COVID-19

The COVID-19 epidemic challenges all of us, both personally and professionally. While it has energized many of us by spotlighting our role as public health professionals, there is an enormous amount of work to be done. The professional challenges include fighting the epidemic itself as well as anticipating and preventing the secondary health effects that follow from anxiety, social isolation, and economic recession. The personal challenges, as we all know, are wide-ranging even in the short term. Nevertheless, the professional contributions being made by our students, staff, faculty, and alumni are extraordinary. Keep up the good work, and above all keep up the recommended risk-reduction practices that help us all stay safe. 

Our Experts address COVID-19

Hoffman says scientists and vaccination proponents need to get better at engaging on social media to combat vaccine misinformation

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INSIDER – As the anti-vaccine movement grows on social media, Beth Hoffman (BCHS '19, '23) talks about the importance of public health professionals having an active presence on social media. Now is the time for more scientists to find creative ways to get information out to combat conspiracy theories. We shouldn't wait for the COVID-19 vaccine to be ready to before sharing accurate information about vaccines.  

Understanding and Addressing the COVID-19 Infodemic

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Since the initial outbreak of the novel coronavirus COVID-19, social media misinformation appears to be spreading faster than the virus itself, prompting the WHO to declare an "infodemic" of misinformation. During this conversation, BCHS's Steve Albert and Beth Hoffman (BCHS '19 '23) will discuss how COVID-19 related misinformation fits within the framework of science denialism, and provide strategies to help public health professionals and othe... 

Felter on informing the public when COVID-19 guidelines keep changing

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90.5 WESA - “It’s really challenging from a communications standpoint,” said BCHS’ Elizabeth Felter. For example, the World Health Organization started using “physical distancing" instead of “social distancing” because it’s important to be physically distant but still be socially connected.  It's difficult to change this kind of public health messaging once its use has become so widespread.  

Phylogenetic Trees - What They Can (and Can't) Tell us About COVID-19

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Some of the most intriguing mysteries of the epidemic can be investigated by creating phylogenetic trees - genetic family trees of the virus. IDM's Jeremy Martinson and HUGEN and BIOST's Eleanor Feingold talk about how these trees are created and what we can and cannot learn from them. Where did the virus come from? How did it spread? How long has it been in the U.S.? And is there really a "turbo-charged" strain that is more infectious than the ... 

Roberts on agent-based modeling and finding the right balance to easing restrictions

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CLEVELAND.COM - Pitt Public Health researchers are monitoring the coronavirus through FRED , which is short for a Framework for Reconstructing Epidemiological Dynamics. The agent-based modeling system uses population data to represent each person in a geographic region. The FRED team is currently researching scenarios for easing social-distancing measures and reopening. The goal is to identify strategies that could be most effective.  

Is Remdesivir a New COVID-19 Standard of Care? Althouse responds to the NEJM Data

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CONTAGION LIVE – In response to concerns about analyses of the relationship between morality and time-to-recovery remdesivir data, Andrew Althouse (EPI ’13), assistant professor at Pitt’s Division of General Internal Medicine, said that “deaths were assigned a failure to recover and the ‘worst’ time possible, so this does not result in a biased estimate of recovery.”  

COVID-19 Events

Minimize Share stories about your COVID-19 work

If you are doing COVID-19-related work and would like the school to share your story online, in social media, and other venues, send a short paragraph to phcomm@pitt.edu describing what you are doing or visit publichealth.pitt.edu/share-news. 

Recent Announcements

Coming up: Lessons Learned from the HIV Epidemic and their Application to COVID-19 

Coming up: Lessons Learned from the HIV Epidemic and their Application to COVID-19

Join the MidAtlantic AIDS Education and Training Center on Thursday 5/28 at 2 p.m. to learn how the past 30 years of the HIV epidemic relates to the current COVID-19 pandemic. Then, identify key steps in educating health professionals from the HIV epidemic, and discuss how lessons learned from the ... (05/14/2020)

"Conversations about COVID-19" seminar series continues! 

"Conversations about COVID-19" seminar series continues!

Each Friday this May and June, Pitt Public Health experts will have a conversation about different aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic and then address questions from attendees. The goal of the COVID-19 series is to provide our school community, alumni, and the public with credible information about t... (05/06/2020)

Chancellor's message: Planning for Fall 2020 (5/1) 

Chancellor's message: Planning for Fall 2020 (5/1)

Chancellor Gallagher thanks the Pitt community for "making it happen" over recent weeks and invites us to turn to prepare for the fall and plan for operations—navigating multiple possible scenarios and significant uncertainty—as government restrictions continue to evolve. During this intense planni... (05/06/2020)

Pitt Public Health COVID-19 update (4/24) 

Pitt Public Health COVID-19 update (4/24)

Congratulations to everyone for making it through the term and especially to all of our new graduates. Pat yourselves on the back for the creativity, flexibility, and empathy that got us through the past five weeks. The experiences that we have had together (apart) these past few weeks have had an ... (04/28/2020)

Exemption process for in-person practice experiences (Summer 2020) 

Exemption process for in-person practice experiences (Summer 2020)

Because University educational activities are remote for this summer, practice experiences (e.g. internships, practicums and residencies) should be remote. Rare exceptions can be made after school-level review, prioritizing student safety including physical distancing. Each exemption request will b... (04/22/2020)

Student Emergency Assistance Fund 

Student Emergency Assistance Fund

The health and safety of our Pitt community, particularly our students, is paramount. The provost's Student Emergency Assistance Fund provides financial support for degree-seeking Pitt students with unanticipated and insurmountable expenses related to emergency situations. Undergraduate, graduate... (04/13/2020)
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