Non-medical vaccine exemptions for Arkansas kindergarten students continue to rise, according to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccine hesitancy, or a lack of confidence in vaccines, is a key factor contributing to this trend, but it is not a new phenomenon. On this episode of the Wonks at Work podcast, we’re joined by Dr. Sam Taggart, author of The Public’s Health: A Narrative History of Health and Disease in Arkansas, to discuss the history of vaccine hesitancy in the Natural State.

Rapid economic and population growth like what’s taking place in Northwest Arkansas can be exciting, but it can also stress existing housing, education, transportation, and healthcare infrastructure. The Northwest Arkansas Council Health Care Transformation Division, an organization established to help shape the region’s development, and Heartland Whole Health Institute have released a new report that assesses the healthcare transformation currently underway and outlines future goals. Key objectives include building a sufficient healthcare workforce to respond to the demands of a growing population and ensuring that healthcare dollars stay in the Northwest Arkansas economy. To learn more about the report, we’re joined on this episode of the Wonks at Work podcast by Dr. Paul Umbach, founder of the healthcare and higher education consulting firm Tripp Umbach, which led the report’s development.

Now more than ever, schools are seeking to provide students with a broad scope of wellness, prevention, and treatment so they can thrive inside and outside the classroom. Dozens of schools across Arkansas have adopted a model known as the school-based health center. These are staffed clinics on school grounds that provide medical and mental health care, and in some cases oral health and vision services. Students and staff don’t have to leave school for appointments, and studies have shown the centers have the potential to improve educational outcomes. To learn more about these centers, we’re joined on this episode by Tamara Baker, executive director of the School-Based Health Alliance of Arkansas.

Arkansas recently joined a growing number of states that support cell phone restrictions in schools, launching a $7 million pilot program to create “phone-free” schools as part of a broader effort to improve student mental health and curb screen addiction. While research on cell phone bans is mixed, some studies show associated improvements in student mental health and academic performance, as well as decreases in bullying. For a firsthand perspective on the impact of such bans on students and the school environment, we’re joined on this episode by Dr. Debbie Jones, superintendent of Bentonville Schools.

Tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of death in Arkansas, claiming more lives each year than HIV, illicit drug use, alcohol, motor vehicle injuries, and firearm-related incidents combined. Tobacco use in the state has dropped significantly over the past decade, but Arkansas’s smoking rate still ranks among the highest in the U.S. Plus, the use of e-cigarettes has drastically increased, with roughly 1 in 10 Arkansans vaping regularly. To explore these challenges, as well as some hopeful new treatments for lung cancer, we’re joined on this episode by Dr. Matthew Steliga, a thoracic surgeon at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and a member of the Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Advisory Board for Arkansas.

Firearms are the leading cause of death for children in the U.S., and the number of gun-related fatalities has continued to climb for the past decade. Following the September school shooting in Winder, Ga., that left two students and two teachers dead, the question of how to stem the tide has risen again. In this episode of the Wonks at Work podcast, we’re joined by Dr. Whit Hall, a neonatologist with Arkansas Children’s Hospital and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Recently, he shared how gun violence has impacted him and his family in a testimony before state lawmakers, who are considering an update to Arkansas’s gun laws.