A panel of public health experts examines the topic of infectious disease and offers some insights into this ever-changing aspect of medicine and our environment. Hepatitis A. West Nile Virus. Bird Flu. SARS. Monkeypox. Infectious diseases are all around us, and a new one seems to emerge every year. In some cases, transmission may be just a plane ride away. What is causing these new diseases and strains to originate? Is an epidemic on hand? What can we do to protect ourselves and our families? This lecture is presented in collaboration with the Massachusetts Medical Society.
Dr. DeMaria serves as medical director of the Bureau of Infectious Disease Prevention, Response and Services in the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. He is also the state epidemiologist for Massachusetts. He is a graduate of Boston University and Harvard Medical School. He trained in internal medicine at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York and in infectious diseases at Boston City Hospital and the Boston University School of Medicine. Prior to joining the Department of Public Health in 1989, he was an infectious diseases consultant in private practice and prior to that on the staff of The Maxwell Finland Laboratory for Infectious Diseases and Section of Infectious Diseases, Boston City Hospital and Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. DeMaria is a fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and serves on committees of the Massachusetts Medical Society and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, and on the boards of the Massachusetts Public Health Association and The Public Health Museum.
Liz Brunner is co-anchor of *NewsCenter 5* at 6 p.m. She also co-anchors the Friday edition of the 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts and serves as anchor/reporter for WCVB-TV/DT's major news coverage. Brunner first joined the station in September 1993 as a reporter and fill-in anchor for WCVB's nightly newsmagazine, *Chronicle*. She has also co-anchored *the EyeOpener* newscast. In 1995, Brunner received a New England Emmy for a Chronicle program *Cape Cod by Air*. She has also been honored for her community work, including a 1991 Communications Achievement Award from the American Women in Radio and Television. In addition, *Boston Magazine* named Liz Brunner the Best Newcomer to the Boston media market in August 1994. Brunner is actively involved with the March of Dimes Walk America, the American Heart Association's Heart Walk and the Berkshire Hills Music Academy for Children With Williams Syndrome. She currently serves as Executive Vice President of AWRT/New England, the local chapter of American Women in Radio and Television. Born in Connecticut, Brunner was raised in Hawaii and Illinois. She received a Bachelor of Music at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wis. She resides in a Boston suburb.