David Abramson

Clinical Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Professional overview

Dr. David Abramson is a Clinical Professor at NYU’s School of Global Public Health and the director of the research program on Population Impact, Recovery and Resilience (PiR2). His research employs a social ecological framework to examine the health consequences of disasters, individual and community resilience, and long-term recovery from acute collective stressors. His work has focused on population health consequences, interactions of complex systems, and risk communication strategies associated with hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, the Joplin tornado, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, H1N1, and Zika, among other natural, technological, and man-made disasters.  Before joining NYU’s faculty, Dr. Abramson was the Deputy Director at Columbia University’s National Center for Disaster Preparedness at the Earth Institute.

In 2005 Dr. Abramson launched the Gulf Coast Child and Family Health study, an ongoing longitudinal cohort study of over 1,000 randomly sampled Katrina survivors in Louisiana and Mississippi, which is presently a core research project in the NIH-funded Katrina@10 Program (P01HD082032, NICHD).  After Superstorm Sandy he partnered with colleagues at Rutgers University, Columbia University, and the University of Colorado to conduct the Sandy Child and Family Health study, an observational cohort study modeled on the Katrina study. More recently, he was funded by the National Science Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to study the risk salience of an evolving threat, the Zika virus, among the US population in general and among women of child-bearing age.  In addition, Dr. Abramson serves on two National Academies of Medicine panels, the Standing Committee on Medical and Public Health Research During Large-Scale Emergency Events, and the Committee on Evidence-Based Practices for Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response.

Prior to entering the field of public health, Dr. Abramson spent a decade as a national magazine journalist, having worked at or written for such publications as Rolling Stone, Esquire, and Outside magazines, and was a nationally-certified paramedic.  He has a PhD in sociomedical sciences, with a sub-specialization in political science, and an MPH, both from Columbia University.

Education

BA, English (High Honors), Queens College, New York, NY

MPH, Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY

PhD, Sociomedical Sciences/Political Science, Columbia University, New York, NY

Honors and awards

Columbia University Alumni Association Scholarship (2003)

Eugene Litwak Prize for best doctoral dissertation proposal, Mailman School of Public Health (2002)

Columbia University School of Public Health Alumni Association Scholarship Award (1982)

Nyack Hospital Paramedic Program Valedictorian (1989)

Areas of research and study

Community Health

Disaster Health

Disaster Impact and Recovery

Environmental Impact

Population Health

Public Health Systems

Social Behaviors

Social Determinants of Health

Publications

Publications

Adverse Effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill Amid Cumulative Disasters: A Qualitative Analysis of the Experiences of Children and Families

COVID-19 Vaccine Information Seeking Patterns and Vaccine Hesitancy: A Latent Class Analysis to Inform Practice

Piltch-Loeb, R., Silver, D., Kim, Y., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2024

Journal title

Journal of Public Health Management and Practice

Volume

30

Issue

2

Page(s)

183-194

10.1097/PHH.0000000000001834

Abstract

Abstract

Context: Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, state and local health departments served as risk communicators to the public; however, public health practitioners have limited resources at their disposal when trying to communicate information, especially when guidance is rapidly changing. Identifying how the population gathers information across channels and which subsets of the population utilize which channels can help practitioners make the best use of these limited resources. Objective: To identify how individuals utilized different information channels to get COVID-19–related information and determine its effect on one COVID-19–related action: vaccine intentions. Design: This study applies latent class analysis to utilization of information channels to characterize information consumption patterns during the COVID-19 infodemic and then explores the relationship between these patterns and vaccine hesitancy. Setting: The data were collected from the COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Survey, which is a nationally representative sample of US adults 18 years and older recruited from Social Science Research Solutions (SSRS)’s Opinion Panel. Participants: The online survey was conducted between April 7 and April 11, 2021, after the COVID-19 vaccine was available to all adults and enrolled more than 3000 respondents (n = 3014). Main Outcome Measure(s): Respondents were asked about their frequency of information seeking related to the COVID-19 vaccine, sociodemographics, and vaccine perceptions. Results: Based on fit statistics and prior research, we identified 6 latent classes that characterize information seeking: Nonseekers, Legacy, Legacy + Facebook/Instagram, Traditional Omnivore, Omnivore + Broad Social Media, and Twitter. Sociodemographics, political, economic, and COVID-19 exposure variables are associated with different patterns of seeking information about COVID-19. Membership in 3 of these classes was associated with higher rates of vaccine refusal and vaccine hesitancy. Discussion: The study has implications for public health officials and policymakers who use media channels to share news and health information with the public. Information should be tailored to the sociodemographic profiles of those users who are likely consuming information across multiple different channels.

Ethnic and Racial Disparities in Self-Reported Personal Protective Equipment Shortages Among New York Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

One year later: What role did trust in public officials and the medical profession play in decisions to get a booster and to overcome vaccine hesitancy?

The influence of risk perception on disaster recovery: A case study of new Jersey families impacted by hurricane sandy

Examining the effects of cumulative environmental stressors on Gulf Coast child and adolescent health

Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status and Women’s Mental Health: A Longitudinal Study of Hurricane Katrina Survivors, 2005–2015

The New York State COVID-19 Healthcare Personnel Study: One-Year Follow-up of Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, and Physician Assistants, 2020-2021

Association between city-wide lockdown and COVID-19 hospitalization rates in multigenerational households in New York City

Association between COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and trust in the medical profession and public health officials

Determinants of the COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy spectrum

Disasters, Displacement, and Housing Instability: Estimating Time to Stable Housing 13 Years after Hurricane Katrina

Examining the Dose–Response Relationship: Applying the Disaster Exposure Matrix to Understand the Mental Health Impacts of Hurricane Sandy

Factors Related to Self-Reported Distress Experienced by Physicians During Their First COVID-19 Triage Decisions

Hopelessness in New York State physicians during the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak

Johnson, A. A., Wallace, B. K., Xu, Q., Chihuri, S., Hoven, C. W., Susser, E. S., DiMaggio, C., Abramson, D., Andrews, H. F., Lang, B. H., Ryan, M., & Li, G. (n.d.).

Publication year

2022

Journal title

Journal of Neurosurgical Anesthesiology

Volume

34

Issue

1

Page(s)

152-157

10.1097/ANA.0000000000000808

Abstract

Abstract

Background: In the United States, New York State's health care system experienced unprecedented stress as an early epicenter of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aims to assess the level of hopelessness in New York State physicians working on the frontlines during the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak. Methods: A confidential online survey sent to New York State health care workers by the state health commissioner's office was used to gather demographic and hopelessness data as captured by a brief Hopelessness Scale. Adjusted linear regression models were used to assess the associations of physician age, sex, and number of triage decisions made, with level of hopelessness. Results: In total, 1330 physicians were included, of whom 684 were male (51.4%). Their average age was 52.4 years (SD = 12.7), with the majority of respondents aged 50 years and older (55.2%). Almost half of the physician respondents (46.3%) worked directly with COVID-19 patients, and 163 (12.3%) were involved in COVID-19-related triage decisions. On adjusted analysis, physicians aged 40 to 49 years had significantly higher levels of hopelessness compared with those aged 50 years or more (μ = 0.441, SD = 0.152, P = 0.004). Those involved in 1 to 5 COVID-19-related triage decisions had a significantly lower mean hopelessness score (μ = −0.572, SD = 0.208, P = 0.006) compared with physicians involved in none of these decisions. Conclusion: Self-reported hopelessness was significantly higher among physicians aged 40 to 49 years and those who had not yet been involved in a life or death triage decision. Further work is needed to identify strategies to support physicians at high risk for adverse mental health outcomes during public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Impact of Hurricanes and Associated Extreme Weather Events on Cardiovascular Health: A Scoping Review

Ghosh, A. K., Demetres, M. R., Geisler, B. P., Ssebyala, S. N., Yang, T., Shapiro, M. F., Setoguchi, S., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2022

Journal title

Environmental health perspectives

Volume

130

Issue

11

10.1289/EHP11252

Abstract

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The frequency and destructiveness of hurricanes and related extreme weather events (e.g., cyclones, severe storms) have been increasing due to climate change. A growing body of evidence suggests that victims of hurricanes have increased incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD), likely due to increased stressors around time of the hurricane and in their aftermath. OBJECTIVES: The objective was to systematically examine the evidence of the association between hurricanes (and related extreme weather events) and adverse CVD outcomes with the goal of understanding the gaps in the literature. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search of population-level and cohort studies focused on CVD outcomes (i.e., myocardial infarction, stroke, and heart failure) related to hurricanes, cyclones, and severe storms was performed in the following databases from inception to December 2021: Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, Web of Science, and The Cochrane Library. Studies retrieved were then screened for eligibility against predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria. Studies were then qualitatively synthesized based on the time frame of the CVD outcomes studied and special populations that were studied. Gaps in the literature were identified based on this synthesis. RESULTS: Of the 1,103 citations identified, 48 met our overall inclusion criteria. We identified articles describing the relationship between CVD and extreme weather, primarily hurricanes, based on data from the United States (42), Taiwan (3), Japan (2), and France (1). Outcomes included CVD and myocardial infarction–related hospitalizations (30 studies) and CVVD-related mortality (7 studies). Most studies used a retrospective study design, including one case–control study, 39 cohort studies, and 4 time-series studies. DISCUSSION: Although we identified a number of papers that reported evaluations of extreme weather events and short-term adverse CVD out-comes, there were important gaps in the literature. These gaps included a) a lack of rigorous long-term evaluation of hurricane exposure, b) lack of investigation of hurricane exposure on vulnerable populations regarding issues related to environmental justice, c) absence of research on the exposure of multiple hurricanes on populations, and d) absence of an exploration of mechanisms leading to worsened CVD outcomes. Future research should attempt to fill these gaps, thus providing an important evidence base for future disaster-related policy. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP11252.

Occupational Conditions Associated with Negative Mental Health Outcomes in New York State Health Professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 Healthcare Personnel Study (CHPS): Overview, methods, and preliminary findings

Adverse Physical and Mental Health Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill among Gulf Coast Children: An Environmental Justice Perspective

Bowling together: Community social institutions protective against poor child mental health

Differences in post-disaster mental health among Vietnamese and African Americans living in adjacent urban communities flooded by Katrina

Rapid Behavioral Health Assessment Post-disaster: Developing and Validating a Brief, Structured Module

The effects of cumulative natural disaster exposure on adolescent psychological distress

The formation of belief: An examination of factors that influence climate change belief among Hurricane Katrina survivors

Towards integrated modeling of the long-term impacts of oil spills

Solo-Gabriele, H. M., Fiddaman, T., Mauritzen, C., Ainsworth, C., Abramson, D. M., Berenshtein, I., Chassignet, E. P., Chen, S. S., Conmy, R. N., Court, C. D., Dewar, W. K., Farrington, J. W., Feldman, M. G., Ferguson, A. C., Fetherston-Resch, E., French-McCay, D., Hale, C., He, R., Kourafalou, V. H., … Yoskowitz, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Marine Policy

Volume

131

10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104554

Abstract

Abstract

Although great progress has been made to advance the scientific understanding of oil spills, tools for integrated assessment modeling of the long-term impacts on ecosystems, socioeconomics and human health are lacking. The objective of this study was to develop a conceptual framework that could be used to answer stakeholder questions about oil spill impacts and to identify knowledge gaps and future integration priorities. The framework was initially separated into four knowledge domains (ocean environment, biological ecosystems, socioeconomics, and human health) whose interactions were explored by gathering stakeholder questions through public engagement, assimilating expert input about existing models, and consolidating information through a system dynamics approach. This synthesis resulted in a causal loop diagram from which the interconnectivity of the system could be visualized. Results of this analysis indicate that the system naturally separates into two tiers, ocean environment and biological ecosystems versus socioeconomics and human health. As a result, ocean environment and ecosystem models could be used to provide input to explore human health and socioeconomic variables in hypothetical scenarios. At decadal-plus time scales, the analysis emphasized that human domains influence the natural domains through changes in oil-spill related laws and regulations. Although data gaps were identified in all four model domains, the socioeconomics and human health domains are the least established. Considerable future work is needed to address research gaps and to create fully coupled quantitative integrative assessment models that can be used in strategic decision-making that will optimize recoveries from future large oil spills.