Newswise — Bethesda, MD -- In response to the recent attacks on mass gatherings in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Magdeburg, Germany, the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH), a center of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), will host the inaugural Nation at Risk: Preparedness and Response to Unconventional Health Threats Symposium.
This groundbreaking symposium, which will be co-chaired by Mr. Johnathan Greene, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health and Director of the Center for Response, Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, Department of Health and Human Services, and Dr. Herbert Wolfe, Chief Medical Officer and Director of the Office of Health Security, Department of Homeland Security, will feature a series of one-day sessions held between March and May 2025. Each session will focus on a distinct aspect of preparedness and response:
- Session 1 - March 17, 2025: Will focus on lessons learned from recent events and will include speakers with direct experience managing the response to mass casualty events, including the attacks in New Orleans, Louisiana and Magdeburg, Germany.
- Session 2 - April 11, 2025: Will focus on examining the potential nature of future events and will include speakers from around the world with direct responsibility for protecting the health and safety of large populations with an emphasis on high-profile mass gatherings.
- Session 3 - May 13, 2025: Will focus on needed changes to preparedness and response activities to meet the challenges of current and future health threats from unconventional methods.
Invited speakers will include experts from around the world, U.S. federal agencies, law enforcement, emergency medical services, the medical community, academia, and industry. The symposium will be hosted by the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Due to limited in-person seating, registrants exceeding in-person capacity will be provided a virtual option for attendance.
This symposium provides a critical platform to reflect on past unconventional mass casualty events, and will help the medical and emergency management communities to identify emerging threats, and develop strategies to strengthen national preparedness and response. By fostering collaboration across diverse sectors, the symposium aims to equip the Nation, as well as partners and allies, with the tools and knowledge to address future challenges.
For more information and registration details please visit:
Deadline to register is February 21, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. (ET).
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About the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences: The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, founded by an act of Congress in 1972, is the nation’s federal health sciences university and the academic heart of the Military Health System. USU students are primarily active-duty uniformed officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Public Health Service who receive specialized education in tropical and infectious diseases, TBI and PTSD, disaster response and humanitarian assistance, global health, and acute trauma care. USU also has graduate programs in oral biology, biomedical sciences and public health committed to excellence in research. The University's research program covers a wide range of areas important to both the military and public health. For more information about USU and its programs, visit www.usuhs.edu.
About the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health: Originally established in 2008 under Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21 (HSPD-21), the U.S. National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) is a federal organization and center of the Uniformed Services University (USU). The National Center is governed by the federal interagency as a collaboration between the Departments of Defense, State, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs. The mission of the National Center is to advance the Nation’s medical and public health readiness for disasters. In carrying out this mission, the National Center leads federal efforts to develop and propagate core curricula, research, and training related to medicine and public health in disasters and is charged with maintaining the Nation’s joint disaster medicine and public health science and education program for all executive departments.
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