Draft
2 min
Experts at the School of Health Professions and Human Services, the Saltzman Community Services Center, and the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell are available to offer commentary on the most important health and wellness topics of the day, including:
Measles – Infectious disease expert Bruce Farber, MD and public health expert Anthony Santella, DrPH can discuss the rising rate of measles in the U.S., which is nearing record levels this year, the value of vaccinations, and the impact of the outbreak on the general population.
Suicide - Psychology professors William Sanderson, PhD and Mitchell Schare, PhD, director of the Phobia & Trauma Clinic, can discuss how to talk about this sensitive topic with vulnerable individuals including children, who went to ERs for suicidal thoughts and attempts in 2015 at twice the rate they did in 2007. Public health professor Martine Hackett, PhD can discuss trauma and traumatic grief as an underlying cause of many public health issues, including infant mortality, maternal mortality, substance use disorder, and sexually transmitted infections. She can also address how “diseases of despair” have contributed to a decline in life expectancy in the United States for two years in a row.
Aging and disability – People with joint issues such as aching, pain, and stiffness who get at least an hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity every week are more likely to be disability free after four years than those who do not get exercise, according to a new study. Experts in orthopedics and geriatrics can discuss why preserving mobility and independence are so important as a generation of Americans ages – more than 78 million people will be 65 years or older by 2035, according to recent Census figures. Public health professor Corinne Kyriacou, PhD can also address public health policy and social justice issues related to aging in America.
USA Today: Booming measles cases rocket toward record: Up nearly 100 from last week
Dr. Hackett's research focuses on public health and health inequities, particularly in the American suburbs and minority communities.
Vice Dean for Administration, HPHS and Vice Dean of Health Professions and Human Services and Associate Professor of Population Health
1 min
A Newsday story on the forecast for a warmer and wetter winter features an interview with Dr. Jase Bernhardt, associate professor of geology, environment, and sustainability. “We expect it to be a wetter winter, but whether that’s big snowstorms or tilting more towards rain, that’s harder to say,” Bernhardt explained. “More precipitation could mean more snow, but then if it’s not cold, then you have more mixed precipitation or rain.”
1 min
Mark Lukasiewicz, dean of The Lawrence Herbert School of Communication, talked to Newsday about Katie Zacharia’s five-day tenure as White House press secretary. He explained that the person in that challenging role needs to have a high level of credibility with the press. “It is a tough job, but successful press secretaries – and there have been several in the two Trump administrations – I think take a different approach, which is not the kind of bumbling approach that this press secretary took,” Lukasiewicz said. “You have to have a very deep command of the facts and policies of the president … so we’ll see who’s next in line.”
1 min
Martine Hackett, associate professor and chair of population health, spoke with Newsday about health and wellness advice disseminated by social media influencers. People looking to make a lifestyle change are likely to look at posts by influencers. Dr. Martine Hackett, chair of the population health department at Hofstra University, said posts from these influencers can be helpful to people looking for detailed wellness information that they might not be able to get at a routine office visit with their doctor. “You can go for your annual health checkup, but if you are younger and don’t have a chronic disease, you might be told to exercise, but they don’t have the time to tell you how,” she said. “And you may not be able to go to a nutritionist or a trainer.”
Check out some other posts from Hofstra University
1 min
A Newsday story on the forecast for a warmer and wetter winter features an interview with Dr. Jase Bernhardt, associate professor of geology, environment, and sustainability. “We expect it to be a wetter winter, but whether that’s big snowstorms or tilting more towards rain, that’s harder to say,” Bernhardt explained. “More precipitation could mean more snow, but then if it’s not cold, then you have more mixed precipitation or rain.”
1 min
Mark Lukasiewicz, dean of The Lawrence Herbert School of Communication, talked to Newsday about Katie Zacharia’s five-day tenure as White House press secretary. He explained that the person in that challenging role needs to have a high level of credibility with the press. “It is a tough job, but successful press secretaries – and there have been several in the two Trump administrations – I think take a different approach, which is not the kind of bumbling approach that this press secretary took,” Lukasiewicz said. “You have to have a very deep command of the facts and policies of the president … so we’ll see who’s next in line.”
1 min
Martine Hackett, associate professor and chair of population health, spoke with Newsday about health and wellness advice disseminated by social media influencers. People looking to make a lifestyle change are likely to look at posts by influencers. Dr. Martine Hackett, chair of the population health department at Hofstra University, said posts from these influencers can be helpful to people looking for detailed wellness information that they might not be able to get at a routine office visit with their doctor. “You can go for your annual health checkup, but if you are younger and don’t have a chronic disease, you might be told to exercise, but they don’t have the time to tell you how,” she said. “And you may not be able to go to a nutritionist or a trainer.”
