The New York Academy of Sciences
eBriefing 
Developments in Transmission, Testing, and Treatment of COVID-19
Reported by
Posted April 24, 2020
Presented By
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has changed the everyday lives of millions of people in the US and globally — with social distancing the new normal, and shelter-in-place, stay-at-home or quarantine orders in effect in multiple localities. Moreover, with schools and businesses shuttered, the economic impact of the pandemic is immediate and severe. Simultaneously, our health systems are facing equipment shortages and healthcare workers are stretched thin.
This eBriefing examines what we know about the origins of SARS-CoV-2, the realities of testing for the virus, and what that means for our ability to re-open the country. In addition, the discussion covers the challenges of treating a disease that has no approved therapies, and considers approaches used by medical professionals to make ethical and effective treatment decisions amidst rapidly changing data. Finally, the panelists emphasize the importance of compassionate and science-based policy as the world navigates the COVID-19 pandemic.
In This eBriefing, You’ll Learn
- What we have discovered about COVID-19 in the months since it emerged. >
- The status of viral testing and how that informs responses to the pandemic. >
- Strategies under consideration to lift lockdown orders. >
- The challenges faced by medical facilities and healthcare professionals during the pandemic. >
Speakers
Peter Daszak, PhD
EcoHealth Alliance
Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, MPH
CIDRAP; University of Minnesota
Nahid Bhadelia, MD, MA
National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL), Boston University School of Medicine
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Developments in Transmission, Testing, and Treatment of COVID-19
Speakers
Peter Daszak, PhD
Eco Health Alliance
Dr. Peter Daszak is President of EcoHealth Alliance, a US-based organization that conducts research and outreach programs on global health, conservation, and international development. Dr. Daszak’s research has been instrumental in identifying and predicting the origins and impact of emerging diseases across the globe. This includes identifying the bat origin of SARS and the drivers of Nipah virus emergence; publishing the first global emerging disease ‘hotspots’ map; discovering SADS coronavirus; designing a strategy to identify the number of unknown viruses in wildlife; launching the Global Virome Project; identifying the first case of species extinction due to disease; and discovering the disease chytridiomycosis as the cause global amphibian declines. He is one of the founders of the field of Conservation Medicine and has been instrumental in the growth of EcoHealth, One Health, and now Planetary Health. Dr. Daszak is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and Chair of the NASEM’s Forum on Microbial Threats. He has served on the IOM Committee on global surveillance for emerging zoonoses; the NRC committee on the future of veterinary research; the International Standing Advisory Board of the Australian Biosecurity CRC; and has advised the Director for Medical Preparedness Policy on the White House National Security Staff on global health issues. Dr. Daszak is a regular advisor to the WHO on pathogen prioritization for R&D. He has authored over 300 scientific papers and was listed as a Web of Science Highly Cited Researcher in 2018.
Michael Osterholm, PhD, MPH
University of Minnesota
Michael Osterholm is one of the nation’s foremost experts in public health, infectious disease and biosecurity. As the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, he is an international leader on the world’s preparedness for pandemics. He has led numerous investigations into internationally important disease outbreaks, including foodborne diseases, hepatitis B in health care settings, and HIV infection in healthcare workers, and he is a frequent consultant to the World Health Organization, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Defense and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. From 2001 to 2005, Dr. Osterholm served as a special advisor to the secretary of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on issues related to bioterrorism and public health preparedness. From June 2018 through May 2019, he served as a Science Envoy for Health Security on behalf of the US Department of State. He has also been appointed to the National Science Advisory Board on Biosecurity and the World Economic Forum’s Working Group on Pandemics, among other prominent advisory positions.
Nahid Bhadelia, MD, MA
National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL), Boston University School of Medicine
Dr. Nahid Bhadelia is an infectious diseases physician and the medical director of Special Pathogens Unit at Boston University School of Medicine, a medical unit designed to care for patients with highly communicable diseases. She is an Associate Professor in the Section of Infectious Diseases. She oversees the medical response program for Boston University’s maximum containment biosafety level 4 program at National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories. She serves on national and interagency groups focused on medical countermeasures, and the intersection between public health preparedness, research and clinical care for emerging pathogens. Her research focuses on the identification of safe and effective clinical interventions and infection control measures related to viral hemorrhagic fevers. Dr. Bhadelia is also an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Human Security at the Tufts Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where she teaches a course on human security and emerging infectious diseases. She received her Doctorate of Medicine from Tufts University and completed her internal medicine residency and chief residency at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. Her Infectious Diseases Fellowship was completed at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital.