This weekend marks Force of Infection’s third anniversary! I started this newsletter shortly after I completed a stint at CDC, helping to start the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics. I was looking to publish an essay about mpox (then called monkeypox) and was frustrated by the slow process of pitching traditional outlets. I decided to make my own home on the internet, instead. Three years later, here we are.
What’s changed
A lot has changed in the last three years. I wrote a book about the hidden world of fighting outbreaks, I started the Center for Outbreak Response Innovation at Johns Hopkins, and I ushered my three kids into elementary school.
This newsletter has changed, too. I began by writing about high consequence outbreaks, my academic specialty. But over time, my readers said I could be most helpful by writing about news you can use—in other words, the everyday bugs that keep them out of work and school. That evolved into the Outbreak Outlook format that I now publish year round.
Launching Crisis Averted, with help from my junior crew.
By the numbers
In the last three years, I’ve published over 400 editions of Force of Infection. That big number comes largely from the regional editions. During flu season, I send five newsletters a week to equip readers with more local information.
Today, Force of Infection reaches over 42,000 readers across all 50 U.S. states and 154 countries, with more than 5 million total views. I’m especially proud that over 85% of paid subscribers stay for at least a year. It’s a sign, I hope, that this work is useful, trustworthy, and worth returning to.
Continuing on
I’m thinking about what the next three years will look like, and I want your input. This newsletter has evolved because readers told me what they need, and I want to keep building it with you. What’s missing? What more could I do?
What won’t change is my goal of offering clear reporting that helps you make smart health decisions. I try to be useful, reliable, and accurate. And I try to earn your trust by writing consistently, especially when things feel uncertain.
If Force of Infection has been useful to you, please share it with someone who might benefit, too. You can also take a look at my book, and if you’ve already read it, leaving a review helps others decide to pick it up.
Thanks for reading, for trusting me, and for being here.
-Caitlin
