When there's a measles outbreak next door

About this episode

The episode discusses the response of the county's health department to a measles outbreak and public attitudes towards vaccination.

Given the threat posed by a 1,000 cases of measles on our doorstep, I wanted to find out how our county’s health department was responding to both the change in public attitudes and the outbreak itself. After all, measles was supposedly eradicated from the US a quarter=century ago. Natalie Trachsel , who is the current health director for the county, and Elizabeth Burnett , a nurse with the health department, agreed that it would be a good idea to share what they’ve been doing, and what everyone else in the county should be doing, too. Resources Polk County Communicable Disease Updates NC Division of Public Health Measles Dashboard Check your immunity quiz Enabling Vaccine Uptake: Strategies for the Public Health Sector ( British Journal of Hospital Medicine) Exposure locations Immune amnesia Helps protect against other diseases:

People in this episode

Host: James Hrynyshyn

Guests: Natalie Trachsel, Elizabeth Burnett

Topics covered

• measles outbreak
• public health
• vaccination
• community response
• health department

Keywords

• measles
• vaccination
• public health
• outbreak response
• community health

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Polk County Communicable Disease Updates, NC Division of Public Health, British Journal of Hospital Medicine

Places: US

More episodes of Polk Lore

• John Vining has some thoughts · May 22, 2026 · 47 min
• One Nation Indivisible. But is it really? · April 10, 2026 · 38 min
• The Revolution Will Not Be Amplified (in Columbus) · April 1, 2026 · 28 min
• A Democratic Republican for NC 14: Kate Barr wants to upset the apple cart · February 25, 2026 · 42 min
• GOP primary candidate for Sheriff Keith Henderson · February 24, 2026 · 31 min
• GOP primary candidate for sheriff Clayton Price · February 23, 2026 · 34 min