Media Coverage

Peter Winkelstein, MD, executive director of UB’s Institute for Healthcare Informatics and clinical professor of pediatrics, is quoted in a story on how researchers around the world are trying to use artificial intelligence to predict how likely COVID-19 patients are to fall severely ill or die. Winkelstein comments on the challenges facing research in this area. 

Peter Winkelstein, MD, executive director of UB’s Institute for Healthcare Informatics and clinical professor of pediatrics, is quoted in a story on rising hospitalizations in Western New York. Hospitalizations signal the health care system’s ability to respond to the second wave, Winkelstein said. They’re also a “clean” point of comparison between different times and places, because they don’t rely on shifting variables such as how many tests are available and who’s getting tested.

A story on WBFO about COVID cases being nearly three times higher among people of color quotes Oscar G. Gomez, MD, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases. “Between White people and Native Americans, we can see the number of cases is 2.8 times higher for this population. It’s 2.6 higher for African Americans and it’s 2.8 higher for Hispanics, compared to White people,” Gomez said.

A story on Spectrum News on how to interpret COVID-19 positivity rates has an interview with Peter Winkelstein, MD, executive director of UB’s Institute for Healthcare Informatics and clinical professor of pediatrics. Winkelstein said there are problems with only looking at positivity rate. “Of course, if you only test sick people, your positivity rate is going to probably be pretty high because you’re testing sick people. If you only test people who have no symptoms, then your positivity rate is going to be lower because you’re leaving out the sick people," he said. However, Winkelstein said he has no reason to question the positivity rate spike over the last few weeks and days, according to the news report.

Buffalo Spree’s Medicine in WNY issue reported on local researchers fighting COVID-19. They include Steven E. Lipshultz, MD, A. Conger Goodyear Professor and Chair of pediatrics, who is applying his expertise studying other viruses in children to COVID-19. “At this point, we have enough of an initial safety signal to say that for some children, it can kill them, and for others, it can be life-threatening,” he said. The piece also includes interviews with Oscar G. Gomez, MD, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, who is looking at social determinants of health with regard to COVID-19, and Brian Clemency, DO, clinical professor of emergency medicine, whose research focuses on younger patients who may not get as sick as older patients but who, Clemency says, are likely to spread the disease more. Clemency is doing a smartphone study to see if steroid-based inhalers are effective in treating young people with relatively mild cases of COVID-19.

In a five-minute-long segment about whether new safety measures make it safe for parents to bring children to visit with Santa at local malls this holiday season, WGRZ interviewed Mark D. Hicar, MD, PhD, associate professor pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases. Noting that that’s a personal decision for families, Hicar said that the area’s current low infection rate makes such outings fairly safe. “If our rates do go up, that’ll be a riskier scenario,” he said. He also discussed children’s vulnerability to becoming infected, noting “kids aren’t magically protected.”

In a Spectrum News story, Oscar G. Gomez, MD, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, discussed why the CDC considered costume masks inadequate in terms of virus transmission this Halloween.

Mark D. Hicar, MD, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases, is quoted in multiple stories about high-risk Halloween activities to avoid during the COVID-19 pandemic. “If you do have a high-risk person who you visit, I would plan on avoiding visitation for 14 days after Halloween activities that involve people outside your household to make sure no symptoms develop,” he said. 

Throughout October, families can “pay what they can,” to enjoy a day full of fun at Explore & More Children’s Museum. “You can select a dollar amount listed that works in your budget,” said Amelia Schrader. “We know so many in our community are still out of work on a really tight budget but we want to make sure everybody has a chance to come here and play.” You will still need to purchase your tickets online. One of the activities at the museum is a new exhibit, “Sofia Learns About Research,” a collaboration between the museum and UB’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute. Teresa Quattrin, MD, UB Distinguished Professor of pediatrics and senior associate dean for research integration at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, is one of the researchers responsible for developing the book and new exhibit.

A new exhibit is will open at the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Explore and More Children's Museum. “Sofia Learns About Research” is a collaboration between the museum and University at Buffalo’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute. Teresa Quattrin, MD, UB Distinguished Professor of pediatrics and senior associate dean for research integration, is one of the researchers responsible for developing the book and new exhibit. “Since the pandemic began, the increased public conversations around health and science are making this exhibit and all the ‘Sofia’ materials we’ve developed all that much more compelling,” she says.