A Public Health and Business School Graduate with Sickle Cell Disease

About this episode:   September is Sickle Cell Awareness Month, recognizing a severe disease that affects an estimated 100,000 people in the U.S. In this episode: Shayla Ellington, who lives with Hemoglobin SC disease, shares how her diagnosis has shaped her life, how she sees the underfunding of research and treatment, and how she uses her public health and business school training to advocate for a brighter future. Guest:  Shayla Ellington, MPH, MBA, is a recent alumna of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Carey Business School. Host:  Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department.  Show links and related content:  About Sickle Cell Disease—Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Beyond Gene Therapies: People With Sickle Cell Disease Need Comprehensive Care—Health Affairs Sickle Cell Disease: Genetic Therapies and Treatment Hurdles—Public Health On Call (August 2025) Transcript information: Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel. You can also email PublicHealthQuestion@jhu.edu to request a transcript. AI disclosure (as of September 2026): <p data-prosemirror-content-type="node" data-p