Touro Saw Coronavirus Threat
We Mobilized Our Center for Disaster Medicine Without Wasting Time
When the threat of the coronavirus first presented in January, Touro immediately responded. Spearheaded by President Alan Kadish and New York Medical College Chancellor Dr. Edward Halperin, The Center for Disaster Medicine at New York Medical College, a member of the Touro College and University System, presented a free public educational seminar with CME credits at our 31st Street campus in the heart of Manhattan that reached a wide, previously uninformed audience.
Long before anyone in the U.S. imagined a pandemic, Touro’s up-to-the-minute briefing about coronavirus on January 31 was well attended and covered by major media. More, our experts were spot on. At the time, the spreading coronavirus was still regarded as a limited risk to residents of the United States, but the situation was changing rapidly, as Touro’s presenters made clear. Conference speakers included Chandra Shekhar Bakshi, DVM, Ph. D., Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at NYMC; Westchester County Health Commissioner Dr. Sherlita Amler; and Robert W. Amler, M.D., Dean, NYMC’s School of Health Sciences and Practice. Presenters explained the origins and characteristics of the virus, while making clear the steps that the public should take to stay safe.
“The Center for Disaster Medicine focuses on precision responses to disasters and bioterrorism,” said President Kadish. “Part of our mission is to react quickly to emerging issues as they arise.”
“No health crisis has generated more fear than this one,” added Touro’s guest, New York City Councilman Mark Levine, chair of the NYC Committee on Health. “We are enormously grateful to Touro for assembling these experts and sharing vital information to help prepare everyone regarding the novel coronavirus.”
Touro’s experts discussed the correct social responses, including the vital steps that people should take to avoid infection:
- “Get a flu shot,” said Dr. Sherlita Amler. “If you are protected from the flu, it will help us diagnose and treat you appropriately and also help avoid unnecessary testing.”
- “Wash hands and teach children how to use soap and scrub for 30 seconds,” Dr. Amler noted. “The friction gets bacteria off of your hands. Hand sanitizers are better than nothing, but not as effective as soap and water.”
- “Keeping your distance is a standard public health intervention,” noted Dr. Robert Amler, who also explained that public health data would be effected by the number of incidents testing. Dr Rob Amler has been continually called upon by communities and the media to help educate the public regarding COVID-19.
- Touro’s experts also emphasized the importance of calling doctors or hospitals ahead if someone thinks they were infected with coronavirus, thus allowing staff to take appropriate precautions.
Dr. Halperin added a medical historian’s perspective on bigotry and xenophobia during a pandemic that was prescient in warning about social responses. “Infectious disease brings out the best in people and the worst in people,” he said. “Be calm. Be thoughtful. Rely on what is known. In an emergency, always take your own pulse first.”
Following Touro’s educational seminar, Dr. Sherlita Amler, who works in the epicenter of New York’s coronavirus outbreak, emerged as the leading public health voice on COVID-19. The advice she shared with Touro’s audience was precisely what the rest of the country would learn from her in weeks to come.
A second on-line educational conference is being prepared by Touro.
