Research, ideas, and leadership for a more secure, peaceful world
Past Event
Study Group
The Pandemic Life Cycle through an Emergency Management Lens
Harvard Faculty, Fellows, Staff, and Students
This online study group, held in five sessions will cover the multiple phases of a pandemic lifecycle through the lens of emergency management. Each session will be devoted to each of the five emergency management phases including prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. The study group will be led by Dr. Syra Madad, where she will bring in guest speakers who have been at the forefront in pandemic preparedness and response. Students will explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within each of these phases and how we can better pandemic-proof society for the future.
Date:Location:
Online
Session Dates/Times
Session Dates/Times
Session 1: March 24, 4-5pm
Phase 1- Prevention with Dr. Neil Vora
Session 2: March 31, 4-5pm
Phase 2- Mitigation and Preparedness
Session 3: April 7, 4-5pm
Phase 3- Response with Dr. Laura Iavicoli
Session 4: April 14, 4-5pm
Phase 4- Recovery with Anne N. Sosin
Session 5: April 28, 4-5pm
Lessons Learned from Pandemic Years 1 and 2: SWOT Analysis
Dr. Neil Vora is a physician with Conservation International where he leads its efforts on pandemic prevention. Throughout his career, he has focused on the link between human health and the health of the planet – particularly as it relates to the increasing threat of “spillover” of viruses from animals to humans because of the destruction of nature.
He served for nearly a decade with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including as an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer and a Commander in the US Public Health Service (USPHS). Neil deployed for CDC to Liberia in 2014 and to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2019 to assist in the responses to the two largest Ebola outbreaks ever. He previously led the investigation of a newly discovered virus in the country of Georgia related to the smallpox virus. For his work, he has received numerous accolades including the USPHS Physician Researcher of the Year Award, CDC James H. Steele Veterinary Public Health Award, CDC Donald C. Mackel Memorial Award, and CDC Alexander D. Langmuir Prize Manuscript Award.
From 2020-2021, Neil developed and led New York City’s COVID-19 contact tracing program, overseeing a team of over 3,000 people. His program traced more than half a million people who had contracted the virus. He still sees patients in a public tuberculosis clinic in New York City.
He has published over 60 articles in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, The Lancet and others. He is currently an Associate Editor at CDC’s Emerging Infectious Diseases journal, an Adjunct Professor of Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Columbia University, and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He completed medical school at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) in 2009 and his Internal Medicine training at Columbia University in 2012.
Outside of work, Neil loves to spend time with his rescue pets and to train in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
Dr. Laura Iavioli is a board certified Emergency Medicine physician with special expertise in Emergency Management. She attended Boston College and the Robert wood Johnson Medical School (Rutgers Medical School). Dr. Iavioli has been an attending physician in the Emergency Department at Elmhurst Hospital, a teaching affiliate of Mount Sinai Medical center for 20 years where she trains and teaches Emergency Medicine Residents, Internal Medicine Residents, and Medical Students in Emergency Medicine. Dr. Iavioloi serves on numerous hospital committees devoted to emergency management issues and has attended over 90 specialty seminars and training sessions in emergency preparedness over a 20 year period. Dr. Iavoli delivered over 80 presentations to hospital staff on topics pertaining to disaster preparedness, including terrorism, mass casualties, blast injuries, psychiatric effects, decon, protective equipment, et al. Dr. Iavoli has been a Disaster Relief team member for over 10 years for NYC and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Anne Sosin is a public health practitioner, research, and educator focused on issues of health equity globally and in rural Northern New England. Anne brings nearly two decades of experience leading public health partnerships at the local, national, and International level. Her current research focuses on COVID-19 and rural health equity in Northern New England. Anne holds a BA from Dartmouth College and a MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
