Public Health Epidemiology Conversations

In this episode, I'm sharing with you another valuable resource and will tell you how you can try it out for FREE! That resource is Audible. Audible will provide a free trial of their service to listeners of the Public Health Epidemiology Careers Podcast and also provide financial support to the podcast just for sharing and promoting their service. It is a win-win all around because it's a great resource and I absolutely love using it! I want to explain what audible is, recommend 3 categories to explore and explain why I'm recommending them, then tell you where you can find the link to start your free trial.

This is a coaching episode for both students of public health and professionals who are already in the field of public health. You will want to listen to carefully, think creatively, and check the bottom of this show notes page for details and links. I'm going to share a valuable resource with you, including some of my favorite examples of use, and then tell you how you can try it out for free. I want you to listen carefully, before you sign up for the free trial. This way you can first narrow down which resource you want to use, and then make the most of your free trial period to determine if its something you want to continue or cancel. In other words, I'm going to help you make the most of the free trial period with what I'm about to share with you.

This episode features an interview with Ifeoma Ozodiegwu, a member of the APHA Epidemiology section, and recent graduate of the DrPH program at East Tennessee State University (ETSU). She joins us to discuss her student research of obesity in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Recently, I asked our community to name their biggest public health career challenge, the one thing that was preventing them from accomplishing their career goals. My reason for asking was so that I could direct people toward helpful resources. I found that some people didn't realize that resources were available to address their specific challenges. Some people were aware of the resources, but just not taking action, and others were trying to ignore their challenges and not do anything about addressing them at all. In this episode I will discuss some of the challenges mentioned in the community, and share my feedback and responses to those challenges. The information on this episode will help so many more people who are dealing with similar issues to know that they are not alone and that help exists if they want it. If you are someone who is facing any of the challenges that are discussed in this episode, then listen carefully. I understand that not everyone will want to use these resources, but I also know that some of you have been looking for these resources and will take action. It is my goal to make sure that you are aware of what is available to you. You have options.

In this episode, you will meet the Leah Roman of Roman Public Health Consulting. In a previous episode, I mentioned Leah as a great example of professional networking. Those of you who know her are probably nodding your heads right now. She is very genuine and networking seems to come naturally to her. You may also remember Leah from the very first Public Health Consulting and Entrepreneurship Expo that I held, where she was one of my cohosts. She joins me on this episode to talk about her public health journey, from employee to consultant and business owner. She also has a few tips for anyone who may be interested in consulting. She talks in depth about who she serves in her business, and the course that she created called "Contemplating Consulting: A readiness guide to help public health professionals decide to hit the breaks or take the leap." Listen carefully as Leah describes her online course, and if it is something that you're interested in, then be sure to listen to the full episode, because I will come back after the interview to tell you about a special offer that she is providing just for my podcast audience

In this episode, you will meet the CEO of CVH Consulting, Christie VanHorn. If her name sounds familiar to you, then you may remember her from the very first Public Health Consulting and Entrepreneurship Expo that I held, where she was one of my cohosts. She joins me on this episode to talk about her public health journey, from employee to consultant. She talks about who she serves in her business, her ideal client, the types of services she provides, and what she loves about her role as a consultant. She also has a few tips for job seekers, that are very similar to what you often hear from me. I'm confident that you will enjoy this episode. So sit back, relax, and enjoy my interview with Christie.

In this episode, I share a story, a message, and an opportunity with you all. I encourage you to listen closely, and take action if any part of this message resonates with you. The opportunity is a global health initiative, a fellowship opportunity for visionary young women compelled to carry out the work of achieving universal health coverage for those in greatest need. The story and message is that the initiative is in memory of, Samya Stumo, who died at age 24 in an airplane crash. She was dedicated to reducing obstacles to accessing health care, particularly those faced by women. Samya is the niece of Dr. Rania Milleron, who was my guest on the podcast, back on episode 74, which was recorded and published before this tragedy occurred. Dr. Milleron is a regular listener of this podcast, as well as an active member of the developing your public health career strategy program and group. She is a multidisciplinary professional in public health with a passion for policy and advocacy. Please take the time to listen to episode 74 and learn more about Dr. Milleron and her public health journey.

This is a great opportunity for me to talk to you about my why. In this episode, I explain why I started this podcast, and created programs. Of all of the businesses I could have started, I explain why I chose to build a business around helping all of you get into the field of public health or transition into public health careers. You'll better understand why I care so much.

Dr. Elliston is a public health executive with extensive work experience with several public health institutions. She is the President and CEO of Public Health Solutions Executive Search Firm (PHS), which serves as the catalyst in connecting mid to senior level professionals with top public health firms. Dr. Elliston and I are working on ways to combine efforts and better serve our communities. For now, I'd like you to focus your attention on this interview and get to know Dr. Elliston and learn all about PHS.

Our community has grown tremendously over the last couple of years and I'm thrilled about that. With growth comes change, and it is time to pivot and make adjustments. Not only to accommodate our growth to date, but we must change in order to continue to grow. You know the saying, "what got us here, won't get us there." Change is good. In fact, I will say that change is great! Especially in this case. Listen to the full episode to hear the details. https://www.patreon.com/drchhuntley

This episode features a member of the American Public Health Association (APHA) Epidemiology section. My guest is Dr. Sreelekha Prakash. She shares her journey into public health with a global health prospective. She started her career as a medical doctor, specifically an emergency clinician, treating patients in India. She describes how that experience created an opportunity for research and laid the foundation for her journey into public health and her career in academics and research here in the US, where she serves as a Health Sciences Faculty member pursuing research of health-related issues. Be sure to listen all the way through, because she gives some great career advice toward the end.

My guest on this episode is Dr. Maria Mora Pinzon. She is a preventive medicine and public health physician. Doctors in this specialty use research, epidemiology, quality improvement and policy to promote health. Since they have full medical licenses, they are also able to diagnose and treat patients in a variety of settings. Dr. Pinzon is the president-elect of the Young Physicians section of the American College of Preventive Medicine, which is the medical organization were preventive medicine physicians like Dr. Pinzon connect and obtain new tools and skills to advance their careers. The purpose of the Young Physicians section is to identify needs of young physicians and develop initiatives to address those needs. I first met Dr. Pinzon when she reached out to me and invited me to speak to the physicians in this section and discuss various career opportunities in public health and ways to diversify their income. After learning more about the ACPM, I thought it would be a great idea to invite her on the podcast to share her public health journey. She also shares some ideas about opportunities for collaboration between public health students and preventive medicine physicians.

I'm delighted to introduce you to my special guest on this episode, Rosalie Aguilar. Rosalie is the national project coordinator for Salud America!, which is a national Latino-focused organization that creates culturally relevant and research-based stories, videos, and tools to inspire people to start and support healthy changes to policies, systems, and environments where Latino children and families can equitably live, learn, work, and play. The content created and distributed by Salud America! reaches over 250,000 moms, dads, providers, researchers, community leaders, and school personnel who are interested in working to push for healthy changes in schools and build health equity for Latino, and all kids. I first met Rosalie when she reached out to me as asked me to cohost a TweetChat with Salud America!. This is a weekly event that focuses on various topics that align with the organizations focus. It's held on Twitter's platform every Tuesday at 12pm CST/1pm ET and uses the hashtag #saludtues. The event that I cohosted along with the American Heart Association of Minnesota and a few other organizations, was titled the Impact of Sugar & Healthier Alternatives. The timing of that particular event was aligned with podcast episode #53, Interview with Karen Akins, International Quit Soda Day, where Karen discussed the negative of soda and sugary drinks among children in Mexico. If you haven't heard that episode, then I encourage you to listen to it. I enjoyed the experience and appreciated Rosalie for reaching out to me, and when I invited her to be my guest on the podcast she was equally excited. Now, I knew it would be a very interesting interview, having her discuss Salud America!. However, what I didn't expect was her journey into public health to be so rich and full of experience, passion, and insight. I am very excited to share that interview with all of you.

Today we are going to talk about professional networking in public health by sharing a few tips and specific stories of some recent and awesome networking success story examples. Whether you are seeking, starting, or transitioning into a job in public health, or starting a consulting or other type of public health business, you should definitely give this episode your full attention.

Jane Fadesere has over 16 years of experience as a community pharmacist. She has practiced pharmacy in Maryland, Washington DC, West Virginia, Louisiana and currently in Texas. She has experience in various pharmacy settings including pain management, medical supplies, independent pharmacy, and chain pharmacy. Jane practices medication safety on a daily basis, ensuring that patients receive the right medications and dosages. Jane obtained her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Howard University, Washington DC. She also has a dual MBA/MPH earned from Benedictine University, Lisle IL. She is currently a staff pharmacist with CVS Pharmacy. Her interest in public health started while she was in pharmacy school. In this episode, she discusses some of the opportunities that exist for the role of the pharmacist in public health. She talks about her strong desire to help educate and empower underserved and underinsured populations, especially those who suffer from diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Jane refers to herself as a "volunteer junkie" and has served as a volunteer for the American Diabetes Association (ADA) since 2010, as well as several other organizations. She serves on the Board of Directors of Minority Women Pharmacists Association, Inc. (MWPA). MWPA became incorporated in 2018 and part of their mission is to enhance the presence of minority women in the healthcare industry, provide service to their communities, and to support each other.

Dr. Brown talks about her journey into public health and her experiences along the way. She is a professor, researcher, owns a consulting business, and hosts a podcast. She is passionate about HIV research, mental health, trauma, and aging. She shares some valuable tips and advice for public health students, professionals, and those interested in starting a business. So be sure to listen to this full episode. I also want to point out that this interview was recorded when I was sick. Hopefully you'll be able to move past the sound of my voice and just focus on the information that we actually discuss. I was worried that my congestion would be too much of a distraction, but my interview schedule is sometimes a little hard to maneuver and change and I knew it would be difficult to reschedule the interview. So, I decided to continue as planned. My editor said that I don't sound too bad, but I just wanted to explain that ahead of time.

In this episode, I pour out my heart and even share a personal story to help me drive my message as I discuss the topic of childhood vaccination. I'm not discussing this from the point of whether or not you should vaccinate your children. The purpose of discussing this topic is to address the need for improved public health communication on the topic of childhood vaccination. Social media platforms provide an incredible opportunity for effective public health communication, with millions of users on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. However, I see a missed opportunity to educate, and build trust. It is largely due to poor public health communication. I'm asking for your help with this episode. After you listen, I'm asking everyone to share this episode widely throughout your network of coworkers, classmates, and colleagues.

What is a social entrepreneur? What is a public health entrepreneur? In this episode, I'm going to talk about public health consulting and entrepreneurship. I will start with a discussion about entrepreneurship and then move into the opportunities that exist, and finally share details of the Public Health Consulting and Entrepreneurship Expo. DrCHHuntley.com

My guest on this episode is Heather Flattery, and she is the Manager of Membership and Marketing at the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE). SOPHE is a nonprofit, independent professional association that represents a diverse membership of nearly 4,000 health education professionals and students in the United States and 25 international countries. Heather joins me on this episode to share with all of us about the organization's focus, as well as the mission, vision, and values of SOPHE. She will discuss some of its major accomplishments and also how it uniquely serves the community of public health professionals. Additionally, she shares her own personal journey into public health and provides yet another example of the many important ways that you can serve in this broad public health field.

In this episode, we are going to highlight the work of Haley Greene, one of our student leaders in the American Public Health Association (APHA) Epidemiology section. Haley is currently a graduate student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham working on her Masters of Public Health with a concentration in epidemiology. She is also the Student Liaison Chair in the Epidemiology Section of the APHA. She is going to join us on this episode to describe her research experience, why she chose it, what she's learned from it, as well as how she believes this will help her prepare for her future career in public health.

This special BONUS episode is only available to subscribers of the podcast. Tune in to learn about the new 5-Day Public Health Career Goals Challenge and how you can use this exercise to help you begin to focus on your career goals. Click this link to join the challenge.

In this episode, I introduce you to Dr. Jasmine Ward, founder of Black Ladies in Public Health (BLiPH). BLiPH is a global community of black women who are interested in, are training, and working in public health. The organization promotes scholarship, service, self-care, and support for health equity. This episode is for you even if you are not a black lady in public health, but you are interested in supporting issues, causes, and policy that relates to black ladies in public health. This episode is for you if you want to be inspired by hearing the public health journey of Dr. Ward and her connection with the populations and causes that she cares most about. This episode is definitely for you if you are black, female, and interested in public health. Dr. Jasmine Ward is a health educator with specific interest in understanding and addressing health disparities. She has experience as a professor, community health leader, advocate, and a public health entrepreneur. She serves as an assistant professor at a local college in the Dallas Fort Worth area, and serves as the Director of Programs for a Dallas based organization that is focuses on providing health education, testing, counseling, and support services related to HIV, HepC and substance abuse for Black MSMs, Trans Women, and their families. She is a passionate, driven, and intelligent leader who is authentic, relatable, and has a great sense of humor! I truly enjoyed this interview and appreciate her for taking the time to come on this episode and share her journey, tips, and insights, with all of us.

The Society for the Analysis of African American Public Health Issues (SAAPHI) consists of researchers, academics, professionals, and students who share an interest and passion in improving the health of African American communities. This is accomplished through research, leadership/mentorship and policy. SAAPHI continues to grow and poise itself as a premier research and education organization dedicated to examining the role of race, and more specifically racism, as a contributing factor in determining the health status of African Americans. My special guest in this episode is Dr. Sandy-Asari Hogan, who is the current president of SAAPHI. She describes herself as having the passion for translation of research to practice and describes herself as a "disrupter of disparity and elevator of equity". In essence, she sees herself as a bridge between research and practice.

Cierra Sisters is a community-based organization created by and for African Americans with cancer in the greater Seattle WA area. Cierra Sisters fills a critical public health need by breaking the cycle of fear, increasing knowledge concerning breast cancer in the African-American and underserved communities. The organization empowers the African American community through local, national, and global events and partnerships. Cierra Sisters has partnered with major cancer research institutes, and academic research partners to advance its mission. During the Society for the Analysis of African American Public Health Issues (SAAPHI) conference, I sat next to the founder of Cierra Sisters, Bridgette Hempstead, and we became fast friends. She presented research at the conference and promoted the organization. Bridgette is a 23 year three times breast cancer survivor! The more I learned about her and the organization, the more I was intrigued, inspired, and moved to action. I knew I wanted to support her organization in some way, and also knew that I wanted to bring her on the podcast and introduce her to all of you. So, in just a little while, I will bring you my interview with Bridgette and let her tell you about the organization and her journey. The timing of this episode is important because it aligns with a milestone event that I will let Bridgette explain. Just a side note worth highlighting here is this. Bridgette is not formally trained in public health. She does not have a degree in public health. In fact, she recently spoke to a group in San Francisco that introduced her as "the accidental activist" who has been making a tremendous positive public health impact for over 23 years. I want everyone who's listening to hear her passion, and drive in the stories she shares and the examples she gives. Her message is inspiring. Imagine what you can do once you connect with the area of public health that you are most passionate about, and the populations that you care most about serving. My hope is that you will be inspired by this episode.

This episode is a special featured episode for the American Public Health Association's Epidemiology Section and my guest today is Dr. Noel Barengo. Dr. Barengo is a medical doctor with a Masters of public health and a PhD. He received his academic training in Finland, Switzerland, and Sweden. He currently works in Miami Florida as an assistant professor at Florida International University College of Medicine. His global public health experience includes starting a public health NGO that served populations in both Finland and Nigeria. He has also worked in non-communicable diseases in Argentina, Colombia, and Paraguay. He is an active member of the American Public Health Association in both the Physical Activity Section as well as the Epidemiology Section. So, let's jump right into that interview with Dr. Barengo.

Dr. Ogunsakin is an infectious disease physician who has been practicing in the state of Georgia for over twenty years treating patients who have had a wide variety of infectious diseases including HIV infection, bone and joint infections, complicated skin infections, and multi drug resistant bacterial infections. In addition to his medical degree, Dr. Ogunsakin has completed his MBA, as well as his MPH. He is also a member of my Developing Your Public Health Career Strategy program. He shares his journey into public health, why he decided to enroll in my program, and how it has helped him. He also shares his passion for global health and a bit about his plans for the future.

In this episode, I'm honored to introduce you to my special guest, Dr. Rania Milleron. She is a multidisciplinary professional in public health with a passion for policy and advocacy, as well as biomedical science, with expertise in vector borne infectious disease. She is also an author, which she will discuss in more detail during the interview. Dr. Milleron completed her Master of Science degree in Infectious Disease Epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health, and her PhD in Molecular Genetics of Infectious Disease Vectors from The University of Texas. Dr. Milleron is also a member of my Developing Your Public Health Career Strategy program. She talks about her experience in great detail such as how she found the program, her decision to join, and how it has impacted her so far. She provides feedback and several examples. She has a very diverse background! She is fascinated by the interdisciplinary nature of public health, a field that is more cooperative than individualistic. Because of this, she explains how she is able to wear many hats such as microbiologist, program specialist, or epidemiologist. It also means that she is able to work with a wide variety of collaborators in government, academia, or commercial industry, as well as work with a variety of stakeholders such as physicians, scientists, or data analysts. If you are someone who is struggling to transition into public health from a different field, or trying to figure out what to do with your degree in public health, then I encourage you to pay close attention to Dr. Milleron's story and message. She is a great example of how to successfully interconnect your diverse experiences with public health.

In this episode, I introduce you to Tamiko Prescod, as she discusses her journey into public health, shares her experience, and offers encouragement. Tamiko has a BS in biology, and recently completed her MPH. Her background includes work in retail pharmacy, clinical laboratory support, and clerical support at a local government agency. She has passion, drive, and determination, which stood out to me when I first met her early in 2018. She was one of the first people to enroll in my program, Developing Your Public Health Career Strategy. I've had the honor of coaching and guiding her through that program, and getting to know her very well in the process. It has been amazing to watch her grow over this last year, watch her progress, witness her accomplishments, and I'm excited to see where she goes from here!

The ultimate goal of the podcast is to share tips and strategies that help you enter or transition into the field of public health. In this episode, I'd like to share a little about my business plans for 2019, as they relate to the podcast, the workshops, and the Developing Your Public Health Career Strategy program.

Since this episode will publish on Christmas Day, and I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to wish you a merry Christmas and happy holiday season.

This episode is a review of the podcast for 2018. I will share with you the three countries where the podcast is most popular, and also count down the top 10 most popular episodes of 2018. Can you guess which episode is at the top of the list?

In this episode, I give you a few tips in preparation for the changes that will take place very soon. There are a few things you want to do to make sure that you don't miss out on anything!

In this episode, I share the key takeaways from the 2018 American Public Health Association's (APHA) conference in San Diego. I had originally planned to just share my thoughts, but decided to reach out to other attendees and gather feedback from our community as well. So, I will first go through the collective feedback, then share five of my personal takeaways from the conference with you. There is so much more that I took away from the annual meeting, but I just focus on five for now. I will spend time processing my notes, applying what I learned, and feeding off of the information for months to come. I hope you enjoy this episode. I want to say a special thank you to everyone who participated in providing feedback for this episode, and to everyone that I met at the conference. You are all amazing and I sincerely appreciate you for being a part of this podcast community.

This is a special APHA Epidemiology Section featured episode, with Toby Levin, PhD, MPH. Be sure to listen to the full episode, as Dr. Levin discusses her journey from into public health and her work as an epidemiologist in the county health department. She talks about lab work, academia, and so much more.

In this episode, I talk about reviewing progress, assessing where you are, and setting career goals for next year. During the last quarter of every year, I begin the process of setting goals for the next year. This year, I thought it would be a good idea to share some of this with you all, and help you take advantage of this ideal time to conduct a self-evaluation and make some decisions about the new year for yourself regarding your career in public health.

At the time this episode is published, I'm attending the American Public Health Associations annual meeting in San Diego CA, along with about 12,000 other attendees. Meeting in person with your peers and colleagues is a powerful experience and something that I encourage all of you to make a priority.

Meet Dr. Anthony Pothoulakis, a cardiologist who is passionate about prevention. He strongly believes that we all have a serious job to do in defending the obesity-diabetes-artery disease epidemic. In order to reduce the rates of obesity and diabetes, we cannot rely only on doctors, nurses, hospitals, and universities. We must all work together, as a community, to fight against sugars and prolonged sitting and have a zero-tolerance policy for high blood pressure, high LDL, and smoking. He goes on further to say that we must band together and fight the enemy in our schools, or workplaces, and in our homes every single day. Join me in this episode where Dr. Pothoulakis discusses these principles and introduces his new book, Arteries in Harmony. This episode is a great example of healthcare and public health coming together to provide a power tool that has the potential for great impact on population health.

This episode is a special featured episode for the APHA Epidemiology section. My special guest today is Dr. Cathy Troisi. She shares her journey into public health, including her rich experiences in the fields of infectious disease epidemiology and academia. She offers some advice and tips for students, recent graduates, and anyone interested in a career in public health.

Are you planning to attend the American Public Health Association's (APHA) conference? I've reviewed some tips from a few schools of public health, and would like to share with you the tips that I believe will be the most helpful for anyone who is planning to attend the APHA's annual meeting. All of these sources shared great tips, but I had to narrow things down to a select few to cover on this episode.

Today I'm excited to introduce you to Misozi Houston, a program coordinator providing programs to reduce poverty and increase access to health education. She is a public health professional with a passion for community health that goes way back to her childhood. She has used her personal and professional experiences, across a diverse background including restaurant management and nursing, to transition into public health, demonstrating powerful leadership qualities that I truly admire! I first mentioned Misozi back in episode #13, where I discussed my face to face meeting with her at the public health conference in Georgia and I even shared a photo of us on the show notes page for that episode. She had been following the podcast for a while at that point, and it was a great opportunity to meet in person. We've kept in touch a bit over time and I've been able to watch her grow tremendously over this past year. I am delighted that she accepted my invitation to join me on this episode to share her journey and insights, and I think so many of you will find this episode to be very helpful, insightful, and encouraging. www.drchhuntley.com

In this episode, I share with you a brand new public health promotion initiative that I've started, and explain why. This will be an excellent example of what I encourage all of you to do on almost every single episode of this podcast, and also an example of how I implement the strategies that I teach in my coaching program.

I am happy to introduce you to Angela Arder, who was one of the early members of the Developing Your Public Health Career Strategy Program. She has a background in healthcare, hospital administration, and government customer service. She is educated, caring, and passionate about public health. However, life has often interrupted her career goals and plans….but has not stopped her. She said she didn't realize that she needed a strategy, but just assumed things would fall into place and automatically happen for her once she completed her degree. She talks about the heart-breaking realization that it takes even more effort. Focused effort. We will be discussing her reasons for enrolling, how she has benefited, some of the challenges she's faced and how she's been able to overcome those challenges. She also shares some advice to anyone listening who may be in a similar situation as she was in before developing her public health career strategy. DrCHHuntley.com

Hurricane Florence recently hit the Carolinas, here in the United States, and caused devastating damages from high winds, flooding, and local tornadoes. For several days leading up to the storm, we all watched and waited as meteorologists tracked the storm system and kept us all informed. I live in South Carolina and I have family members and close friends throughout South Carolina, as well as North Carolina. We were all engaged in preparedness activities on some level. In this podcast episode, I focus my discussion on my experience with the elderly population around me during this weather event. Additionally, I share with you my key takaways from this experience, including some ideas and tips that you can apply in a preparedness program for your area as well.

We have all experienced the paralyzing effect of information overload at some point, right? In this episode, I share tips for avoiding information overload and staying focused.

I'm very excited to introduce my guest on this episode, Niya Allen-Vatel, who is truly an expert in her field! She has been featured in Forbes, Glassdoor, Yahoo Finance, Big Interview, and xoNecole. She was gracious enough to come on the show and provide guidance and very insightful tips for everyone, and I appreciate her for being so generous. Niya is a 3x-certified résumé writer, career transition coach, and brand strategist helping ambitious leaders build their brands to boost credibility, increase opportunities, and establish themselves as an expert in their niche. She is the owner of the premier career branding service, Career Global, based in New York City.

Today we are going to do something a little different. As we wrap up the summer, I thought it would be a good time to share with you some of the fun stuff I did over the summer. You guys always hear me discussing strategies and work and goals, but I did spend a lot of time with my family over this past summer and I'd like to share some of that fun stories with you in this episode today.

Today's topic is inspired by a similar type of question that I've been asked quite a bit lately. As you know, whenever that happens, I think there are likely even more people with the same question so I tend to address the topic on a podcast episode. The questions are typically like this, "I have a masters' degree in public health and also a bachelor's degree in sociology; what can I do with that?" Or "What ideas do you have about potential jobs for me?" "What are your thoughts about that?"

Karen Akins joins me to discuss her passion-driven project, a documentary about the negative impact of sugary drinks among children in rural Mexico. The documentary is scheduled to be complete around spring/summer of 2019. We plan to have Karen come back to the show next year to discuss the film once its closer to the point of release, because there will be a great opportunity to participate in an educational health promotion campaign within your own local communities. In this episode, we spend most of our time discussing International Quit Soda Day, which will be October 20, 2018. Listen carefully as she tells her story, and you'll be able to hear her passion for the various causes she describes and how that passion has been the driving force (something I'm always encouraging all of you to connect with. If you haven't listened yet, be sure to check out podcast episode #16, which is all about finding your passion for public health.) I also want you to listen for the opportunities to get involved in raising awareness of the impact of sugary drinks in both of the health promotion projects that she will be describing during the interview.

Thank you to all members of this community and faithful listeners of the podcast. This is a major milestone and accomplishment that I'm very excited to reach. My goal for creating the podcast was to mentor and help those who were interested in public health careers, sharing tips and strategies for entering or transitioning into the field. I am proud to have accomplished that in this first year, and look forward to continuing to do more of the same in the episodes to come. In this episode, I share the winner of our giveaway in celebration of this milestone, the top five episodes of this first year (which surprised me a bit), and I provide you with a glimpse of what's to come on the podcast. Be sure to listen to the full episode, and to subscribe to the podcast so that you receive the newest episodes automatically every week as soon as they are published.

My goal for creating the podcast was to mentor and help those who were interested in public health careers, sharing tips and strategies for entering or transitioning into the field. I was focused on giving, and didn't expect to receive so much in return. In this episode, I share five surprising benefits of my first year of podcasting.