Edwin J. Asturias, MD
Vaccines on a Global Scale and the Vaccine Pipeline

Dr. Asturias graduated as a medical doctor from the San Carlos University in Guatemala in 1989 and was board certified in pediatrics at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in 1995. Trained in Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, he has been working in the area of vaccine research and policy in Guatemala and the Latin region since 1998. Through the conduction of epidemiological studies and the inquiry into efficacy and safety issues of vaccines against poliomyelitis, pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b, pneumococcus and E. coli, the Center for Health Studies under his direction has provided answers to important implementation questions, especially for resource poor countries in Central and Latin America.

Dr. Asturias has served on the Guatemalan National Committee for Immunization Practices, the Poliovirus Contention Commission, and advisory groups for the World Health Organization, including the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety. He is the technical coordinator of the Immunization Group of the Mesoamerican Health Initiative, and a member of the Committee of Vaccines of the Latin American Society of Pediatric Infectious Diseases. Dr. Asturias currently serves as Vice President of the CCIC Board of Directors.

Rachel Herlihy, MD, MPH
Colorado Epidemiology of Vaccine Preventable Diseases and Immunization Coverage Rates

Dr. Rachel Herlihy is a preventive medicine physician and Director for the Division of Disease Control and Environmental Epidemiology at the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE). She earned her MD and BS degrees in Bacteriology and Medical Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Wisconsin.She completed an internal medicine internship at the University of Virginia and a preventive medicine residency at Johns Hopkins University.

In her current role, Dr. Herlihy oversees the Department’s Programs in Communicable Disease Epidemiology, Tuberculosis, HIV, Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Infections, Immunizations, Environmental Health, Occupational Health, Toxicology, Refugee Health, and Electronic Laboratory Reporting.She leads and participates in multiple health policy and scientific advisory groups at the state and national level, including the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices Meningitis Vaccines Work Group.Dr. Herlihy represents the Department of Health in a variety of settings including media, legislative, and executive hearings.She has a special interest in vaccine confidence and lectures on the topic regularly.Dr. Herlihy is the mother of a healthy, happy, fully vaccinated preschooler.

Amanda Dempsey, MD, PhD, MPH
The Importance of HPV Vaccination and Strategies to Increase Uptake in Pediatric & Family Practices

Amanda Dempsey, MD, PhD, MPH graduated from the University of Rochester in New York in 1991 and earned her Doctorate degree at Vanderbilt University in 2000. Dr. Dempsey completed her residency at Seattle Children's Hospital/University of Washington in 2003.

Prior to joining the University of Colorado as Associate Professor of Pediatrics, she held the positions of Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Michigan and Acting Instructor for the University of Washington Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Dempsey is involved in health services research and epidemiology with interests in immunization delivery, vaccine refusal, human papillomavirus infection and mathematical modeling. Her clinical interests include sick and well general pediatrics, well newborn care and pediatric dermatology.

Dr. Dempsey has been affiliated for a number of years with the Pediatric Academic Society, the Society for Pediatric research, the International Papillomavirus Society, and the Academic Pediatric Association.

Jason Glanz, PhD
Vaccine Hesitancy and Addressing Parental Concerns about Vaccine Safety

Jason Glanz, PhD, is an epidemiologist and investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Colorado Institute for Health Research and an assistant professor of epidemiology in the Department of Epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health. Dr. Glanz is currently a co-principal investigator for the Vaccine Safety Datalink, a national CDC-funded project that examines the safety of vaccines.

Over the last eight years, Dr. Glanz's research team at Kaiser Permanente Colorado has conducted several studies on vaccine acceptance with parents and providers. Dr. Glanz is currently the principal and co-principal investigator of two randomized trials that are examining web-based approaches to educate vaccine hesitant parents and reduce their vaccine concerns.

Sean O'Leary, MD, MPH
Interactive Case Studies and Vaccine Jeopardy

Sean O'Leary is a Pediatric Infectious Diseases specialist and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado. Dr. O’Leary received a BA in Environmental Studies from Brown University in 1991 and graduated from University of Texas Houston Medical School in 1996. After completing pediatric residency at The Children's Hospital in Denver in 1999, he moved to Fort Collins where he practiced as a general pediatrician for 8 years. Dr. O’Leary currently is an Assistant Professor with a joint appointment in the sections of General Academic Pediatrics and Pediatric Infectious Diseases. His research interests include immunization delivery, vaccine safety, and vaccine hesitancy. Dr. O'Leary is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.