WASHINGTON, DC (September 18, 2014)—Ebola, which was discovered near the Ebola River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is a deadly disease caused by one of several virus strains. Previous outbreaks of the disease had been limited but the current Ebola outbreak is the largest in history and the first in West Africa. Experts say the disease continues to spread rapidly and will require a concentrated, global intervention to bring the epidemic under control.
Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University has the following experts available to talk about the current Ebola crisis:
Rebecca Katz, PhD, MPH, associate professor of health policy, is an expert on the intersection of national security and infectious diseases, including the threat posed by the 2014 Ebola epidemic. Katz played a key role, along with other experts, in developing the Global Health Security Agenda, an international initiative aimed at reducing the risk posed by infectious diseases.
Julie Fischer, PhD, associate research professor of health policy, is an expert on disaster preparedness and infectious diseases such as Ebola. She co-directs a research portfolio, along with Rebecca Katz, on global health security and was also involved in the launch of the Global Health Security Agenda.
Fitzhugh Mullan, MD, the Murdock Head Professor of Medicine and Health Policy, is an expert on the weak public health infrastructure in Africa, where Ebola has killed more than 2400 people to date. Dr. Mullan leads a team of researchers coordinating a project called the Medical Education Partnership Initiative or MEPI. The project aims to build healthcare capacity in Sub-Saharan Africa, a goal that, if achieved, would help contain this crisis, and possibly prevent similar situations from turning into a crisis.
Amira Roess, PhD, assistant professor of global health, is an expert on the epidemiology, biology and transmission of Ebola. Previously, she served as an Epidemic Intelligence officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and investigated several other outbreaks of infectious diseases. She can also talk about the use of mobile technology on the frontlines of the current epidemic.
Ronald Waldman, MD, MPH, professor of global health, is an expert on medical infrastructure, emergency relief efforts like those to contain the current outbreak. He can also talk about the global response to the Ebola crisis so far.
Lone Simonsen, PhD, research professor of global health, is an expert on the biology, transmission and spread of infectious diseases, such as Ebola. Dr. Simonsen has been actively involved in investigations of other outbreaks, including the spread of a virus that caused Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS. She’s an expert on a scientific process or modeling that is used to predict how an outbreak will change in the future.###
About Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University: Established in July 1997 as the School of Public Health and Health Services, Milken Institute School of Public Health is the only school of public health in the nation’s capital. Today, nearly 1,400 students from almost every U.S. state and more than 43 countries pursue undergraduate, graduate and doctoral-level degrees in public health. The school also offers an online Master of Public Health, MPH@GW, and an online Executive Master of Health Administration, MHA@GW, which allow students to pursue their degree from anywhere in the world.
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