Calendar
Journalism Summit on Infectious Disease: Program
Panels and workshops were created from dozens of ideas from AHCJ members, conference sponsors, outside organizations and nonmember journalists. Final sessions are often a merger of several ideas.
Registered participants will be able to view recordings of the panels on the same day they take place and will have exclusive access to the sessions for the days and weeks following the summit.
All times are Eastern.
Click on red arrows for panel descriptions.
Monday, Nov. 16 |
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10:30 a.m. |
Welcome period begins |
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10:50- 11 a.m. |
Fall Summit Welcome Message, Day’s Agenda, Intro First Session
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11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. |
Following the pandemic numbers: Data that can bolster reporting Ever since John Snow pieced together how cholera spread from a water pump in London in 1854, data has been key to learning how epidemics spread and what it will take to finish them off. This panel features experts in biosecurity, vaccines and health disparities. They will explain how different types of data inform the answers to questions in the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from why some communities are hit harder than others, to how likely a vaccine is to curb the pandemic. Each researcher will highlight a data-driven tool that journalists can use in pandemic reporting.
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12:30-12:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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12:50-1 p.m. |
Break | |
1-2:30 p.m. |
Different testing types: Access and accuracy During the pandemic, clinical laboratories have introduced a variety of laboratory test to identify coronavirus patients. During this panel, physicians from the microbiology laboratory at Johns Hopkins will describe the tests they run every day and how accurate these tests are and explain how physicians are using those tests in clinical settings to identify patients who should be hospitalized. In addition, we will discuss how testing is used as a screening tool in underserved areas.
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2:30-2:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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2:50-3 p.m. |
End of day with preview of tomorrow's sessions |
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Tuesday, Nov. 17 |
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10:30-10:55 a.m. |
Welcome begins |
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10:55 a.m. |
Welcome Message, Day’s Agenda, Intro First Session
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11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. |
What are we learning from the COVID-19 vaccine efforts? The race for COVID-19 vaccines won’t be the last vaccine race we'll see. Vaccines for HIV are in the pipeline, scientists continue to work toward the elusive universal flu vaccine, and novel viruses we haven't yet seen are likely in our future. But this race is a sprint compared to the marathon style of past vaccine development. What does that mean for journalists covering development of the Covid-19 vaccine? How does this process differ from past ones, and what lessons and technologies might be applied to future vaccine efforts? How will society react when this and future vaccines become available? These speakers will use their expertise in respiratory virus vaccine development, vaccine decision-making and public response to vaccines to provide insight and ideas for stories you can pursue in coming months of the pandemic and even beyond.
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12:30-12:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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12:50-1 p.m. |
Break |
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1-2:30 p.m. |
Treatment status: What’s here, and what’s on the horizon As COVID-19 rapidly spread around the world, it left doctors and scientists grasping for treatment options. Hopes for drugs like hydroxychloroquine would soar only to be quickly dashed. Yet doctors and nurses as well as lab-based researchers have been accumulating insights and refining protocols, helping to reduce fatality rates. Experts will share insights into evolving frontline care, promising treatment options, and the challenges of reporting on fast-changing treatments during a pandemic.
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2:30-2:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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2:50-3 p.m. |
Break |
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3-4:30 p.m. |
When two diseases meet: Flu and COVID-19 will share at least one season A “twindemic” is what infectious disease experts are calling the possibility that both the COVID-19 and influenza viruses will sicken Americans this winter. How likely is that possibility and what are public health officials doing about it? Experts will discuss expectations about the coming flu season, how the health care system will handle the influx of both COVID-19 and flu patients, and how the flu, like COVID-19, disproportionately impacts Black, Latinx and other vulnerable communities. They will also offer insights about what this year’s flu vaccination rates might mean for the anticipated COVID-19 vaccine in 2021.
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4:30-4:50 p.m. |
Breakout room with session speaker This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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4:50-5 p.m. |
End of day with preview of tomorrow's sessions |
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Wednesday, Nov. 18 |
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11-11:20 a.m. |
Welcome begins | |
11:20-11:25 a.m. |
Welcome Message, Day’s Agenda
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11:25-11:30 a.m. |
Introduction to spotlight speaker Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D., director, National Institutes of Health
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11:30 a.m. - noon |
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Noon-12:30 p.m. |
Deep in details: Q&A with Hilary Marston, M.D., medical officer and policy adviser for preparedness, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
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12:30-12:45 p.m. |
Break | |
12:45-1 p.m. |
Honoring the 2019 Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism |
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1-1:20 p.m. |
Contest winners in breakout rooms for discussions Meeting Room 1
Meeting Room 2
Meeting Room 3
Meeting Room 4
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1:20-1:30 p.m. |
Break | |
1:30-3 p.m. |
Efforts in the works to ease a strained health care workforce The COVID-19 pandemic has placed an incredible strain on our health care system, from hospitals to nursing homes to home care. The crisis has highlighted issues of staffing shortages, low wages, burnout, and mental distress, as key challenges front line health workers face. As a second wave prompts record case reports, it appears the situation will get worse before it gets better. In this session, three experts weigh in on what’s being done to address these issues and ensure physicians, nurses, aides and others can continue to care for the sickest patients.
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3-3:20 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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3:20-3:30 p.m. |
End of day with preview of tomorrow's sessions |
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Thursday, Nov. 19 |
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10:30-10:55 a.m. |
Welcome begins | |
10:55-11 a.m. |
Welcome Message, Day’s Agenda, Intro First Session
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11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. |
The hidden side of mental health during a pandemic Things we all know: The current pandemic can bring on stress, anxiety and fear. Common sense actions, such as social distancing, can make people feel depressed, isolated and lonely. But then there are the more hidden mental health concerns. In some populations, stigmas against seeking care can become more entrenched when people become more remote. As some providers and clients face economic hardship, connecting with professionals can become near impossible. As the pandemic wears on, there’s a threat that the toll on mental health can become greater. Hear from speakers who can help you find stories that can define these problems and solutions.
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12:30-12:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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12:50-1 p.m. |
Break | |
1-2:30 p.m. |
Health disparities among hard-hit populations Hard-hit populations face health disparities on the daily basis and many times these populations are overlook or forgotten, many are uninsured or underinsure and face language barriers. The current COVID-19 pandemic has made those disparities worse for those populations including people of color - African Americans, Latinos, and other ethnic groups. This panel features experts in disparities in drug outcomes as well as Latino health disparities and how to cover health disparities and hart-hit population for your news outlets. These experts will explain how important representation of people of color in drug trials is to improve health outcomes across racial and ethnic groups, as well social determinants of health that contribute to health outcome in people of color and how important is for news outlets to not ignore coverage of those hart-hit populations especially during a pandemic.
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2:30-2:50 p.m. |
Breakout rooms with session speakers This is the attendees’ chance to ask questions and initiate discussions with the session speakers. Each speaker will be in his/her own room and each room will be limited to the first 15 attendees.
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2:50-3 p.m. |
End of day and thank you for participating! |