Take as Directed

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Saving Lives Through Global Immunization Nov 21, 2019

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On September 27th, the CSIS Global Health Policy Center hosted a conference focused on Securing Healthy Populations in a New Era of Global Immunization. The program highlighted the progress that has been made in expanding access to immunization, but emphasized the need for a new push to increase global coverage from 85 to 100 percent. On this episode of Take as Directed, Senior Fellow Katherine Bliss walks through some of the conference panelists’ most striking comments and highlights the challenges of equity, trust, delivery, and insecurity that global immunization programs face as they develop new strategies for the next decade.

Malaria Eradication Within a Generation? How Plausible? Oct 15, 2019

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In 2018, more than 200 million people contracted malaria around the world, and nearly half a million died of it. As countries continue to battle malaria within their borders, the international discussion turns to a loftier goal—complete global eradication of malaria. In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with Sir Richard Feachem, Director of the Global Health Group at UCSF Global Health Sciences, and Professor of Global Health at both UC San Francisco and the UC Berkeley. They discuss the Lancet Commission on Malaria Eradication, and their new report that lays out a vision to achieve the eradication of malaria, “Malaria eradication within a generation: ambitious, achievable, and necessary.” Just how plausible is this vision?

Putin and Global Health: Friend or Foe? Oct 02, 2019

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In the last decade, Russia has increased its global engagement, while at the same time pursuing policies at home that are giving rise to HIV/AIDS and drug-resistant tuberculosis epidemics that are a risk for its own populations, as well as its neighbors. These developments have unfolded against a backdrop of highly malevolent Russian behavior across many fronts that has resulted in the imposition of extensive sanctions. In this special joint episode of Take as Directed and Russian Roulette, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with Jeff Mankoff, Acting Director of the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program; and Judyth Twigg, Professor of Political Science at Virginia Commonwealth University and a Senior Associate with the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program. The three discuss Steve and Judy's recent analysis, “Putin and Global Health: Friend or Foe?” which outlines an opportunity to expand U.S. engagement to promote health security and counter Russian influence in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

Rethinking Vaccine Delivery Sep 17, 2019

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While the world has seen tremendous improvement in the availability of life-saving vaccines, coverage rates have stagnated over the last decade. The U.S. government, a leading player in global immunization, is working with international organizations as they develop new strategies to accelerate progress toward global goals. On Friday, September 27th, CSIS will host a conference on global immunization to explore these issues. As a primer to that event, we take you back to a conversation from last winter between Nellie Bristol and Dr. Orin Levine, Director of Global Delivery Programs and former Director of Vaccine Delivery for the Global Development Program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Dr. Levine joined us on this episode of Take as Directed to discuss new innovations in achieving equity, increasing demand for immunization, and reaching the unreached with vaccines to secure the health and stability of all populations.

Why Do Demographic Trends Matter for Global Health? Sep 03, 2019

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The population of Africa is expected to double over the next 20 years, which means that many countries are facing either a demographic dividend or potentially a disaster, with critical implications for global health and development. In this episode of Take as Directed, Janet Fleischman sits down with Amb. Mark Dybul, Director of the Center for Global Health and Quality, and Professor in the Department of Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center, and formerly head of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. They discuss why these demographic trends matter and how U.S. programs can better engage young people, especially adolescent girls and young women, to address their needs and support local innovation.

The New Landscape for Gavi 5.0 Aug 20, 2019

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At the end of June, the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, approved their new “5.0” strategy for 2021-2025, with an ambitious set of priorities for this new phase. In this episode of Take as Directed, Nellie Bristol sits down with Amanda Glassman, Executive Vice President and Senior Fellow of the Center for Global Development, and Katherine Bliss, Senior Fellow with the Global Health Policy Center, to discuss these changes and their implications for the broader immunization landscape beyond 2020.

Preparing Early Against Dangerous Pathogens Aug 06, 2019

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Since its inception in 2017, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, or CEPI, has come to be seen as among the most promising innovations in global health security. It works to accelerate the development and introduction of new vaccines against known, dangerous pathogens, and to build common platforms for future development of vaccines. In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with Richard Hatchett, Chief Executive Officer at CEPI, to discuss the organization’s origins following the West African Ebola outbreak in 2014-15, and its further evolution two years into its mandate.

Unpacking the DRC Ebola Crisis with Jason Stearns Jul 16, 2019

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In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with Jason Stearns, Director of the Congo Research Group at the Center for International Cooperation at New York University. Jason is among America’s premier experts on Congolese politics and economics. In this episode, he shares his astute insights into the opaque networks in eastern Congo which are deliberately and violently targeting health providers, paralyzing the international and local response to the Ebola outbreak. This is the second of a pair of episodes that examines what steps are now essential to end violence and win community trust and confidence in eastern Congo.

Unpacking the DRC Ebola Crisis with David Gressly Jul 09, 2019

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In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with David Gressly, the UN Emergency Ebola Response Coordinator in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Gressly was appointed in May by the UN Secretary General to lead a more strategic, coordinated, and better funded effort to arrest the dangerously escalating Ebola outbreak. This is the first of a pair of episodes that examines the root causes of targeted violence against health providers and active community resistance, and what steps are now essential to end violence and win community trust and confidence.

Innovation and Optimism: A Conversation with Dr. Trevor Mundel Jun 27, 2019

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In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison speaks with Dr. Trevor Mundel, President of the Global Health Division at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. They discuss the arc of Dr. Mundel’s personal career and his remarkable tenure at the Gates Foundation, including the creation of the Medical Research Institute; the launch of CHAMPS, the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Service; and the establishment of CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. In closing, they discuss the issues that give him the greatest concern, and the reasons he is hopeful looking to the future.

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