THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS
3910 Keswick Rd., Suite N-2600
Baltimore, MD 21211
Phone:  443-997-9009 / Fax: 443-997-1006

CONTACT: Media representatives listed below
General contact: Dennis O’Shea
Office: 443-997-9912 / Cell: 410-499-7460
[email protected] / @JHUmediareps

Note: Information on broadcast-quality interviews with Johns Hopkins experts on Vyvx or ISDN can be found here.

MEDIA ADVISORY: More Hurricane Experts from Johns Hopkins University

This is an additional list of experts from the Johns Hopkins University on issues associated with Hurricane Harvey and now Hurricane Irma. A consolidated list, including experts from previous lists, is online here. It will be updated as warranted.

ISSUE: Climate and hurricane intensity
Anand Gnanadesikan, Ph.D.
Professor, Earth and planetary sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
See video of Dr. Gnanadesikan
A climate modeler, Dr. Gnanadesikan looks at the atmospheric and oceanic circulation of the tropics, including how changes in circulation can affect hurricane formation. Irma “is right now the most extreme Atlantic hurricane on record. Some of the most intense hurricanes ever seen have been seen in the past few years. The predictions are that global warming will reduce the overall number of hurricanes, but increase the most intense hurricanes.” To reach Anand Gnanadesikan, contact Arthur Hirsch at 443-997-9909 or 443-462-8702 (cell) or email him at [email protected]

ISSUE: Sea Level Rise and Coastal Engineering
Robert A. Dalrymple, Ph.D.
Willard and Lillian Hackerman Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering
Dr. Dalrymple is an expert in coastal engineering and coastal processes, including the effects of sea level rise. “In the Miami area, the mean sea level has risen about 5 inches since Hurricane Andrew [in 1992]. This implies more inundation for a similar storm.” 
To reach Robert Dalrymple, email him at [email protected]. To talk with him, contact Phil Sneiderman at 443-997-9907 (office) or 410-299-7462 (cell), or email him at [email protected]

ISSUE: Community resilience to major disasters
Monica Schoch-Spana, Ph.D.
Senior associate at the Center for Health Security and visiting faculty member at the Bloomberg School of Public Health; she also holds faculty positions in anthropology at Texas State University and the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism.
“As severe weather events increase in intensity and frequency, the country needs to move from a 'emergency response' model of picking up pieces after a crisis to a 'community resilience' model of constantly evolving to withstand one in the first place."
To reach Monica Schoch-Spana, contact Nick Alexopulos at [email protected] or 443-573-3318

ISSUE: Health-sector resilience and hospital preparedness
Eric Toner, M.D. Senior associate, Center for Center for Health Security, and senior scientist, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Dr. Toner is an expert in health care preparedness for catastrophic events and health sector resilience. He recently worked on a study examining the impact of Hurricane Sandy on the health sectors of affected areas. Many of the findings from that project, Dr. Toner says, are highly relevant to future hurricane response and recovery efforts. He explores potential stressors on Houston’s health sector in his Aug. 30 column in The Hill. For example, he says, “the majority of the [post-disaster surge of] patients that present for care are likely to have routine medical needs such as medication prescriptions, management of chronic conditions, and minor illnesses and injuries, and some will require access to outpatient services such as dialysis, behavioral health, and homecare. Reestablishing access to these services and supply chains for essential medications should be a priority.”
To reach Eric Toner, contact Nick Alexopulos at [email protected] or 443-573-3318

ISSUE: Disaster Nursing
Tener Goodwin Veenema, PhD, MPH, MS, RN, FAAN
Associate professor of acute and chronic care, School of Nursing
Tener Goodwin Veenema is an internationally recognized expert in disaster nursing and public health emergency preparedness. She has served as senior consultant to the departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Veterans Affairs, the Administration for Children and Families, and FEMA. “Timely and appropriate response to these devastating storms will require communication, collaboration and coordination across all sectors of the acute and public health care system. Nurses will be integral to these efforts, providing counsel and clinical care, implementing infection control measures, and ensuring access to health care for all. Our national nursing workforce is the steel safety net that promotes individual and population health and wellbeing and will help to propel our communities towards recovery.”
To reach Tener Goodwin Veebema, contact Danielle Kress at 410-955-2840 ([email protected]); Tammy Berwanger at 410-591-0759 ([email protected]); or Tener Veenema [email protected]  

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