ICAP at Columbia University 347d ago

On April 1, 2025, ICAP presented the Grand Rounds – COVID at 5: Lessons and Way Forward. Five years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic brought New York City to a halt and set off waves of mass casualties and disruption worldwide. As we reflect on this watershed moment in our collective history and for global health, we must – now, more than ever – uphold the lessons learned and renew our commitment to public health resilience. Ashwin Vasan, MD, MPH, former commissioner of the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, gave a keynote presentation on the evolution of New York City’s response to COVID-19 over the past five years, key lessons learned, and where we stand today in the face of potential threats. Following the presentation, he was joined by Fiona Braka, MD, MPH, Emergency Response manager, WHO Regional Office for Africa (AFRO) and Mitch Stripling, MPA, director, NYC Preparedness and Recovery Institute (PRI) for a panel discussion on how we can apply the lessons learned to advancing both local and global health. The discussion was moderated by Wafaa El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA, global director of ICAP at Columbia University, Executive VP of Columbia Global, and co-lead of PRI. This event was co-sponsored by ICAP and PRI.