Berman Institute Monthly Newsletter – September 2020

September 2020

Announcements

Opioids and Public Health
AMA Journal of Ethics
August 2020
Manufacturers of prescription opioids offered assurance in the mid-to-late 1990s that these drugs wouldn’t make patients with pain into patients with substance use disorders. Some physicians believed them and prescribed these drugs without appropriate regard for their addictiveness, contributing to prescription and street opioid misuse that has reached alarming proportions. This issue considers ethical questions that contextualize the opioid epidemic from social, cultural, and policy-based perspectives and illuminates potential solutions. Special issue edited by MBE alum, Hunter Jackson Smith, and featuring a paper: Is Nonconsensual Tapering of High-Dose Opioid Therapy Justifiable? by Travis Rieder

New Report: Interim Framework for COVID-19 Vaccine Allocation and Distribution in the United States
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: Center for Health Security
August 19, 2020
When a COVID-19 vaccine is authorized for use, it will initially be in limited supply. This report offers guidance to help plan for how to allocate and distribute the limited supply during this period of scarcity. Authors include Anne BarnhillJustin BernsteinCarleigh Krubiner and Alan Regenberg

Suzanne Knizner earned a Meeting Professional Certification (or CMP).  This is a professional credential offered by the Events Industry Council based on a high level of professional experience in the meetings industry, professional development hours and passing a rigorous exam.

Events

September 1

More Than Buildings. Reforming Policy for Today’s Schools
Johns Hopkins School of Education
In many ways, COVID-19 offers a unique opportunity for us to better understand the important roles schools play as hubs for social-emotional health, community programming, food security, and more. This session examines how we might utilize this opportunity as a means for broader policy reform. 

August 25
Who’s Left Behind? Equity and the Push to Reopen Schools
Johns Hopkins School of Education
To what extent has equity been a consideration in the nation’s approach to the COVID-19 pandemic in our schools? Have efforts actually contributed to greater gaps in access, learning, and safety for at-risk groups? Featuring Ruth Faden and Megan Collins, this session examines who is being left behind. 

August 20
The Global Food Systems Dashboard: A Tool to Guide Us Towards Healthy and Sustainable Diets
Looking Forward @ Johns Hopkins
August 20, 2020, Noon-1p, EDT
JHU’s most distinguished scholars are engaging the scholarly community by sharing cutting-edge scholarship during the COVID-19 shutdown. Jessica Fanzo recently launched the Global Food Systems Dashboard, which provides decision makers with data to make actionable decisions to improve their food systems. Link for free registration. 

August 19
Theater of War for Frontline Medical Providers – Dramatic readings of Sophocles’ Philoctetes and Women of Trachis
FEATURING: live online performances by Jesse Eisenberg, Frances McDormand, Frankie Faison & Favid Zayas.

Publications

Click to view

COVID-19 and Drug Shortages: A Call to Action
Journal of Managed Care & Specialty Pharmacy
Authors: Andrew G. Shuman, Erin R. Fox, Yoram Unguru

Is Nonconsensual Tapering of High-Dose Opioid Therapy Justifiable?
AMA Journal of Ethics
Author: Travis N. Rieder

Agroforestry diversity, indigenous food consumption and nutritional outcomes in Sauria Paharia tribal women of Jharkhand, India
Maternal & Child Nutrition
Authors: Suparna Ghosh-Jerath, Ridhima Kapoor, Archna Singh, Nilima, Shauna Downs, Gail Goldberg, Jessica Fanzo

Impact of Hospital Visitor Restrictions on Racial Disparities in Obstetrics
ResearchGate
Authors: Alexandra Norton, Tenisha Wilson, Gail GellerMarielle Gross

Shoring up the safety net for children in the COVID-19 pandemic
Nature Pediatric Research
Authors: Tina L. Cheng, Maragaret Moon, Michael Artman, & On Behalf of the Pediatric Policy Council

What Clinicians and Health Professions Students Should Learn About How Pharmaceutical Marketing Influences Opioid Prescribing and Patient Outcomes
AMA Journal of Ethics
Author: Michael A. Erdek

Attacks on Public Health Officials During COVID-19
JAMA
Authors: Michelle M. Mello, Jeremy A. Greene, Joshua M. Sharfstein

Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic Response for Breastfeeding, Maternal Caregiving Capacity and Infant Mental Health
Journal of Human Lactation
Authors: Karleen Gribble, Kathleen A. Marinelli, Cecilia Tomori, Marielle S. Gross

Psychosocial and Clinical Risk Factors Associated with Substance Use in Observational Cohort of Patients with Sickle Cell Disease
Substance Use & Misuse
Authors: Deanna J. Wilson, Sophie Lanzkron, Lydia H. Pecker, Shawn M. Bediako, Dingfen Han, Mary Catherine Beach

Shared Decision Making and Patient-Centered Care in Israel, Jordan, and the United States: Exploratory and Comparative Survey Study of Physician Perceptions
JMIR Formative Research
Authors: Yaara Zisman-Ilani, Rana Obeidat, Lauren Fang, Sarah Hsieh, Zackary Berger

Should “Pain Clearance” Be Routine for Elective Surgery?
AMA Journal of Ethics
Authors: Alexandra M. Dunham, Casey Jo Humbyrd

Vision Needs of Children Who Failed School-based Vision Screening with and without Eyeglasses
Opthalmic Epidemiology
Authors: Ahmed F. Shakarchi, Xinxing Guo, David S. Friedman, Micheal X. Repka, Megan E. Collins

Critical Drugs for Critical Care: Protecting the US Pharmaceutical Supply in a Time of Crisis
American Journal of Public Health
Authors: Mariana P. Socal, Joshua M. Sharfstein, Jeremy A. Greene

Differential Role of Psychosocial, Health Care System and Neighborhood Factors on the Retention in HIV Care of Women and Men in the Ryan White Program:
Journal of the International Association of Providers of AIDS Care
Authors: Mary Jo Trepka, Diana M. Sheehan, Rahel Dawit, Tan Li, Kristopher P. Fennie, Merhawi T. Gebrezgi, Petra Brock, Mary Catherine Beach, Robert A. Ladner

Moral outrage: Promise or peril?
Nursing Outlook
Authors: Cynda Hylton Rushton, Lindsay Thompson

Our life at home: Photos from families inform discharge planning for medically complex children
Birth
Authors: Silvana Barone, Renee D. Boss, Jessica C. Raisanen, Jennifer Shepard, Pamela K. Donohue

Patients’ Views About the Disclosure of Collateral Findings in Pragmatic Clinical Trials: a Focus Group Study
Journal of General Internal Medicine
Authors: Juli M. BollingerGail Geller, Kevin Weinfurt, Elizabeth May, Stephanie R. Morain, Debra J.H. MathewsJeremy Sugarman

Situating the Continuum of Overdose Risk in the Social Determinants of Health: A New Conceptual Framework
The Milbank Quarterly
Authors: Ju Nyeong Park, Saba Rouhani, Leo Beletsky, Louise Vincent, Brendan Saloner, Susan G. Sherman

Diagnosis to death: family experiences of paediatric heart disease
Cardiology in the Young
Authors: Kathryn Neubauer, Erin P. Williams, Pamela K. Donohue, Elliott M. Weiss, Mithya Lewis-Newby, Renee D. Boss

Engaging ALS patients and caregivers (the ALS research ambassadors) to help design the REFINE-ALS biomarker study
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration
Authors: James D. Berry, Richard Bedlack, Debra Mathews, Wendy Agnese, Stephen Apple

HIV-, HBV-, and HCV-Related Information on U.S. Fertility Clinic Websites: A Content Analysis
Health Equity
Authors: Margot Kelly-Hedrick, Marielle S. Gross

Solving the Opioid Crisis Isn’t Just a Public Health Challenge—It’s a Bioethics Challenge
The Hastings Center Report
Author: Travis N. Rieder

Stakeholder perspectives regarding pragmatic clinical trial collateral findings
Learning Health Systems
Authors: Stephanie R. Morain, Debra J. H. Mathews, Kevin Weinfurt, Elizabeth MayJuli M. BollingerGail GellerJeremy Sugarman

Click to see full list

August 31

We Can’t Forget the Nation’s Other Epidemic
The Hastings Center
Written by Travis Rieder.

Eating your vegetables is easier said than done
EurekAlert!
With comments from Jessica Fanzo.

August 27

Bringing Redemptive Voices from Greek Tragedy to COVID’s Frontline Clinicians
Off the Charts
Coverage of the Theater of War events co-hosted by the Berman Institute.

An Ethical Opening for Higher Ed Institutions
Inside Higher Ed
Featuring the eSchool+ Initiative. 

August 25
FDA, Testing, and COVID-19: A “Mid-Mortem”
FDA Law Blog
Gail Javitt is a co-author.

US Braced for Political Row Over Who Gets COVID-19 Vaccines
Financial Times
With comments from Ruth Faden.

August 21

COVID-19 Vaccine Should Go To Essential Healthcare Workers First, Johns Hopkins University Experts Say
WJZ – CBS Baltimore
With comments from Carleigh Krubiner.

August 20

Equitable Allocation of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine
Ethics Talk 
Ruth Faden is a guest.

Who will get the first doses of a coronavirus vaccine? Johns Hopkins experts have some ideas
The Baltimore Sun
Coverage of the recent report, co-authored by Anne BarnhillJustin BernsteinCarleigh Krubiner, and Alan Regenberg.

Protection for All: Equitable Distribution of COVID-19 Vaccines
Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine

With comments from Ruth Faden.

Opinion: Food Systems Dashboard: A Decision-making Tool for Better Food Governance Decisions
AgriPulse
Written by Jessica Fanzo and Lawrence Haddad.

August 19

Rethinking School Closures in COVID-19
Public Health On Call Podcast
Ruth Faden and Annette Anderson are guests.

Will Covid-19 vaccines be safe for children and pregnant women? The data, so far, are lacking
STAT
With comments from Carleigh Krubiner.

August 18

Cellphone Apps Designed to Track COVID-19 Spread Struggle Worldwide Amid Privacy Concerns
Washington Post
With comments from Jeffrey Kahn. This article was also syndicated by South Africa’s Independent Online.

August 17

How to Protect Children’s Eyes During Remote Learning
New York Times
With comments from Megan Collins.

Contact Tracing the Coronavirus
New York City Bar – 44th Street Podcast
August 17, 2020
Joseph Ali and Brian Hutler are guests.

August 16

Vaccine Volunteers Agree to Be Exposed to COVID-19 [VIDEO]
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams – MSNBC
Jeffrey Kahn is a guest.

August 14

Covid-19: Medical expenses leave many Americans deep in debt
BMJ News
With comments from Ruth Faden.

Scientists Say They Developed a ‘Nanobody’ That Protects Against COVID-19
VICE: Motherboard
With comments from Jeffrey Kahn.

A Fake Shot May Be Your Ticket to the Front of the Vaccine Line
Bloomberg Law
With comments from Ruth Faden.

August 12

Maternal Health Pandemic Response Act Proposes Concrete Actions To Improve Evidence, Outcomes, And Equity For Pregnant People
Center for Global Development
By Carleigh KrubinerRuth Faden, and Ruth Karron.

The Ongoing Opioid Epidemic
AMA Journal of Ethics – Ethics Talk Podcast
Travis Rieder is a guest.

August 11

Prescription Pulse
Politico
Federal and state officials are weighing how to reach minority communities, which harbor a deep distrust of a potential vaccine after enduring decades of unethical experimentation. With comments from Ruth Faden.

August 10
Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist Yoram Unguru, MD, MS, MA, Explains the Economic Origins of Drug Shortages and Other Ethical Issues
ASCO Post
An interview with Yoram Unguru.

August 9

Schools should consider community spread, testing capacity before returning to the classroom, expert says
10News – East Tennessee
With comments from Megan Collins.

August 6

What a Doctor Learns From Watching You on Video Chat
The Atlantic
With comments from Jeremy Greene.

Ask An Expert: How To Safely Reopen Schools
KCBS Radio
Featuring Megan Collins, with the the Johns Hopkins eSchool+ Initiative.

Why Parents Are Turning To Pandemic ‘Pods’ As School Year Approaches
KCBS
Megan Collins was a guest.

Scientists and artists collide to help health care workers cope with COVID-19
WISH TV Indianapolis
Coverage of a paper in The Lancet co-authored by Cynda RushtonJeremy Greene and Gail Geller.

August 5

A DIY Vaccine Can’t Solve the COVID-19 Crisis
VICE
With comments from Jeffrey Kahn.

Theater Of War: Using Greek Tragedy To Help Frontline Medical Workers Cope During Covid-19
Forbes
With comments from Cynda Rushton.

August 2

Some countries may get faster access to a COVID-19 vaccine than others. Here’s why
CBC
With comments from Ruth Faden. 

August 1

When a COVID-19 vaccine arrives, which Canadians will get it first?
CBC
With comments from Ruth Faden.

July 31

The Risk That Students Could Arrive at School With the Coronavirus
New York Times
With comments from Annette Anderson with the Johns Hopkins eSchool+ Initiative.

Changing Times, Changing Diets (PDF)
Rural 21
Authored by Jessica Fanzo and Isabella Sarria.

Outreach

September 25
Yoram Unguru will give Pediatric Grand Rounds at St. Agnes Hospital. His talk is titled “Crisis or Business as Usual: Shortages of Lifesaving Medicines for Children with Cancer.” 

September 22
Yoram Unguru will speak to the Children’s Hospital Association. His talk is titled “Ethical Prescribing in the Era of High Cost and Scarce Drugs.”

August 20
Marielle Gross served as a panelist to talk about the Ethics Of The Use Of Wearables For Early COVID Detection as part of the Coronavirus Conversations series hosted by Duke+ DataScience and Duke Science & Society.

Michael Erdek spoke at the 10th World Congress of the World Institute of Pain in Rome, Italy. His talk was titled ““Ethical Responsibility for the Use of Opioids in Pain Treatment.”

August 19
Jeffrey Kahn was an invited speaker at the Ring Central Learning Together Webinar. His talk was titled “Digital Contact Tracing for Pandemic Response: Ethics and Governance Guidance.”

August 15
Carleigh Krubiner spoke to Project Insight of The Philippines. Her talk was titled “COVID-19 Vaccine: The Race and What Comes After.”

August 10 – September 10
Jeremy Sugarman will give a talk titled “Ethical Considerations of Stem Cell Use from Cord Blood and Tissues” at the 2020 Cord Blood Conference—Path to the Future, hosted by the Arizona Public Cord Blood Program.

August 7-8
Ruth Faden was among presenters at the virtual meeting of the Committee on Equitable Allocation of Vaccine for the Novel Coronavirus at The National Academies.