ICAP

COVID-19

COVID-19 & Emerging Diseases

“When COVID-19 emerged, we realized that we had to pivot to quickly mobilize the resources needed in order to respond to the urgent calls for assistance that we were receiving.”

— Wafaa El-Sadr, ICAP Director

From the moment the first evidence of the coronavirus pandemic appeared in late 2019, ICAP at Columbia University recognized the potentially devastating impact of COVID-19 in many of the countries where it works, countries where health systems are particularly fragile. Building on nearly two decades of experience in responding to the world’s most significant public health challenges and harnessing its longstanding partnerships with ministries of health across the globe, ICAP mounted a comprehensive response to COVID-19 in 24 countries in Africa, Asia, and the Americas in partnership with stakeholders in each of the countries.

With tens of millions of dollars in funding raised through relentless efforts and a mandate to act quickly in the face of a dangerous and rapidly spreading disease, ICAP directed its teams and these resources to create firewalls of detection, prevention, and response to stand between the spreading virus and the communities in its path.

ICAP’s ongoing response to the continuing pandemic has spanned the gamut of public health activities, including:

  • Training of health workers
  • Standing up emergency operation centers
  • Establishing fever clinics and health brigades
  • Procuring personal protective and medical equipment
  • Identifying new prevention and treatment methods
  • Optimizing infection prevention and control
  • Supporting surveillance and conducting surveys

COVID-19 News

(City & State) Booster shot uptake lags amid COVID-19 wave

(Daily Mail) More than HALF of ‘Covid’ patients in NYC hospitals were not admitted because of the virus, official data shows, as cases in the city creep upwards: Infections up 19% nationally over the past week but deaths fall by 32%

(NYC.gov) Mayor Adams Launches NYC Pandemic Response Institute

(USA Today) What will COVID-19 look like this summer? Health experts say the virus won’t be endemic, yet.

(Bloomberg) What Do I Do When My PCR Is Positive and My Rapid Test Is Negative?

(City & State) Serving as NYC’s doctor while meeting Eric Adams’ expectations

(NYC HEALTH AND HOSPITALS) NYC Test & Trace Corps Celebrates Historic Achievements of Its COVID-19 Contact Tracing Program

(Time) Should You Still Wear a Mask on Planes, Trains, and Buses? Here’s What the Science Says

(NY Times) New York City Is Rolling Back Pandemic Restrictions. Is It Too Soon?

(The Guardian) New York City’s Restaurant Industry Grapples with Easing Vaccine Rules

(The Week) How Will War with Russia Impact Ukraine’s Covid-19 Battle?

(USA Today) WHO Says War in Ukraine ‘Much More Likely’ to Lead to More COVID-19 Transmission

COVID-19 Resources

Zimbabwe’s Vaccination Momentum Needs an ‘Urgent Boost’ Ahead of an Imminent COVID-19 Resurgence

ICAP Grand Rounds Webinar (Archived Recording): Collaboration Across Continents: Cancer Research and Training in East Africa

Implementation of a Vaccination Program Based on Epidemic Geospatial Attributes: COVID-19 Pandemic in Ohio as a Case Study and Proof of Concept

Insights from Zimbabwe’s SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Surveillance

Morbidity and Mortality from COVID-19 Post-Vaccination Breakthrough Infections in Association with Vaccines and the Emergence of Variants in Bahrain

ICAP Grand Rounds Webinar (Archived Recording): Safeguarding the Health Workforce in the Era of COVID-19

Decision Making Conundrum as Zimbabwe Experiences a Harsh Third Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Zimbabwe’s COVID-19 Vaccination Roll-out: Urgent Need to Rethink Strategies to Improve the Supply Chain

Morbidity and Mortality from COVID-19 Post-vaccination Breakthrough Infections in Association with Vaccines and the Emergence of Variants in Bahrain

Anxiety, Depression, Insomnia, and Trauma-related Symptoms following COVID-19 Infection at Long-term Follow-up

Participatory Surveillance of COVID-19 in Lesotho via Weekly Calls: Protocol for Cell Phone Data Collection

COVID-19: Comparison of the Response in Rwanda, South Africa, and Zimbabwe