Westmont杂志 传染病专家传播可信信息

在传染病研究期间. Ed Blews III ' 03 learned about the potential for a global pandemic. “But I never thought we’d have to navigate something like COVID-19,他说. “这是一个毁灭性的时刻, but I believe we’ll emerge stronger as a country and a faith community and do a better job of supporting the people around us.”

A specialist in adult infectious diseases for Kaiser Permanente, Ed speaks out on media outlets to combat misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccines. The Los Angeles Times quoted him in a January 10, 2022, story about the infectious Omicron variant. 注意到病例数量激增, 他告诉《ag娱乐官网》, “we are all beginning to look at processes and ways to continue to deliver healthcare in a safe fashion to the folks that need it while navigating high numbers of hospitalized patients.”

Ed helps release information on Kaiser’s social media channels through their social media team, 他还定期在当地电视台发表讲话, 报纸和媒体. “I answer common questions and put a face and voice to the scientific community to provide information people can trust,他说. “We do everything we can to get accurate messages out and be another reputable source. Social media has become such a pervasive influence that it’s hard to overcome misinformation.”

Ed says his LIBERAL ARTS background at Westmont helps him write emails and give oral presentations. “My education allows me to be a better physician and deal with all the thinking required in the past two years,他说.

A pre-med student, he wanted to take classes outside the sciences. He worked closely with his professors to prepare for medical school while majoring in English. “I went on Europe Semester and studied Shakespeare, poetry and literature,他说. “I played the trumpet in the jazz band and competed with the tennis team for a year. I loved being engaged with my professors and asking questions challenging preconceived notions about Christianity. 韦斯特蒙为我的人生奠定了基础.”

Ed earned his medical degree at Loma Linda Medical School and completed a residency there combining internal medicine and pediatrics. His two-year fellowship at Harbor UCLA focused on adult infectious diseases. He returned to Loma Linda as attending physician in adult infectious diseases and associate medical director for hospital epidemiology. 2016年，他加入凯撒.

在COVID-19占据他的时间之前, Ed consulted on infections ranging from bacterial to malarial to viral, 包括艾滋病毒. He balanced clinical duties with responsibility for infection control. 2014年埃博拉疫情期间, he developed systems and protocols to protect providers and leaned on this experience during the pandemic.

Now regional physician director of infection prevention and control/hospital epidemiology at Kaiser, he wrote early protocols responding to COVID-19 and dealing with challenges like shortages of N95 masks and tests. “We quickly learned we faced a lot of challenges and had to make the least bad decisions,他说. “我天生是个完美主义者. But I had to do my best in unexpected and unforeseen historic circumstances.

“我们已经知道什么有效，什么无效，什么是安全的. It was frustrating to see people die because we didn’t always know the right way to treat them. The pandemic has demonstrated the scientific method in real time and shown the importance of high quality clinical studies. 在早期, a small study would indicate benefit from a medication that subsequent larger studies disproved. 通过严谨的科学, 我们现在有了, scientifically proven treatments available to both prevent and treat COVID-19.”

Ed seeks to listen carefully to patients and people with different beliefs. “I want to understand their concerns and motivations,他说. “I need to develop trust with patients, and I often acknowledge my own personal concerns. 例如, I was hesitant at first about the vaccines until I saw the data supporting their safety and effectiveness. I share that hesitation so patients feel comfortable asking me questions.

“I don’t feel bitterness about unvaccinated people, just deep sadness. Every unvaccinated patient who dies of COVID-19 is a tragedy. I started doing more media appearances to get more people vaccinated.”

人们如何知道ag娱乐官网COVID-19的真相? Consider the source of the information and the motivation of the people promoting it, Ed suggests. He notes that some podcasters and social media influencers seek clicks for financial gain. 他找的是没有日程安排的网站, 比如县公共卫生网站, 并推荐Medscape, which is peer-reviewed; the Mayo Clinic; Kaiser Permanente, 加州大学洛杉矶分校和洛马琳达分校. “Their only motivation is providing accurate information,他说. “没有什么比和你的医生好好谈一谈更重要的了.”

Ed met his wife, Amber Hall Blews ’03, at Westmont, and they have three children, 11, 8 and 4. 传播学专业, she earned a Master in Education at the University of Redlands, a master’s in Christian leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary and a master’s in psychology at Fuller Graduate School of Psychology, where she completed a Doctor of Philosophy in clinical psychology. She serves as a clinical psychologist at Aspire Therapy Center in Claremont, where they live.