Julie Leask AO

At launch of Conspiracy Nation - on Australian conspiracy theories and why they show up. Authors Ariel Bogle and Cam Wilson in interview with Sana Qadar at tonight’s launch. Nice to see your quotes in the book, @mdmarques.com

UK condemns Israel for depriving Palestinians of ‘human dignity’ David Lammy joins ministers from 24 other countries in issuing call for immediate end to Gaza war

Australia and 23 other countries call for immediate end to Gaza war. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

Is Technology Really Ruining Teens’ Lives? In recent years, an irresistibly intuitive hypothesis has both salved and fuelled parental anxieties: it’s the phones.

In recent years, a seductive hypothesis has been used to explain the mental-health crisis among teens: it’s the phones. Some argue that it’s not that simple.

Why it can be hard to warn people about dangers like floods – communication researchers explain the role of human behavior As flash floods ravage areas like the Texas Hill Country, research shows that technology alone cannot save lives during flooding emergencies.

Why it can be hard to warn people about dangers like floods – communication researchers explain the role of human behavior
theconversation.com/why-it-can-b...

Dear Colleague It appears that your Wellbeing Awareness training has not yet been completed. This e-learning forms part of the University's strategy to improve health and wellbeing amongst its staff and is an important means of providing you with key information on how to manage work-life pressures.

MAYBE DON’T EMAIL ME AT THE WEEKEND, THEN.

Leading medical groups sue Kennedy over changed Covid-19 vaccine recommendations Six major medical groups, and a pregnant physician, are suing HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over changes he made to Covid-19 vaccine recommendations.

A number of professional organizations representing physicians are suing HHS Secretary Kennedy over his unilateral decision to exempt kids and pregnant people from those recommended to get Covid shots. @chelseacirruzzo.bsky.social reports. www.statnews.com/2025/07/07/d...

3 boxes on the left and 3 on right all aligned horizontally. Each box on left represents past flu vaccination status (none, one or two vaccines in past two years). Each box on right depicts intention to vaccinate in 2024 (no, unsure, yes). Each box on left connects to each box on right with lines of different thickness determined movement between previous vaccination and 2024 intention. Thickest line is from Two Previous Vaccines and Yes for intention.

The drivers of influenza vaccination in adults: Insights from a national Australian survey. Our National Vaccination Insights collaboration surveyed 2000 adults about flu vaccine in 2024, using the WHO BeSD survey. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Graphic that reads "Trying to reach young people with social media health communication? We co-designed these 5 recommendations with young people and professional health communicators". Includes illustration of young people holding phone.

📱Interested in reaching young people with health communication via social media? 🤔

💡We co-designed 5 recommendations with young people and health communicators!

Read thread or visit site for more: www.sydneyhealthliteracylab.org.au/social-media...

Article 🔗 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

When should I stay home from work sick Sydney experts discuss cold and flu trends, when it’s safe to go to work with a cough and why some people go to work while sick. Read more

Great to contribute to this USyd media released today as respiratory illness trends upwards across the country
📈🦠🤒

www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion...

#flu #covid #rsv #IPC
#SydneyNursingSchool #SydneyID
Thank you @julieleask.bsky.social for the referral

Well done! So good to see.

Should Australia worry about RFK Jr’s shock flu vaccine move? A US panel’s decision not to recommend the preservative thiomersal won’t affect vaccine availability in Australia, say experts. But it will stoke dangerous anti-vax sentiment

Should Australia worry about RFK Jr’s shock flu vaccine move? Garry Grohmann, former TGA, and I have made some comments on this today for @australia.theguardian.com @toryshepherd.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Threats to vaccinations in the US url:https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama-health-forum/fullarticle/2835880?utm_source=bluesky&utm_campaign=content-shareicons&utm_content=article_engagement&utm_medium=social&utm_term=062725

Buckle up - we're in for a wild ride with the US Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices meeting over the next couple of days after an entirely new panel was appointed with much less vaccination expertise and a fair bit of vaccine skepticism. www.cdc.gov/acip/meeting...

US Senator Cassidy urges delay of US vaccine meeting The head of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions called for the delay of a meeting of vaccine advisers scheduled for Wednesday after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members this month.

US Senator Cassidy urges delay of US vaccine meeting. Cassidy was the one who essentially let RFK Jr in. www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...

Opinion | The Waste Musk Created

The Waste Musk Created www.nytimes.com/2025/06/21/o...

Poor vaccine uptake a 'reality check' as situation worsening in Australia The proportion of Australian teenagers vaccinated against the virus that causes cervical cancer is the lowest it has been in almost 10 years.

The HPV vaccine can prevent genital cancers, but fewer teens are getting the jab

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-06...

The Australian government has launched a new strategy to boost vaccination rates. Will it work? Amid declining vaccination rates in Australia, a new strategy seeks to reduce vaccine hesitancy and improve access to immunisations.

The Australian government has launched a new strategy to boost vaccination rates. Will it work? Jess Kaufman and I wrote this piece. theconversation.com/the-australi...

In a very encouraging sign, it aspires to look into a comprehensive compensation scheme for vaccine injury - a very rare but real occurrence. That will strengthen confidence in our already robust program. Let's hope the aspiration becomes action.

New immunisation plan targets children among falling vaccine rates - ABC listen The federal government's new National Immunisation Strategy has promised to focus on improving access to vaccines and reducing vaccine hesitancy. Health Minister Mark Butler's five year plan comes at...

Australia's new National Immunisation Strategy is comprehensive and notes that coverage is affected by hesitancy and lack of convenient service access. It has aspirational plans, encouraging reform talk, and a gap - no mention of nurses. My interview today. www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

Members of our SABII team at the Communicable Disease and Immunisation Conference in Adelaide this week. We’re in front of Dr Majdi Sabahelzain’s poster which analysed shifts in trust pre- and post-pandemic. sabii.sydney.edu.au

With U.S. vaccine policy in flux, four members of CDC advisory panel receive termination notices Four members of the ACIP, which advises the CDC on vaccination policy, have had their status as special government employees terminated

4 members of #CDC's vaccine expert panel have received termination notices — their special gov't employee contracts have expired. Not clear if job cutting has hamstrung the bureaucracy or if more is at play here. But unless they get new SGEs they can't serve on #ACIP www.statnews.com/2025/06/08/c...

Public health suffers when those in power dismiss knowledge “Knowledge is power”—or at least it was when Sir Francis Bacon coined this phrase in the 16th century. In today’s world, we frequently encounter a different variant of this philosophy, perhaps best de...

My latest column in Science went up yesterday doi.org/10.1126/scie... . I argue that “Knowledge is power”—or at least it was when Sir Francis Bacon coined this phrase in the 16th century. 1/n

Lyft driver picked me up from UNC, turned out he was a medicinal chemistry post-doc in a building near mine, until his grant got cut last month.

Worked on novel antivirals.

"Pregnant women who have previously been vaccinated are not routinely recommended to have a further dose of COVID-19 vaccine. However, they can consider a further dose of COVID-19 vaccine based on presence of underlying risk conditions and/or personal preference."

Current Australian recommendations. "COVID-19 vaccine is not recommended for healthy infants, children or adolescents who do not have medical conditions that increase their risk of severe illness." immunisationhandbook.health.gov.au/contents/vac...

YouTube video by Newsweek RFK Jr. Changes Mind About COVID Vaccine

RFK Jr says COVID-19 vaccine has been removed from CDC recommended list for healthy pregnant women and healthy children. This is now similar to Australian recommendations. Seems reasonable at face value but for RFK, what next and why announce with such glee? www.youtube.com/shorts/tT7M9...

Yes for a convo. No for putting it in the past completely. It’s too baked into public discourse. You would be endlessly frustrated trying to eradicate it. It does have a meaning. It just needs to be used for that meaning alone.

A small room with a view of a television monitor with woman sitting in front. Above is the camera for the live cross. On the left is a box for audio and video controls.

An empty seat in the ABC Ultimo studio which is used for live crosses to another TV studio. In the background is an image of Sydney harbour which forms a backdrop for interviews.

The hot seat. Was interviewed ABC breakfast TV today to talk about the upcoming influenza season, the current RSV season and the uptick in COVID in Australia - and the importance of vaccination. Memories of the pandemic and spending a bit of time here.

This is great. Making elite education free/available to all is the way.

Want to fight misinformation? This is how you do it.

Remember: Joe Rogan is free.

Disaster or digital spectacle? The dangers of using floods to create social media content As extreme weather becomes more frequent in Australia under climate change, so too will attempts to document it – at a risk to ourselves and others.

Don’t do dangerous selfies in flood waters. We underestimate the dangers and put ourselves and potential rescuers at risk. theconversation.com/disaster-or-...