Robyn Gershon
Clinical Professor of Epidemiology
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Professional overview
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Dr. Gershon is an interdisciplinary occupational and environmental health and safety researcher with extensive experience in the areas of disaster preparedness, healthcare safety, and risk assessment and management in high-risk work occupations. She earned her doctorate in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University, School of Public Health, where she was on faculty for several years.
Subsequently, Dr. Gershon was a Professor at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, with a joint appointment in the School of Nursing.
At the Mailman School, she also served as the Associate Dean for Research and was the Director of the Mentoring Program. Her most recent faculty appointment prior to joining NYU GPH was Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She was also an Adjunct Professor in the UCSF School of Nursing, as well as at UC Berkeley where she taught public health disaster courses.
Dr. Gershon and her team conducted numerous ground breaking studies to develop and test new metrics of preparedness. Importantly, Dr. Gershon’s work has influenced the adoption of safe work practices and regulatory control measures, such as national needlestick prevention guidelines and high-rise building fire safety laws. Her numerous research studies encompass a wide range of topics, including, (to name a few): bloodborne pathogen exposure; hospital safety climate; psychosocial work stress in law enforcement; “ability and willingness” of essential workforce employees to report to duty during natural and man-made disasters; preparedness of responders for terrorist incidents; emergency high–rise building evacuation- (including the World Trade Center Evacuation Study); emergency preparedness of the elderly and disabled; mass fatality management infrastructure in the US; adherence to emergency public health measures among the general public; hearing loss risk in subway ridership; and noise exposure in urban populations.
Dr. Gershon recently completed a four-year, longitudinal intervention NIH-funded study on motivation and persistence in pursuing STEM research careers among underrepresented doctoral students. (the BRIDGE Project).
As a committed advocate for junior faculty and graduate students, Dr. Gershon will play an active role in research mentorship and advisement.
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Education
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BS, Medical Technology, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CTMHS, Medical Microbiology, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CTDrPH, Environmental and Occupational Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
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Honors and awards
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Recipient, American Society of Safety Engineers, Membership Award, Oakland, CA (2016)Recipient, John L. Ziegler Capstone Mentor Award, Global Health Sciences, University of California San Francisco (2015)Recipient, City of New York Fire Commissioner's Special Commendation Certificate of Appreciation (2006)Recipient, Survivors' Salute, World Trade Center Survivors' Network (2006)Recipient, Annual International Sharps Injury Prevention Award (2005)Delta Omega (Public Health) Honorary Society (1997)Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society (Microbiology) (1976)Lambda Tau Mu Honor Society (Laboratory Science) (1976)
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Areas of research and study
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Disaster HealthDisaster Impact and RecoveryDisaster PreparednessEnvironmental Public Health ServicesEpidemiologyHealthcare SafetyOccupational HealthRisk Assessment and Management
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Publications
Publications
Assessing and reducing HIV risk to the critical care nurse
Gershon, R., & Vlahov, D. (n.d.). In Critical Care Nursing Currents (1–).Publication year
1992Laboratory safety
Gershon, R., & Salkin, I. (n.d.). In Clinical Microbiology Procedures Handbook (1–).Publication year
1992Risk of HIV-1 transmission in the workplace
Gershon, R., & Vlahov, D. (n.d.). In Proceedings of a Symposium, Survival of HIV in Environmental Water (1–).Publication year
1991HIV infection risk to health-care workers
AbstractGershon, R. M., & Vlahov, D. (n.d.).Publication year
1990Journal title
American Industrial Hygiene Association JournalVolume
51Issue
12Page(s)
A-802-A-806AbstractThe risk of occupationally acquired human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in exposed health-care workers has been estimated to be 0.5% after accidental needlestick with an HIV-contaminated needle. Needlestick injuries resulting in parenteral exposure to HIV-infected material are the most common reported cause of occupational HIV infection in health-care workers. With 60% of these exposures unpreventable even with strict adherence to current infection control procedures, it is necessary to develop technical changes in work protection in order to further reduce the risk.HIV infection risk to nonhealth-care workers
Gershon’, R. M., Vlahov, D., & Nelson’, K. E. (n.d.).Publication year
1990Journal title
American Industrial Hygiene Association JournalVolume
51Issue
12Page(s)
A-807-A-809The risk of transmission of HIV-1 through non-percutaneous, non-sexual modes - A review
AbstractGershon, R. R., Vlahov, D., & Nelson, K. E. (n.d.).Publication year
1990Journal title
AIDSVolume
4Issue
7Page(s)
645-650AbstractTo date, three well-documented modes of transmission of HIV-1 (sexual, percutaneous and perinatal) have been described. Although the theoretical possibility exists for HIV-1 transmission through other routes, including non-percutaneous, non-sexual modes often referred to as 'casual' contact (and several anecdotal reports suggest this possibility), there is no credible epidemiological evidence to support this. Fourteen combined surveys, with over 750 individuals with potential exposure through non-percutaneous, non-sexual modes of contact, have failed to find a single case of HIV-1 infection (upper bound of 95% confidence interval = 0.40%), indicating that the risk of transmission by non-percutaneous, non-sexual modes is remote. Given the emotionally charged concerns about transmission of an infection which may end fatally in a high proportion of affected individuals, critical review of the low probability of transmission through non-percutaneous, non-sexual modes is important so that preventive efforts can be focused appropriately.Occupationally acquired human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection: a review
Gershon, R., & Vlahov, D. (n.d.). In Infection Control: Dilemmas and Practical Solutions (1–).Publication year
1989Training health care workers to meet the new OSHA HBV/HIV proposed standard
Gershon, R., Fleming, D., & Vlahov, D. (n.d.). In Biohazards Management Handbook (1–).Publication year
1989Sharps handling.
Gershon, R. R. (n.d.).Publication year
1985Journal title
Journal of healthcare materiel managementVolume
3Issue
5Page(s)
111-114AIDS. Safety practices for clinical and research laboratories
Federico, J. V., & Gershon, R. R. (n.d.).Publication year
1984Journal title
Infection ControlVolume
5Issue
4Page(s)
185-187Microenvironmental immunoregulation: possible role of contrasuppressor cells in maintaining immune responses in gut-associated lymphoid tissues.
Green, D. R., Gold, J., Gershon, R., & Gershon, R. K. (n.d.).Publication year
1982Journal title
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of AmericaPage(s)
889