Speakers: Dr. Paul Spiegel, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health; Dr. Altaf Musani, WHO Representative for Yemen; Dr. Shaun Truelove, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Dr. Sandra Harlass, UNHCR; Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO Emerging Diseases and Zoonoses Unit

COVID-19 data in humanitarian settings are generally incomplete and limited. Consequently, models for these contexts have mostly used data from non-humanitarian settings, and their results do not appear to reflect the reality on the ground. What is really happening with COVID-19 in humanitarian emergencies? Can we use other settings to gain insights? Do we have any seroprevalence surveys?

MODERATOR: Dr. Paul Spiegel | Professor and Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health: Paul Spiegel, a Canadian physician by training, is internationally recognized for his research on preventing and responding to humanitarian emergencies with a focus on refugee crises. He is the Director of the Center for Humanitarian Health and Professor of Practice at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH). Before Hopkins, Dr. Spiegel was a Deputy Director and Chief of Public Health at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

PANELISTS

  • Dr. Altaf Musani | WHO Representative for Yemen, World Health Organization: Altaf Musani has worked at WHO in humanitarian emergencies in numerous countries, most recently as the WHO Representative in Yemen. He previously worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  • Dr. Shaun Truelove | Assistant Scientist, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: Shaun Truelove is an Assistant Scientist in the Department of International Health at JHSPH. His work focuses on infectious disease epidemiology, and disease dynamics and modeling. As part of the Center for Humanitarian Health, he has co-led an initiative to provide SARS-CoV-2 modeling and epidemiology support to humanitarian partners, including UNHCR, OCHA, and MSF.
  • Dr. Sandra Harlass | SeniorPublic Health Officer, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees: Sandra Harlass is a public health specialist with more than 18 years of experience. She has worked in different countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Sandra has worked with UNHCR for the last six years and is currently based in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, where she is heading the health and nutrition team as a Senior Public Health Officer.
  • Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove | COVID-19 Technical Lead and Head of Emerging Diseases and Zoonoses Unit, World Health Organization: Maria Van Kerkhove is an American infectious disease epidemiologist. With a background in high-threat pathogens, she specializes in emerging infectious diseases and is based in the Health Emergencies Program at WHO. She is the technical lead of the COVID-19 response and the head of the Emerging Diseases and Zoonoses Unit at WHO.

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