Virtual Event Series

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the biggest threats in global health. It occurs when bacteria, viruses or parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines, making infections harder to treat. Among the most prevalent diseases affected by AMR are tuberculosis and malaria. Surveillance, easy identification and early response to resistant microbes is crucial in the fight against AMR. In this virtual session, we will review the current AMR situation specifically for tuberculosis and malaria and discuss new diagnostics, up-and-coming technologies and international collaborations to deal with them.

Long-term studies are an important instrument for public health and epidemiological surveillance. They are essential for understanding risk patterns for chronic and infectious diseases and co-morbidities. In addition, cohorts form the basis for long-term scientific partnership and offer ample opportunities for career promotion. Swiss TPH engages in comparative cohort and biobanking activities with its national and international partners. Join us to see how and why these collaborations can be crucial for improving global public health.

What is mathematical epidemiology and how has it traditionally been used?  What can epidemiological trends tell us and what is the importance of genomic surveillance? How can mathematical modelling support planning of COVID-19  interventions? Join us to review the history of mathematical epidemiology and modelling, its world-wide prominence over the last 12 months, and why we are discussing the science behind COVID-19 modelling and epidemiology data today. We will look at monitoring of genetic variants, communication beyond the science to decision makers, COVID-19 vaccine and intervention modelling, and how to interpret scenarios (not forecasts) for decision making.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to highlight how social inequities drive health outcomes and how we need urgent action to address these inequities. Social protection systems have been one of the most effective instruments to mitigate the social, economic and health impacts of the COVID-19 crisis. As the pandemic spread around the world, countries were challenged by the cracks in their social protection systems and had to swiftly adapt. Test, trace, and isolate has been one of the cornerstones of the pandemic response, however, this only works with paid sick leave and other social protection schemes. The need for a collective social and health response that addresses the different needs of various population groups, including non-binary people and women, people with disabilities, people of colour, etc., is clear.

In this session, we will discuss with experts from diverse disciplines and global regions, the challenges and opportunities that the health sector has to promote social protection. The audience will be invited to participate in the discussion and brainstorm on the biggest challenges, as well as solutions and opportunities, to build back fairness out of this global crisis.

Please join us for this engaging and thought-provoking discussion!

The COVID-19 crisis has shown how a large shock can rapidly pull millions of people back into poverty and health insecurity. There are increasing discussions on what COVID-19 and the responses it entailed from the health systems could mean for adaptation to climate change effects on health. This session will address the need to understand the complex inter-linkages between these twin planetary challenges and how the global community could move beyond sector-specific crisis reactions.

The COVCO-Basel study is investigating the impact of the pandemic on the living conditions of the population in the Basel region. How has the happiness and well-being of the population changed during the pandemic and what are the long-term effects on mental and physical health? What role does the urban and living environment play in this context? In this virtual session, study results will be reviewed and discussed.