How interdisciplinary efforts can change the face of emergency preparedness

Emergency preparedness has had too narrow a focus for too long. As an undergraduate student, I have heard this sentiment from many professors and experts, and felt it firsthand. Yet, too often, the sentiment is not reflected in practice, from lectures and conferences lacking diverse speaker lineups to working groups and healthcare teams on the ground being monolithic in their expertise.

The Interdisciplinary Symposium of the Institute of Health Emergencies and Pandemics (IHEP) offered a forum to bring together varied voices and highlight the many areas where fields of expertise overlap and enhance one another. Speakers took attendees through various stages of public health emergency preparedness, focusing on where improvements are being made and where gaps remain.