Why the Link Between Human Health and the Health of the Planet is Key to Preventing the Next Pandemic
A Virtual Conversation with
Pandemic Expert Dr. Neil M. Vora
Thursday, May 12, at 7 PM EDT on Zoom
Science Writers in New York is pleased to present Neil M. Vora, MD (@conservationdoc), a pandemic research fellow 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.
Dr. Vora will speak with SWINY co-chair David Levine (@dlloydlevine) about the increasing threat of “spillover” of viruses from animals to humans because of the destruction of nature and how it contributed to the current and past pandemics. He will also discuss what measures are needed to lessen or eliminate spillover to prevent future pandemics.
About Dr. Neil M. Vora
Neil M. Vora, MD, is a physician with Conservation International where he leads its efforts on pandemic prevention. He served for nearly a decade with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including as an epidemic intelligence service officer and a commander in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS).
Dr. Vora 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, Dr. Vora 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 in 2009 and his internal medicine training at Columbia University in 2012.
Outside of work, Dr. Vora loves to spend time with his rescue pets and to train in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
Have a question for Dr. Vora you would like answered? Submit it here!
When:
Thursday, May 12
7 to 8 pm EDT
Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_OvVkwqoPSzCVJAAbyU-Y9Q
