Strategies for Fighting Ebola

Where do we stand in the fight against Ebola — and what should be done now?

Columbia is convening leading experts — from the University and other institutions – to recommend and discuss specific strategies to:

• Arrest the transmission of the virus and accelerate the delivery of needed care.
• Marshal the financial resources – and the health care personnel – required to address the crisis.
• Mobilize and coordinate international, national, and private-sector responses.
• Accelerate the development, testing, and distribution of an Ebola vaccine.

A full list of distinguished panelists is included below:

Please note that Dr. Ranu Dhillon and Dr. Estrella Lasry will be joining the summit life via Skype from West Africa.

To arrange interviews with panelists or learn more about the event please contact:

Marc Kaplan, Associate Dean, Columbia University School of Nursing, at [email protected] or call 646-531-5680.

A live webcast will be available here:

http://www.livestream.com/columbiaalumniassociation

This event is sponsored by: Columbia Business School Alumni Club of New York, The Columbia Alumni Association, The Columbia University Club of New York, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University School of Nursing, Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Panelists include:

Kathleen Crowley PA-C, MPH, DrPH is the Associate Vice President of Environment Health and Safety for Columbia University.

Ranu Dhillon MD will join the panel discussion via Skype from Guinea. Dr. Dhillon is Senior Technical Advisor, Center on Globalization and Sustainable Development, at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. He has been a consultant to support public health systems in Liberia, Nigeria, and India, and has served with the World Health Organization and UNICEF.

Jennifer Dohrn DNP, RN, FAAN directs the Columbia University School of Nursing’s Office of Global Initiatives. She directed a project that provided technical assistance to build nursing and midwifery capacity in 10 Sub-Saharan countries. She serves on the Global Committee for the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, and the Global Network of WHO Collaborating Centers for Nursing and Midwifery Development.

Wafaa El-Sadr MD, MPH directs the Global Health Initiative at the Mailman School of Public Health, where she is a professor of Epidemiology. She is an expert in building public health and healthy system capacity.

Les Funtleyder directs strategic investments for Opko Health, is the health care portfolio manager for E Squared Asset Management, and a partner with Bluecloud Healthcare, a U.K.-based incubator of health care companies in Africa. Widely quoted in the business and financial media, he is the author of Healthcare Investing: Profiting from the New World of Pharma, Biotech, and Health Care Services.

Scott Hammer MD is the Chief for the Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center. Hammer is a professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health and is an investigator with the National Institutes of Health where he performs clinical trials to improve the treatment of infectious disease.

Elaine Larson PhD, RN, FAAN is an internationally recognized expert in promoting infection prevention and control worldwide. She is Associate Dean for Research at the Columbia University School of Nursing and holds a joint appointment at the Mailman School of Public Health, where she is a professor of Epidemiology. Dr. Larson is the editor of the American Journal of Infection Control.

Estrella Lasry, MD, MSc, DTM, Tropical Medicine Advisor, Médecins Sans Frontières, will join the panel via Skype from Guinea, She is currently supporting the MSF intervention in the West Africa Ebola outbreak

Susan Michaels-Strasser PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN is the associate director for nursing programs and project director of the Global Nurse Capacity Building Program (GNCBP) at ICAP. In this role, she oversees a HRSA-funded, multi-country initiative to strengthen and sustain nursing’s role in the care of people living with HIV. She has served at senior management and training levels at various locations throughout Southern Africa, and has recently returned from Sierra Leone.

Stephen Morse PhD is professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health and is the global Co-Director of PREDICT, a USAID initiative to strengthen global capacity for surveillance and detection of new infectious diseases. He is also the founding Chair of the Program to Monitor Emerging Diseases (ProMED).

Fernando Ortiz Jr. works in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations at the United Nations and is currently on special assignment to the United Nations Mission in Liberia.

Alexander Preker is president and CEO of the Health Investment & Financing Corp, a founding member of the NY Chapter of the Keiretsu Forum, and served as chief economist of health, nutrition, and population at The World Bank.

Irwin Redlener MD is professor of Health Policy and Management and co-founder and president of the Children’s Health Fund and director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at The Earth Institute. Dr. Redlener is a nationally recognized expert on disaster preparedness policies, pandemic influenza, the threat of terrorism in the U.S., and the impact and consequences of major natural disasters and related issues.

Christopher Reim is the managing director of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance and a managing general partner of Innovate NY Fund, LP.

Witney Schneidman is a senior international advisor for Africa at Covington & Burling, who provides strategic advice on political, economic, social and regulatory issues that are critical to companies’ success in Africa. Previously, he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs and played a key role in ensuring the passage and implementation of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, and the establishment of the U.S.-SADC Forum, the U.S.-Angola Bilateral Consultative Commission and the U.S. Nigeria Joint Economic Partnership Committee.

Fighting Ebola