syra madad, dhsc, ms, mcp, chep
syra madad, dhsc, ms, mcp
Fortune’s 40 under 40 Class of 2020: Healthcare
“As senior director of system-wide special pathogens for NYC Health + Hospitals, the nation’s largest public health care system, Madad began tracking the novel coronavirus, now known as the cause of COVID-19, late last year. She describes her life since—preparing for and responding to the arrival of a new, highly infectious disease in the nation’s most densely populated city—as both a sprint and a marathon…Madad, who published a national hospital preparedness playbook for such respiratory disease outbreaks in 2019, is focused on preventing a resurgence of the disease in NYC.”
Dr. Syra Madad
Dr. Syra Madad
Dr. Syra Madad is an infectious disease epidemiologist, science communicator and writer. She currently serves as the Senior Director of the System-wide Special Pathogens Program at New York City Health + Hospitals, the nation’s largest municipal healthcare delivery system overseeing special pathogen preparedness and response efforts across the enterprise. She is Co-Principal Investigator of NYC Health + Hospitals Institute of Diseases and Disaster Management and formally the Health & Safety Lead of the Enhanced Special Investigations Unit of NYC Test & Trace Corp. In addition, Dr. Madad is Core Faculty in the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC) and affiliate faculty at the Center for Emerging Infectious Disease Policy & Research at Boston University.
As a Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, she publishes and leads a science communication series on infectious disease threats. She teaches study groups on various public health topics and lectured at the Harvard Kennedy School Technology, National Security and Commerce Executive Education Program on Crossroads of Biosecurity and National Security. Dr. Madad is also the creator and moderator of Belfer Center’s Diversity in STEM and Women in STEM series. She is also an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Federation of American Scientists, and Alumni Fellow at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Health Security’s Emerging Leaders in Biosecurity Program.
Dr. Madad has led/been part of multiple infectious disease responses including Ebola, Zika, Measles, and recently, COVID-19 and monkeypox. She has dozens of publications, including book chapters and has been a guest speaker at over 70 scientific and medical conferences around the world. Her work focuses on the prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery from infectious disease outbreaks with an emphasis on health care and public health biopreparedness.
MEDIA & PRESS
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MEDIA & PRESS
Select listing of television, radio, print and podcasts
SELECT PUBLICATIONS
Peer reviewed articles, op-eds and journal entries
SELECT PUBLICATIONS
Peer reviewed articles, op-eds and journal entries
ABOUT
Additional experience and background
Dr. Madad earned her Doctoral degree in Health Science with a concentration in Global Health from Nova Southeastern University, graduating with Alpha Eta Health Science Honor Society status. She obtained her Master of Science degree in Biotechnology with a concentration in Biodefense and Biosecurity and Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland. Dr. Madad holds numerous professional certifications, licenses and training certificates including Master Continuity Practitioner Certification (FEMA), Certified Healthcare Emergency Professional (CHEP), Advanced Emergency Planning Certification, All Hazard Response (CBRNE) Training for Laboratory Personnel, Infection Control and Prevention Certification, Biosafety Level III Training, and Identification of the Primary Select Agents of Bioterrorism Training.
Prior to her current role, Dr. Madad served as the Lead Continuity of Operations Liaison and State Trainer for the BioThreat and Chemical Threat Teams at the Texas Department of State Health Services, Emergency Preparedness Branch. In this role, she served on the Ebola and Other Infectious Disease Agent Surge Team and assisted with the Texas state 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak response. In 2015, Dr. Madad was awarded the Ebola Response Team Appreciation Award by the Commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services in recognition of her contributions to the state Ebola response effort. Previously, Dr. Madad served as a Researcher for the United States Department of Agriculture working on genetic engineering and plant cloning.
Dr. Madad has a strong background in academia, teaching in graduate, undergraduate and professional programs with courses ranging from advanced microbiology to bioterrorism and biosecurity. Dr. Madad has held various faculty appointments, including Assistant Professor, Deputy Chair and Director of Education for various academic institutions in MD, NY, and TX. She serves on numerous editorial boards, advising committees and councils, including member of the federal advisory committee - The National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB).
Dr. Madad was awarded the prestigious J.V. Irons Award for Scientific Excellence in 2015 by the Texas Department of State Health Services for her significant contributions to the agency and scientific community. She was highlighted as a “Pathogen Preparedness Pioneer” in NYC Health + Hospitals Press Release in 2017 and was awarded “Most Innovative Use of Healthcare Simulation” by The Institute for Medical Simulation and Advanced Learning (IMSAL) in 2019 for her ongoing work in special pathogens preparedness via incognito special pathogen patient simulation drills. In 2020, Dr. Madad was featured in Fortune’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for most influential in healthcare. In 2021, she was featured in Crain’s Most Notable in Health Care. In 2022, she was awarded a Citation by Nassau County Executives for her significant contribution for the enhancement of the county and commitment to the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Madad is frequently quoted in, and appears on major news outlets such as The New York Times, Washington Post, Atlantic, CNN, MSNBC, and FOX among others. She is featured in the 2000 Emmy-nominated Netflix docuseries, Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak and the 2021 Discovery Channel documentary, The Vaccine: Conquering COVID.
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