Letter to the Editor published!

Letter to the Editor in New Jersey Star Ledger

As a component to my Media Advocacy and Public Health course, I submitted a letter to the editor to the New Jersey Star Ledger regarding an editorial on HIV medication patent pools. I am glad to report that not only was it published but it was the featured letter in its own gray box. Below is a copy and paste of the Letter.

Jump into the pool

The Star-Ledger May 1 editorial “To save lives, Johnson & Johnson should jump into the patent pool” presents a challenging yet vital component in addressing the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. However, it misses one essential piece of the equation: Treatment saves lives and prevents infections.

A growing body of scientific literature demonstrates consistent HIV treatment is an evidence-based form of prevention and could be effective to achieve population-level reductions in new infections. One such study, across seven African countries, enrolled 3,408 HIV-positive individuals and their HIV-negative partners with results showing transmission was 92 percent less likely if the HIV-positive person was on treatment.

The science is clear: Treatment saves lives and prevents infections. However, 10 million eligible HIV-positive individuals worldwide do not have access to treatment — a million plus more than the entire population of New Jersey.

Johnson & Johnson already runs meaningful multimillion-dollar programs protecting the environment and deworming children in Cameroon. However, if it is true to its mission statement’s commitment to provide access to its products for people in need, it should follow the lead of others in the pharmaceutical industry and take a seat at the patent pool table.

Marco Ambrosio, Livingston

Letter to the Editor - (Scroll to Bottom)
Original Article

A special invite for World AIDS Day

I've been asked by the African Public Health Network at Hopkins to partake in a World AIDS Day panel. It is an unexpected honor given the amount of MPH students who have conducted research or worked in numerous countries on this topic.

Given the workload and upcoming finals, I will post a more proper and informative blog of the occasion during Winter break. I'm guessing a little after the New Year will do it!

Intro to Linear Regression

I stumbled upon this video last week when I was reviewing some of the concepts we are covering in biostatistics. The video is a great introduction to linear regressions, a concept that depicts the relationship between two variables. Linear regressions are a hallmark of statistical analysis and used in multiple fields that span from economics to medical research. With the biostats midterm two weeks away, I thought it could be helpful to others.

Economics of a Cupcake Factory

My younger sister is using it to learn algebra. My father uses it to explain the stimulus package and now I use it to supplement my Budgeting and Finance course at Hopkins. What is it? It's Khan Academy, a free library of tutorials explaining binomials to biology to banking in one central website. Salman Khan, the voice behind the magic pen, has earned the title "Bill Gate's favorite teacher" and as an introduction I have chosen to post the "Economics of a Cupcake Factory". The series covers the fundamentals of starting and running a product based business and may help supplement some of our Budgeting and Finance lectures before the midterm.