Syra Madad
drsyramadad.bsky.social
Syra Madad
@drsyramadad.bsky.social
Epidemiologist 🦠 Biosecurity Advisor ☣️ Chief Biopreparedness Officer NYC Health + Hospital 🏥 Faculty Boston Uni CEID & NETEC 🧬 Fellow Harvard Belfer Center 🎥On Netflix, Discovery & History Channel 📝Write for NY Academy of Sciences
A proactive, epitope-focused strategy targeting conserved viral regions could redefine flu prevention, moving us from reaction to readiness.
February 15, 2026 at 3:01 AM
Reposted by Syra Madad
I talked w/ uniformed health workers about their deployments to prisons where ICE holds immigrants.

ICE's operation is especially secretive at Guantanamo -- the place where America flouted its own rules to torture detainees post 9/11.

@wired.com and @kffhealthnews.org (no paywall)
Public Health Workers Are Quitting Over Assignments to Guantánamo
Doctors, nurses, and other officers are increasingly being deployed to ICE detention centers. Some have resigned in protest, while others offer a rare look into bleak conditions.
www.wired.com
February 9, 2026 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by Syra Madad
My latest: A look inside the secretive immigration prisons at Guantanamo—and the ethical questions that doctors and nurses face to treat those inside.
Doctors, nurses, and other officers are increasingly being deployed to ICE detention centers. Some have resigned in protest, while others offer a rare look into bleak conditions.
Public Health Workers Are Quitting Over Assignments to Guantánamo
Doctors, nurses, and other officers are increasingly being deployed to ICE detention centers. Some have resigned in protest, while others offer a rare look into bleak conditions.
wrd.cm
February 6, 2026 at 11:21 AM
Enhanced Code Blue is in effect.

If you see someone experiencing homelessness out in the cold, call 311.

Limit outdoor exposure, use caution when traveling, and check on vulnerable neighbors.

Stay safe and look out for one another
February 8, 2026 at 3:59 PM
Mayor Mamdani announced an RFI, the first step toward bringing 2-K to NYC & expanding access to 3-K through the citywide child care program. In this brief video, he breaks down what an RFI is for providers & how child care quality will be protected for parents

www.instagram.com/reel/DUZgf0f...
February 7, 2026 at 10:08 PM
Reposted by Syra Madad
A female Asian elephant calf has been born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) in Washington, DC, the first in almost a quarter of a century. https://cnn.it/4bChcXR
February 5, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Reposted by Syra Madad
🦠 This #PictureOfTheWeek is spirulina alga, a type of cyanobacteria. They've been around for 3.5 billion years, survived countless world changes, and helped oxygenate the planet through photosynthesis. Listen to our last broadcast to find out what they can teach us about resilience. buff.ly/NoEML3k
February 5, 2026 at 12:04 AM
Reposted by Syra Madad
The US may be weeks from losing its measles elimination status. But what does that mean exactly?
Writing for @nyasciences.bsky.social, CEID affiliate @syramadad.bsky.social explains this isn't just a symbolic designation, it's a technical time-bound measurement.
www.nyas.org/ideas-insigh...
The Alarming Resurgence of Measles in the United States
In hospitals, measles is not a memory, it is an airborne alarm bell.
www.nyas.org
January 26, 2026 at 3:23 PM
Reposted by Syra Madad
The measles outbreak in South Carolina now stands at 664 cases, basically doubling in a week, and it's spread to several other states. The outbreak first began in Texas a year ago this week - which means the U.S. is going to lose its elimination status. My latest:
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
The return of measles: how a once-vanquished disease is spreading again
A year after the Texas outbreak began, new US cases reveal gaps in vaccination and rising risk for children
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 1:48 PM
Proud to share that 3 @nychealthsystem.bsky.social
—Elmhurst, Harlem & Jacobi, are now Special Pathogen Treatment Centers!

This strengthens regional surge capacity, builds on our legacy from smallpox to Ebola to COVID-19, and expands safe, specialized care for our communities.
January 19, 2026 at 3:26 AM
Reposted by Syra Madad
'The current flu season one of the worst the U.S. has seen in decades', according to @syramadad.bsky.social an epidemiologist who publishes a weekly analysis of respiratory virus trends in her newsletter: Critical Health Voices. substack.com/@criticalhea... @livescience.com
Critical Health Voices | Substack
Critical Health Voices amplifies frontline healthcare and public health voices.
substack.com
January 18, 2026 at 7:11 PM
Reposted by Syra Madad
Very much looking forward to my fireside chat with @syramadad.bsky.social next Thursday at 1pm PST at the Belfer Center @harvardkennedy.bsky.social on "Genomic Surveillance & Pathogen Data Sharing: A New Era for Scientific Diplomacy".

Virtual, so come join us!

harvard.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Genomic Surveillance & Pathogen Data Sharing: A New Era for Scientific Diplomacy. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the...
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Genomic Surveillance & Pathogen Data Sharing: A New Era for Scientific Diplomacy. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the...
harvard.zoom.us
January 14, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Reposted by Syra Madad
With states across the country seeing surges in flu cases, Dr. @syramadad.bsky.social explains how flu vaccine effectiveness always varies by year and subtype, but even when not a perfect match, vaccination provides meaningful protection against hospitalization & death.
spr.ly/63321CoorP
Curbing New York’s Recent Surge in Flu Cases
New York State is in a record-breaking stretch of seasonal influenza. Here’s what you need to know.
spr.ly
January 7, 2026 at 7:46 PM
Drones detect deadly virus in Arctic whales' breath

www.bbc.com/news/article...
Drones detect deadly virus in Arctic whales' breath
Whale breath collected by drones is giving clues to the health of wild humpbacks and other whales.
www.bbc.com
January 3, 2026 at 6:02 AM
Magical thinking will not prevent future pandemics or improve public health

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Magical thinking will not prevent future pandemics or improve public health
For much of human history, infectious diseases were the main causes of morbidity and mortality. The sciences of public health, epidemiology, microbiology, and vaccine and drug development have dramati...
www.science.org
January 3, 2026 at 1:07 AM