Confirmed, Meera and Dina interviewed Dr. Alister Martin, an emergency medicine physician and hero on the front lines of the pandemic. We talked to him about voting during a pandemic, and his non-profit, non-partisan project called VotER that enables patients to register to vote from emergency rooms nationwide. To learn more about VotER, you can visit vot-er.org.

Mincome refers to the Manitoba annual basic income experiment, which took place in the 1970s. In these times of COVID-19, with mental health and economic problems rising in tandem, and with the introduction of stimulus checks, the idea of universal basic income is making more "cents" than ever. What if you received a minimum basic income, regardless of whether you worked or not? How would that affect healthcare? Would people stop working? Or is universal basic income the key to better public health? In this episode, Case Confirmed interviews health economist Dr. Evelyn Forget to shed light on these questions and more!

On this episode, Dina interviews Dr. Elaine Fitzgerald Lewis, a maternal & child health expert at the Education Development Center. They discuss the benefits of breastfeeding for both individuals and populations as a whole. They cover the challenges to successful breastfeeding as well as program & policy efforts to support those who choose to feed their infants this way. Dr. Fitzgerald Lewis also shares her personal experiences with breastfeeding advocacy. They highlight racial equity as a critical factor. References: 1. Neu J, Sullivan S. Baby and breast: a dynamic interaction. Pediatric Research. 2012;71(2):135-135. doi:10.1038/pr.2011.35 2. Victora CG, Bahl R, Barros AJD, et al. Breastfeeding in the 21st century: epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect. The Lancet. 2016;387(10017):475-490. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01024-7 3. Anstey EH, Chen J, Elam-Evans LD, Perrine CG. Racial and Geographic Differences in Breastfeeding - United States, 2011-2015. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2017;66(27):723-727. doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6627a3 4. Office of the Surgeon General (US), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US), Office on Women’s Health (US). The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding. Office of the Surgeon General (US); 2011. Accessed August 3, 2020. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK52682/ 5. Rollins NC, Bhandari N, Hajeebhoy N, et al. Why invest, and what it will take to improve breastfeeding practices? The Lancet. 2016;387(10017):491-504. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01044-2

In this episode, Meera discusses antibiotic resistance with our guest epidemiologist Dr. Maya Nadimpalli. If we do nothing to change course, our future may involve millions of preventable deaths due to untreatable infections. Common infections that could become more difficult to treat include Staph infections, UTIs, and post-surgical infections. In this illuminating interview with Dr. Nadimpalli, she explains how antibiotic resistance emerges, such as antibiotic overuse in pig farms. Learn more about what we can do to avert our next big infectious disease disaster - antibiotic resistance - before it's too late!

In this episode, recorded in 2019, we talked to cardiologist Dr. Jason Wasfy of Massachusetts General Hospital. We discussed his recent research, and asked him how we can turn research insights into action that can improve health care. His research interests include evaluation of the patient impact of changes in health policy, variation analyses, novel forms of care delivery, and population health management. One of his interesting studies looks at public health and voting outcomes in the 2016 election. Join us for an intriguing conversation about health policy and his advice for aspiring health care providers.

This interview explores the mechanisms of abortion-related legal frameworks in the United States, and the intersection between public health and abortion-related laws. A health law expert and professor of law, Nicole Huberfeld offers clear insight and perspective. This episode was recorded in May 2019, and is current to that date.

Are modern human societies creating the perfect conditions for a major pandemic of bird flu? In this interview with leading physician and author Dr. Michael Greger, we explore how industrialized animal agriculture systems are a powder keg for new strains of avian influenza (bird flu). His book "Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own Hatching" discusses the inevitability of a serious pandemic of bird flu -- expected to lead to millions of deaths worldwide -- unless the public health world takes this threat seriously and works towards prevention. Dr. Greger discusses lessons learned from the 1918 flu pandemic and what we can do to stop the next one.

On this episode of Case Confirmed, we spoke with Dr. Howard Weiner, a neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital. We learned about the connections between gut health and brain disorders. Dr. Weiner is also a filmmaker whose work has been featured at the Tribeca Film Festival. He has a background in philosophy and released a documentary titled "What Is Life?" which asks people from around the world the big questions. In the second half of the episode, we discuss consciousness, AI, and how to balance passionate pursuits with your professional life.

An interview with expert epidemiologist Dr. Kim Shea, a professor at BU School of Public Health, discusses the flu vaccine. Please note that this episode was recorded in March of 2018 and refers to the previous year's flu season(2017-2018).

On this episode of Case Confirmed, we explore the connections between menstrual taboo, public health campaigns, capitalism, and embodiment with Dr. Chris Bobel of UMass Boston.

We interviewed psychiatrist Dr. Arthi Kumaravel about mental health, especially in the context of improving mental health on college campuses. Dr. Kumaravel is an incredibly insightful speaker who received her MD from the University of Pennsylvania.