In this episode of the Contagion Podcast , we take on one of the most pressing challenges in modern medicine: vaccine hesitancy. As misinformation spreads rapidly across social media and trust in institutions continues to shift, clinicians are increasingly navigating complex, emotionally charged conversations with patients and families. To explore this issue, we sit down with Dr. Lisa Hayes, a board-certified pediatrician, to better understand what vaccine hesitancy looks like today—from inside ...
Apr 21, 2026•54 min•Season 2Ep. 3
As 2026 begins, Contagion Podcast reflects on 2025, a year that tested global public health systems and reshaped how we think about infectious diseases, trust, and preparedness. In this special year in review episode, hosts Jackie Sherbuk and Vivian Vega examine the most consequential infectious disease and public health stories of the year—placing outbreaks, policy decisions, and scientific breakthroughs into clear clinical and societal context. The episode begins by confronting one of the defi...
Jan 16, 2026•54 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Our inaugural episode of Season 2 of The Contagion Podcast opens as show producer Dr. Richard Oehler and show co-host Dr. Vivian Vega reflect on how much has changed in the fields of infectious diseases and public health since our Season 1 finale was posted in June. Drs. Oehler and Vega share some very timely updates in their ID news segment--recounting changes at the CDC as well as several important epidemiological and research developments. Next, Dr. Vega and our special guest, Infectious Dise...
Nov 05, 2025•54 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In the Season one finale of our show, hosts Dr. Vivian Vega and Dr. Jackie Sherbuk reflect on the evolving landscape of infectious diseases and public health. Yet rather than linger on setbacks, they look ahead, posing the critical question: “What are the future pandemic threats?” To explore what transforms a simple pathogen into a global threat, they examine three key characteristics: transmission , virulence , and available countermeasures . Transmission, it turns out, must strike a delicate b...
Jun 30, 2025•56 min•Season 1Ep. 9
It felt inevitable. Years of declining childhood vaccination rates were bound to have consequences. In early 2025, those consequences became alarmingly real as a measles outbreak emerged in West Texas and Eastern New Mexico. Before the introduction of the measles vaccine in 1963, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that measles infected three to four million Americans annually, causing 48,000 hospitalizations and 400 to 500 deaths each year. The introduction of th...
Apr 02, 2025•43 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Virology vanguard Dr. Bob Gallo is far from ready to slow down. Now in his seventh decade as one of America's top scientists, he could easily sit back and enjoy the fruits of his numerous and pioneering achievements. His groundbreaking work began in the 1970s with research into human retroviruses, including the discovery of the T-cell growth factor (IL-2) and the identification of the Human T-Cell Lymphotropic Virus (HTLV-1) in 1980, earning him his first Lasker Award, often referred to as “Amer...
Jan 29, 2025•51 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Having just survived the calorie-fest of the Thanksgiving Holiday, show hosts Drs. Vivian Vega and Jackie Sherbuk reflect on the changing seasons--and that has them thinking NOT just about the weather, but about the climate. Here to discuss the impact of a changing climate on infectious diseases, they welcome Dr. Lauren Rybolt, Chief Infectious Diseases Fellow at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine. Dr. Rybolt mentions that in the Tampa Bay Area, especially after the rece...
Dec 10, 2024•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 6
They're back! Infectious Diseases Clinicians and show hosts Drs. Vivian Vega and Jackie Sherbuk reflect on the last few weeks since Episode 4. In the face of devastating storm surge from Hurricane Helene, and severe wind and flooding from Hurricane Milton, the Tampa Bay Area and its medical centers experienced a back to back punch, separated by only two weeks. This left some hospitals flooded, beaches seriously eroded, streets filled with debris, power outages lasting as much as 5-7 days, and co...
Nov 04, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 5
For our fourth episode, show hosts Dr. Vivian Vega and Dr. Jackie Sherbuk candidly admit that they've been spending a LOT of time thinking about "not-so-forgotten infectious diseases." These are syndromes that the public may not hear about everyday, but that are still very important to the medical community and to the public at large. Although it was the first human contagion ever successfully eradicated, Smallpox as a disease still looms large, not just as a potential agent of bioterrorism, but...
Sep 03, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 4
In our third episode, show hosts Dr. Vivian Vega and Dr. Jackie Sherbuk kick things off by discussing the latest news from the world of infectious diseases. Important topics highlighted include a Listeria outbreak linked to deli meat, a progress report on long acting medications for HIV prevention, and an update on bird flu (H5N1 Influenza) associated with poultry and dairy cattle. With summer clearly in full swing, our main topic this episode is Primary Amoebic Meningoencephalitis, or PAM. Gues...
Jul 31, 2024•45 min•Season 1Ep. 3
A preview of our podcast series from our hosts, Drs. Vivian Vega and Dr. Jackie Sherbuk
Jul 25, 2024•40 sec
In 2007, Australian former pro tennis player, former World No. 1 in doubles and US Open singles champion, Sam Stosur was at the top of her game, before succumbing to a mysterious illness that left her unable to play--with prolonged fatigue, severe headaches, chest pains, and weakness. She struggled for months before seeing an infectious diseases (ID) specialist who ultimately diagnosed her with a tick-borne illness. Sam tells her own story to open the episode, and then hosts and ID clinicians, D...
Jun 28, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 2
In our inaugural episode, show hosts Drs. Vivian Vega and Jackie Sherbuk discuss the upcoming Summer travel season and important infections spread by contact with water. Vibrio vulnificus is a potentially deadly illness spreading in the U.S. due to climate change that peaks in the hottest summer months. Vivian discusses risk factors for exposure and how vulnerable individuals can stay safe. Next, Jackie shares three limericks tied to specific waterborne infections, and Vivian has to guess the in...
May 28, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 1
