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

A balancing act : The tension between case-finding and primary prevention strategies in New York State's voluntary HIV counseling and testing program in women's health care settings

Abramson, D., Healton, C., Howard, J., Messeri, P., Sorin, M. D., Abramson, D., & Bayer, R. (n.d.).

Publication year

1996

Journal title

American journal of preventive medicine

Volume

12

Issue

4 SUPPL.

Page(s)

53-60

10.1016/s0749-3797(18)30259-9

Abstract

Abstract

This study sought (1) to identify factors that influence women's willingness to accept voluntary HIV counseling and testing at New York State Family Planning Programs (FPPs) and Prenatal Care Assistance Programs (PCAPs) and (2) to evaluate the effectiveness of such a voluntary counseling and testing program. Telephone interviews elicited organizational-level data from 136 agencies; a combination of telephone and face-to-face interviews was used to gather provider data from 98 HIV counselors; and client data were gathered from 354 women in face-to-face interviews at counseling sites. Slightly fewer than 60% of women agreed to be counseled, and, of those, under half consented to an HIV test at the counseling site. Approximately two thirds of the women who were tested returned for their results and posttest counseling. Clients' recall of pretest counseling content was relatively poor. Bivariate and regression analyses suggest that client, provider, and organizational factors are all associated with rates of pretest counseling and testing. The current voluntary counseling and testing program is achieving only moderate success. Although a substantial number of clients accept HIV counseling, many women remain reluctant to consent to HIV testing, and many who accept testing do not return for their results. Moreover, among those who receive pretest counseling, many do not recall important informational content, which suggests variation may exist in the quality of counseling or that one-time HIV counseling interventions are insufficient to communicate complex information. Medical Subject Headings (MeH): AIDS, HIV serodiagnosis, women's health, patient education.

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

Meltzer, G. Y., Merdjanoff, A. A., Gershon, R. R., Fothergill, A., Peek, L., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2024

Journal title

Journal of Child and Family Studies

10.1007/s10826-024-02815-0

Abstract

Abstract

Limited research has examined the ramifications of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DHOS) on children and their families. This study builds on secondary data analysis and representative survey findings from the multi-method, multi-phase Gulf Coast Population Impact (GCPI) project. Specifically, this phase of the GCPI research draws on in-depth, semi-structured interview and focus group data to illuminate the social conditions that influenced poor child health outcomes in the aftermath of the DHOS and amid other disasters. These qualitative data were collected two years after the spill with caregivers, teachers, faith- and community-based leaders in five highly impacted Gulf Coast communities. Exploratory qualitative analysis revealed that children were affected by the DHOS and other related challenges through exposure to familial stress emerging from livelihood disruptions. Such disruptions were the result of ongoing poverty, damage to the fishing industry, and exposure to cumulative and compounding environmental disasters. In cases of severe familial stress, children may have experienced toxic stress because of caregivers’ displaced distress; ambiguous loss through caregivers’ physical and/or emotional absence; and the children’s recognition of their families’ dire financial situations. Toxic stress was most often expressed through acute and chronic physiological, emotional, and behavioral health challenges. This study expands current understandings of the impact of technological disasters and cumulative environmental disasters on children and families. It underscores the importance of investing in harm prevention strategies to reduce threats to the health and wellbeing of young people living in ecologically and socioeconomically insecure environments prone to intensifying technological and climate-fueled disasters.

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

Abramson, D., Meltzer, G. Y., Merdjanoff, A. A., Gershon, R. R., Fothergill, A., Peek, L., & Abramson, D. M. (n.d.).

Journal title

JOURNAL OF CHILD AND FAMILY STUDIES

Abstract

Abstract

~

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

Meltzer, G. Y., Merdjanoff, A. A., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Environmental Justice

Volume

14

Issue

2

Page(s)

124-133

10.1089/env.2020.0046

Abstract

Abstract

Background: This study applies an environmental justice lens to examine whether racial/ethnic minority and low socioeconomic status affected children's physical and mental health after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. It expands this lens to explore whether these risk factors affected children's health due to greater direct physical exposure to crude oil or dispersant and/or household economic exposure as a result of income or job loss. Methods: We used data from the Gulf Coast Population Impact (GCPI) study, a representative survey of 1434 households in 15 highly impacted Gulf Coast communities gathered from April to August 2012. We conducted binomial logistic regression to assess the associations between race/ethnicity and annual household income, oil spill exposure routes, and children's health. Results: Non-White children (prevalence odds ratios [POR] 1.40; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04-1.89) and those with direct oil/dispersant exposure (POR 3.68; 95% CI 2.78-4.87) were at greater risk of physical health problems. Children in households earning less than $20,000 annually (POR 2.90; 95% CI 1.88-4.48) and those with direct oil/dispersant exposure (POR 3.74; 95% CI 2.72-5.14) were at greater risk of mental health problems. Racial/ethnic minority children were not at greater risk of physical exposure, whereas race/ethnicity and annual household income interacted to determine risk of economic exposure. We observed an interaction effect between annual household income and oil spill-related income or job loss on children's physical health problems. Discussion: Further environmental justice research should examine the pathways through which racial/ethnic minority and low socioeconomic status influence child health outcomes after technological disasters.

An HIV Counseling and Testing in New York State Family Planning and Prenatal Care Assistance Programs

Healton, C., Moon-Howard, J., Abramson, D., & Bayer, R. (n.d.).

Publication year

1993

Abstract

Abstract

~

Analyzing postdisaster surveillance data : The effect of the statistical method

Di Maggio, C., Abramson, D., & Galea, S. (n.d.).

Publication year

2008

Journal title

Disaster medicine and public health preparedness

Volume

2

Issue

2

Page(s)

119-126

10.1097/DMP.0b013e31816c7475

Abstract

Abstract

Data from existing administrative databases and ongoing surveys or surveillance methods may prove indispensable after mass traumas as a way of providing information that may be useful to emergency planners and practitioners. The analytic approach, however, may affect exposure prevalence estimates and measures of association. We compare Bayesian hierarchical modeling methods to standard survey analytic techniques for survey data collected in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. Estimates for the prevalence of exposure to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, varied by the method chosen. Bayesian hierarchical modeling returned the lowest estimate for exposure prevalence with a credible interval spanning nearly 3 times the range of the confidence intervals (Cls) associated with both unadjusted and survey procedures. Bayesian hierarchical modeling also returned a smaller point estimate for measures of association, although in this instance the credible interval was tighter than that obtained through survey procedures. Bayesian approaches allow a consideration of preexisting assumptions about survey data, and may offer potential advantages, particularly in the uncertain environment of postterrorism and disaster settings. Additional comparative analyses of existing data are necessary to guide our ability to use these techniques in future incidents. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2008;2:119-126).

Antiretroviral therapy and declining AIDS mortality in New York City

Messeri, P., Gunjeong, L., Abramson, D., Aidala, A., Chiasson, M. A., & Jessop, D. J. (n.d.).

Publication year

2003

Journal title

Medical care

Volume

41

Issue

4

Page(s)

512-521

10.1097/01.MLR.0000053230.81725.EF

Abstract

Abstract

OBJECTIVE. This study estimates the impact of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) and other antiretroviral therapy combinations on reducing mortality risk for a cohort of HIV-infected persons living in New York City. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Data for this study come from the CHAIN project, an ongoing multiwave longitudinal study of HIV-infected persons is living in New York City (n = 700) initiated in 1994. The study sample is drawn from the clients of 43 medical and social service agencies and is broadly representative of New York City residents, who were aware of their positive serostatus at time of enrollment. Occurrences of deaths were obtained through routine field tracking and searches of death certificates and an online death registry. Information on other study variables was obtained through in-person interviews. A Cox proportional hazard model was applied to estimate the effects of medication on mortality risk. RESULTS. Mortality rates for the CHAIN cohort dropped steadily from a high of 131 deaths per 1000 persons/year in 1995 to 31 deaths per 1000 persons/year in 1999, with the historically low mortality rates continuing through 2000. Current use of HAART was associated with a 50% reduction in mortality risk (hazard ratio = 0.51, P

Application of a Theoretical Model Toward Understanding Continued Food Insecurity Post Hurricane Katrina

Clay, L. A., Papas, M. A., Gill, K., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2018

Journal title

Disaster medicine and public health preparedness

Volume

12

Issue

1

Page(s)

47-56

10.1017/dmp.2017.35

Abstract

Abstract

Objective Disaster recovery efforts focus on restoring basic needs to survivors, such as food, water, and shelter. However, long after the immediate recovery phase is over, some individuals will continue to experience unmet needs. Ongoing food insecurity has been identified as a post-disaster problem. There is a paucity of information regarding the factors that might place an individual at risk for continued food insecurity post disaster. Methods Using data from a sample (n=737) of households severely impacted by Hurricane Katrina, we estimated the associations between food insecurity and structural, physical and mental health, and psychosocial factors 5 years after Hurricane Katrina. Logistic regression models were fit and odds ratios (OR) and 95% CI estimated. Results Nearly one-quarter of respondents (23%) reported food insecurity 5 years post Katrina. Marital/partner status (OR: 0.7, CI: 0.42, 0.99), self-efficacy (OR: 0.56, CI: 0.37, 0.84), sense of community (OR: 0.7, CI: 0.44, 0.98), and social support (OR: 0.59, CI: 0.39, 0.89) lowered the odds of food insecurity and explained most of the effects of mental health distress on food insecurity. Social support, self-efficacy, and being partnered were protective against food insecurity. Conclusions Recovery efforts should focus on fostering social-support networks and increased self-efficacy to improve food insecurity post disaster.

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

Ghosh, A. K., Venkatraman, S., Reshetnyak, E., Rajan, M., An, A., Chae, J. K., Unruh, M. A., Abramson, D., DiMaggio, C., & Hupert, N. (n.d.).

Publication year

2022

Journal title

PloS one

Volume

17

Issue

3

10.1371/journal.pone.0266127

Abstract

Abstract

Background City-wide lockdowns and school closures have demonstrably impacted COVID-19 transmission. However, simulation studies have suggested an increased risk of COVID-19 related morbidity for older individuals inoculated by house-bound children. This study examines whether the March 2020 lockdown in New York City (NYC) was associated with higher COVID-19 hospitalization rates in neighborhoods with larger proportions of multigenerational households. Methods We obtained daily age-segmented COVID-19 hospitalization counts in each of 166 ZIP code tabulation areas (ZCTAs) in NYC. Using Bayesian Poisson regression models that account for spatiotemporal dependencies between ZCTAs, as well as socioeconomic risk factors, we conducted a difference-in-differences study amongst ZCTA-level hospitalization rates from February 23 to May 2, 2020. We compared ZCTAs in the lowest quartile of multigenerational housing to other quartiles before and after the lockdown. Findings Among individuals over 55 years, the lockdown was associated with higher COVID-19 hospitalization rates in ZCTAs with more multigenerational households. The greatest difference occurred three weeks after lockdown: Q2 vs. Q1: 54% increase (95% Bayesian credible intervals: 22-96%); Q3 vs. Q1: 48% (17-89%); Q4 vs. Q1: 66% (30-211%). After accounting for pandemic-related population shifts, a significant difference was observed only in Q4 ZCTAs: 37% (7-76%). Interpretation By increasing house-bound mixing across older and younger age groups, city-wide lockdown mandates imposed during the growth of COVID-19 cases may have inadvertently, but transiently, contributed to increased transmission in multigenerational households.

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

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

Publication year

2022

Journal title

Preventive medicine

Volume

164

Page(s)

107311

Abstract

Abstract

One's personal physician, national and state or local public health officials, and the broader medical profession play important roles in encouraging vaccine uptake for COVID-19. However, the relationship between trust in these experts and vaccine hesitancy has been underexplored, particularly among racial/minority groups where historic medical mistrust may reduce uptake. Using an April 2021 online sample of US adults (n = 3041) that explored vaccine hesitancy, regression models estimate levels of trust in each of these types of experts and between trust in each of these experts and the odds of being COVID-19 vaccine takers vs refusers or hesitaters. Interaction terms assess how levels of trust in the medical profession by race/ethnicity are associated with vaccine hesitancy. Trust in each expert is positively associated with trust in other experts, except for trust in the medical profession. Only trust in one's own doctor was associated with trust in the medical profession, as measured by factor scores derived from a validated scale. Lower levels of trust in experts were significantly associated with being either a hesitater or a refuser compared to being a taker. Black respondents had higher odds of being either a hesitater or a refuser compared to white respondents but the interaction with trust was insignificant. For Hispanic respondents only, the odds of being a hesitater declined significantly when trust in the medical profession rose. Mistrust in the medical profession, one's doctor and national experts contributes to vaccine hesitancy. Mobilizing personal physicians to speak to their own patients may help.

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

Clay, L. A., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Environmental Justice

Volume

14

Issue

3

Page(s)

206-215

10.1089/env.2020.0042

Abstract

Abstract

Social capital is widely recognized as health bolstering and more recently as playing a central role in family and community disaster response and recovery. Community social institutions may be considered a critical mechanism for the development of social capital, as they provide opportunities for community members to interact to build the networks and relationships that are necessary for taking collective action. In particular, social institutions may have a pivotal role to play in supporting children’s health and welfare postdisaster. Community social institutions such as membership, civic, and religious organizations are community resources that stimulate learning and foster healthy child development. This study explores communities impacted by Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS). Social institutions data were paired with household interviews from the Women and Their Children’s Health Study (n = 521) to explore whether the density and type of community social institutions in the community were associated with child mental health outcomes. Multilevel logistic regression models examining the role of social institutions, household characteristics, maternal characteristics, and child-specific factors in child mental health showed that for each additional prosocial institution established in the community during recovery from Hurricane Katrina, respondents were 21% less likely to report a child mental health diagnosis (odds ratio 0.79; 95% confidence interval 0.63–0.98). These findings highlight the potential of investment in social institutions in communities to bolster resilience and foster meaningful recovery.

Children and Disasters

Peek, L., Abramson, D., Cox, R. S., Fothergill, A., & Tobin, J. (n.d.).

Publication year

2018

Page(s)

243-262

10.1007/978-3-319-63254-4_13

Abstract

Abstract

Although researchers have studied children’s reactions to disaster since the 1940s, this subfield has expanded tremendously over the past decade. In fact, nearly half of all studies on children and disaster have been published since 2010, and most of this recent scholarship has focused on a limited number of large-scale catastrophic events. This chapter highlights six major waves of research on children and disaster, including contributions to our understanding of (1) the effects of disaster on children’s mental health and behavioral reactions; (2) disaster exposure as it relates to physical health and well-being; (3) social vulnerability and sociodemographic characteristics; (4) the role of institutions and socio-ecological context in shaping children’s pre- and post-disaster outcomes; (5) resiliency, strengths, and capacities; and (6) children’s voices, perspectives, and actions across the disaster lifecycle. Throughout, the chapter emphasizes advances in methods, theory, policy, and practice. It concludes with recommendations for future research.

Children and Megadisasters : Lessons Learned in the New Millennium

Garrett, A. L., Grant, R., Madrid, P., Brito, A., Abramson, D., & Redlener, I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2007

Journal title

Advances in Pediatrics

Volume

54

Issue

1

Page(s)

189-214

10.1016/j.yapd.2007.03.011

Abstract

Abstract

Many specific lessons were learned from recent megadisasters in the United States at the expense of children who suffered from a government and a citizenry that was desperately unprepared to respond to and recover from the disaster's short- and long-term effects. During the 9/11 attacks, the nation learned a new sense of vulnerability as the specter of terrorism was delivered repeatedly to our collective consciousness. As this article has emphasized, children experienced significant and widespread psychological effects from this event, and many did not receive adequate treatment. Hurricane Katrina exploited the weaknesses of an already strained child mental health system and vividly demonstrated the liability of poor preparedness and inadequate communication by both families and governments. The impact of Katrina continues to affect many thousands of children over a year later, as the systems that were intended to care for them have largely moved on. Indeed, there was no mention of Hurricane Katrina, the Gulf Coast, or the storm's survivors in the 2007 State of the Union address by the President. After 9/11 and the unprecedented federal spending that occurred to increase our nation's readiness, it is discouraging that the response to Hurricane Katrina fell so short of what had the potential to be the greatest disaster response and recovery story in the history of our nation. It is unlikely that further uncontained expenditures will solve the problems that were exposed in the Gulf Coast. There is not a solution that money can buy. One need only look a few hundred miles south to the Cuban disaster response system to appreciate where some of our shortfalls lie. Cuba has succeeded where the United States has not in part because its citizens are participants in their own preparedness. They engage their children and their families in preparedness planning and they rely upon other members of their community to strengthen their ability to survive as individuals. The American mentality of "dial 911 in an emergency and wait for help" works only as long as there are enough resources to match the need. In a disaster, this approach has proven to be inadequate over and over again. In America, we are well positioned to be leaders in responding to the needs of children affected by disaster. The resources of our government and the resourcefulness of our people should offer much promise for the future. By analyzing our past shortfalls and taking practical steps to mitigate the existing barriers to preparedness, our children, we hope, will fare much better the next time a megadisaster strikes. Box 7 includes suggestions for national priorities for child disaster care.

Children as bellwethers of recovery : Dysfunctional systems and the effects of parents, households, and neighborhoods on serious emotional disturbance in children after Hurricane Katrina

Abramson, D., Park, Y. S., Stehling-Ariza, T., & Redlener, I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2010

Journal title

Disaster medicine and public health preparedness

Volume

4

Issue

SUPPL. 1

Page(s)

S17-S27

10.1001/dmp.2010.7

Abstract

Abstract

Background: Over 160 000 children were displaced from their homes after Hurricane Katrina. Tens of thousands of these children experienced the ongoing chaos and uncertainty of displacement and transiency, as well as significant social disruptions in their lives. The objectives of this study were to estimate the long-term mental health effects of such exposure among children, and to elucidate the systemic pathways through which the disaster effect operates. Methods: The prevalence of serious emotional disturbance was assessed among 283 school-aged children in Louisiana and Mississippi. These children are part of the Gulf Coast Child & Family Health Study, involving a longitudinal cohort of 1079 randomly sampled households in the two states, encompassing a total of 427 children, who have been interviewed in 4 annual waves of data collection since January 2006. The majority of data for this analysis was drawn from the fourth round of data. Results: Although access to medical care for children has expanded considerably since 2005 in the region affected by Hurricane Katrina, more than 37% of children have received a clinical mental health diagnosis of depression, anxiety, or behavior disorder, according to parent reports. Children exposed to Hurricane Katrina were nearly 5 times as likely as a pre-Katrina cohort to exhibit serious emotional disturbance. Path analyses confirm the roles played by neighborhood social disorder, household stressors, and parental limitations on children's emotional and behavioral functioning. Conclusions: Children and youth are particularly vulnerable to the effects of disasters. They have limited capacity to independently mobilize resources to help them adapt to stressful postdisaster circumstances, and are instead dependent upon others to make choices that will influence their household, neighborhood, school, and larger social environment. Children's mental health recovery in a postdisaster setting can serve as a bellwether indicator of successful recovery or as a lagging indicator of system dysfunction and failed recovery.

Closing the Knowledge Gap in the Long-Term Health Effects of Natural Disasters : A Research Agenda for Improving Environmental Justice in the Age of Climate Change

Ghosh, A. K., Shapiro, M. F., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2022

Journal title

International journal of environmental research and public health

Volume

19

Issue

22

10.3390/ijerph192215365

Abstract

Abstract

Natural disasters continue to worsen in both number and intensity globally, but our understanding of their long-term consequences on individual and community health remains limited. As climate-focused researchers, we argue that a publicly funded research agenda that supports the comprehensive exploration of these risks, particularly among vulnerable groups, is urgently needed. This exploration must focus on the following three critical components of the research agenda to promote environmental justice in the age of climate change: (1) a commitment to long term surveillance and care to examine the health impacts of climate change over their life course; (2) an emphasis on interventions using implementation science frameworks; (3) the employment of a transdisciplinary approach to study, address, and intervene on structural disadvantage among vulnerable populations. Without doing so, we risk addressing these consequences in a reactive way at greater expense, limiting the opportunity to safeguard communities and vulnerable populations in the era of climate change.

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

Piltch-Loeb, R., Silver, D. R., 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.

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

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

Journal title

JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT AND PRACTICE

Abstract

Abstract

~

Crisis Decision-Making during Hurricane Sandy : An Analysis of Established and Emergent Disaster Response Behaviors in the New York Metro Area

Chandler, T., Abramson, D., Panigrahi, B., Schlegelmilch, J., & Frye, N. (n.d.).

Publication year

2016

Journal title

Disaster medicine and public health preparedness

Volume

10

Issue

3

Page(s)

436-442

10.1017/dmp.2016.68

Abstract

Abstract

Objective This collective case study examined how and why specific organizational decision-making processes transpired at 2 large suburban county health departments in lower New York State during their response to Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The study also examined the relationships that the agencies developed with other emerging and established organizations within their respective health systems. Methods In investigating these themes, the authors conducted in-depth, one-on-one interviews with 30 senior-level public health staff and first responders; reviewed documentation; and moderated 2 focus group discussions with 17 participants. Results Although a natural hazard such as a hurricane was not an unexpected event for these health departments, they nevertheless confronted a number of unforeseen challenges during the response phase: prolonged loss of power and fuel, limited situational awareness of the depth and breadth of the storm's impact among disaster-exposed populations, and coordination problems with a number of organizations that emerged in response to the disaster. Conclusions Public health staff had few plans or protocols to guide them and often found themselves improvising and problem-solving with new organizations in the context of an overburdened health care system.

Cross-Sectional Psychological and Demographic Associations of Zika Knowledge and Conspiracy Beliefs Before and After Local Zika Transmission

Piltch-Loeb, R., Zikmund-Fisher, B. J., Shaffer, V. A., Scherer, L. D., Knaus, M., Fagerlin, A., Abramson, D., & Scherer, A. M. (n.d.).

Publication year

2019

Journal title

Risk Analysis

Volume

39

Issue

12

Page(s)

2683-2693

10.1111/risa.13369

Abstract

Abstract

Perceptions of infectious diseases are important predictors of whether people engage in disease-specific preventive behaviors. Having accurate beliefs about a given infectious disease has been found to be a necessary condition for engaging in appropriate preventive behaviors during an infectious disease outbreak, while endorsing conspiracy beliefs can inhibit preventive behaviors. Despite their seemingly opposing natures, knowledge and conspiracy beliefs may share some of the same psychological motivations, including a relationship with perceived risk and self-efficacy (i.e., control). The 2015–2016 Zika epidemic provided an opportunity to explore this. The current research provides some exploratory tests of this topic derived from two studies with similar measures, but different primary outcomes: one study that included knowledge of Zika as a key outcome and one that included conspiracy beliefs about Zika as a key outcome. Both studies involved cross-sectional data collections that occurred during the same two periods of the Zika outbreak: one data collection prior to the first cases of local Zika transmission in the United States (March–May 2016) and one just after the first cases of local transmission (July–August). Using ordinal logistic and linear regression analyses of data from two time points in both studies, the authors show an increase in relationship strength between greater perceived risk and self-efficacy with both increased knowledge and increased conspiracy beliefs after local Zika transmission in the United States. Although these results highlight that similar psychological motivations may lead to Zika knowledge and conspiracy beliefs, there was a divergence in demographic association.

Determinants of the COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy spectrum

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

Publication year

2022

Journal title

PloS one

Volume

17

Issue

6 June

10.1371/journal.pone.0267734

Abstract

Abstract

Vaccine hesitancy remains an issue in the United States. This study conducted an online survey [N = 3,013] using the Social Science Research Solution [SSRS] Opinion Panel web panelists, representative of U.S. adults age 18 and older who use the internet, with an over-sample of rural-dwelling and minority populations between April 8 and April 22, 2021- as vaccine eligibility opened to the country. We examined the relationship between COVID-19 exposure and socio-demographics with vaccine intentions [eager-to-take, wait-and-see, undecided, refuse] among the unvaccinated using multinomial logistic regressions [ref: fully/ partially vaccinated]. Results showed vaccine intentions varied by demographic characteristics and COVID-19 experience during the period that eligibility for the vaccine was extended to all adults. At the time of the survey approximately 40% of respondents were unvaccinated; 41% knew someone who had died of COVID-19, and 38% had experienced financial hardship as a result of the pandemic. The vaccinated were more likely to be highly educated, older adults, consistent with the United States initial eligibility criteria. Political affiliation and financial hardship experienced during the pandemic were the two most salient factors associated with being undecided or unwilling to take the vaccine.

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

Zhang, M., VanLandingham, M., Park, Y. S., Anglewicz, P., & Abramson, D. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

PloS one

Volume

16

Issue

8

10.1371/journal.pone.0255303

Abstract

Abstract

Some communities recover more quickly after a disaster than others. Some differentials in recovery are explained by variation in the level of disaster-related community damage and differences in pre-disaster community characteristics, e.g., the quality of housing stock. But distinct communities that are similar on the above characteristics may experience different recovery trajectories, and, if so, these different trajectories must be due to more subtle differences among them. Our principal objective is to assess short-term and long-term post-disaster mental health for Vietnamese and African Americans living in two adjacent communities in eastern New Orleans that were similarly flooded by Hurricane Katrina. We employ data from two population-based cohort studies that include a sample of African American adults (the Gulf Coast Child and Family Health [GCAFH study]) and a sample of Vietnamese American adults (Katrina Impacts on Vietnamese Americans [KATIVA NOLA study]) living in adjacent neighborhoods in eastern New Orleans who were assessed near the second and thirteenth anniversaries of the disaster. Using the 12-Item Short Form Survey (SF-12) as the basis of our outcome measure, we find in multivariate analysis a significant advantage in post-disaster mental health for Vietnamese Americans over their African American counterparts at the two-year mark, but that this advantage had disappeared by the thirteenth anniversary of the Katrina disaster.

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

Merdjanoff, A. A., Abramson, D., Park, Y. S., & Piltch-Loeb, R. (n.d.).

Publication year

2022

Journal title

Weather, Climate, and Society

Volume

14

Issue

2

Page(s)

535-550

10.1175/WCAS-D-21-0057.1

Abstract

Abstract

Catastrophic disasters disrupt the structural and social aspects of housing, which can lead to varying lengths of displacement and housing instability for affected residents. Stable housing is a critical aspect of postdisaster recovery, which makes it important to understand how much time passes before displaced residents are able to find stable housing. Using the Gulf Coast Child and Family Health Study, a longitudinal cohort of Mississippi and Louisiana residents exposed to Hurricane Katrina (n = 1079), we describe patterns of stable housing by identifying protective and prohibitive factors that affect time to stable housing in the 13 years following the storm. Survival analyses reveal that median time to stable housing was 1082 days-over 3 years after Katrina. Age, housing tenure, marital status, income, and social support each independently affected time to stable housing. Findings suggest that postdisaster housing instability is similar to other forms of housing instability, including eviction, frequent moves, and homelessness.

Emergency response and public health in Hurricane Katrina : What does it mean to be a public health emergency responder?

Van Devanter, N. L., Leviss, P., Abramson, D., Howard, J. M., & Honoré, P. A. (n.d.).

Publication year

2010

Journal title

Journal of Public Health Management and Practice

Volume

16

Issue

6

Page(s)

E16-E25

10.1097/PHH.0b013e3181d8bbb2

Abstract

Abstract

Since 9/11, federal funds directed toward public health departments for training in disaster preparedness have dramatically increased, resulting in changing expectations of public health workers' roles in emergency response. This article explores the public health emergency responder role through data collected as part of an oral history conducted with the 3 health departments that responded to Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi and Louisiana. The data reveals a significant change in public health emergency response capacity as a result of federal funding. The role is still evolving, and many challenges remain, in particular, a clear articulation of the public health role in emergency response, the integration of the public health and emergency responder cultures, identification of the scope of training needs and strategies to maintain new public health emergency response skills, and closer collaboration with emergency response agencies.

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

Sodhi, A., Chihuri, S., Hoven, C. W., Susser, E. S., DiMaggio, C., Abramson, D., Andrews, H. F., Ryan, M., & Li, G. (n.d.).

Publication year

2024

Journal title

AJPM Focus

Volume

3

Issue

6

10.1016/j.focus.2024.100278

Abstract

Abstract

Introduction: To assess the association of race and ethnicity with self-reported personal protective equipment shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare workers in New York. Methods: The COVID-19 Healthcare Personnel Study of New York was a prospective cohort study of HCWs with baseline data collected in April 2020 and follow-up data collected in February 2021. Multivariable logistic regression modeling was used to estimate the adjusted OR and 95% CIs of personal protective equipment shortages associated with race and ethnic minority status. Results: Healthcare workers of racial and ethnic minority status (n=361) were more likely than non-Hispanic White respondents (n=1,858) to report having experienced personal protective equipment shortages in the last week at baseline (36.0% vs 27.5%; p=0.001) and follow-up (13.6% vs 8.8%; p=0.005). With adjustment for demographic and clinical characteristics, racial and ethnic minority status was associated with 44% and 49% increased odds of experiencing PPE shortages at baseline (adjusted OR=1.44; 95% CI=1.10, 1.88) and follow up (adjusted OR=1.49; 95% CI=1.01, 2.21), respectively. Conclusions: Healthcare workers of racial and ethnic minority status in New York experienced more pervasive personal protective equipment shortages than their non-Hispanic White counterparts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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

Merdjanoff, A. A., Abramson, D., Piltch-Loeb, R., Findley, P., Peek, L., Beedasy, J., Park, Y. S., Sury, J., & Meltzer, G. Y. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Clinical Social Work Journal

Volume

50

Issue

4

Page(s)

400-413

10.1007/s10615-021-00814-y

Abstract

Abstract

Disaster exposure is a strong predictor of survivor mental health following large-scale disasters. However, there is continued debate regarding how disaster exposure should be measured and quantified, as well as whether specific types of disaster exposure are more likely to influence certain mental health outcomes like psychological distress or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this article, we propose the Disaster Exposure Matrix to explain how specific types and levels of disaster exposure are associated with particular mental health outcomes. We use data from the Sandy Child and Family Health study—an observational cohort study of 1000 randomly selected New Jersey residents who were living in the nine counties most-affected by Hurricane Sandy (2012)—to examine how direct and indirect disaster exposure at both the individual and community levels influence the likelihood of experiencing psychological distress and probable PTSD in the two years after Hurricane Sandy. Weighted logistic regression models demonstrate that particular measures of individual-level direct and indirect exposure uniquely influence probable PTSD and psychological distress, respectively. Community-level indirect exposure is significantly associated with psychological distress but not with probable PTSD. Findings highlight the importance of specificity when measuring the effects of disaster exposure on mental health, including separating exposures that occur at the individual and community level, as well as distinguishing those that are experienced directly from the event from those that are indirect and experienced after the meteorological or geophysical event has passed.