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Syra Madad
Syra Madad (Urdu: سائرہ مدد, née Sikandar; born October 22, 1986) is an American pathogen preparedness expert, and biosecurity advisor. Madad is the Chief Biopreparedness Officer at NYC Health + Hospitals where she was part of the executive leadership team which oversaw New York City's response to the Coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in the city's 11 public hospitals. She was featured in the Netflix documentary series Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak and the Discovery Channel documentary The Vaccine: Conquering COVID. Madad has been at the forefront of numerous outbreak responses, including Ebola, Zika, Measles, COVID-19, and MPox, developing strategies for prevention, preparedness, mitigation, and recovery. She is also a Fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in the Defense, Emerging Technology, and Strategy (DETS) program, where she founded and moderates the Women in STEM and Diversity in STEM series. She also serves as Core Faculty at the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC) and Affiliate Faculty at Boston University's Center for Emerging Infectious Disease Policy & Research.
Madad provides advisory expertise to prominent national and global organizations, including the U.S. National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), the Forum on Microbial Threats at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and the World Health Organization’s technical advisory group on responsible life sciences and dual-use research.
Madad has been recognized for her leadership and contributions to health security and infectious disease preparedness. She was named to Fortune’s prestigious 40 Under 40 list and honored by Crain’s New York Business as one of the Most Notable in Health Care.
Madad was born in the United States. Her family is of Pakistani background. Her mother and father married and then immigrated to the United States from Pakistan; her mother, Rehana Sikandar, was 18 at the time. Madad's interest in public health and infectious disease began at a young age, including after she saw the 1995 film Outbreak.
In 2008, Madad received a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park. In 2010, she received a master's degree in Biotechnology with a concentration in Biodefense and Biosecurity, also from the University of Maryland, College Park. In 2014, Madad received an DHSc degree in health science with a concentration in Global Health from Nova Southeastern University.
In 2014, Madad was Lead Continuity of Operations Liaison and State Trainer for the BioThreat and Chemical Threat Teams in the Emergency Preparedness Branch at the Texas Department of State Health Services. In this position she worked in the Ebola and Other Infectious Disease Agent Surge Team in response to a 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in Texas.
During this time, Madad volunteered at the Texas State Medical Operations Center as a Planning and Intelligence Specialist. She also volunteered as Logistics Specialist and Trauma Medical Responder at Sector 7 of the Texas Emergency Medical Task Force.
In 2015, Madad was hired as Senior Director of the System-wide Special Pathogens Program at NYC Health + Hospitals which oversees 11 public hospitals in the largest municipal healthcare system in the United States.
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Syra Madad
Syra Madad (Urdu: سائرہ مدد, née Sikandar; born October 22, 1986) is an American pathogen preparedness expert, and biosecurity advisor. Madad is the Chief Biopreparedness Officer at NYC Health + Hospitals where she was part of the executive leadership team which oversaw New York City's response to the Coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in the city's 11 public hospitals. She was featured in the Netflix documentary series Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak and the Discovery Channel documentary The Vaccine: Conquering COVID. Madad has been at the forefront of numerous outbreak responses, including Ebola, Zika, Measles, COVID-19, and MPox, developing strategies for prevention, preparedness, mitigation, and recovery. She is also a Fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in the Defense, Emerging Technology, and Strategy (DETS) program, where she founded and moderates the Women in STEM and Diversity in STEM series. She also serves as Core Faculty at the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC) and Affiliate Faculty at Boston University's Center for Emerging Infectious Disease Policy & Research.
Madad provides advisory expertise to prominent national and global organizations, including the U.S. National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB), the Forum on Microbial Threats at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and the World Health Organization’s technical advisory group on responsible life sciences and dual-use research.
Madad has been recognized for her leadership and contributions to health security and infectious disease preparedness. She was named to Fortune’s prestigious 40 Under 40 list and honored by Crain’s New York Business as one of the Most Notable in Health Care.
Madad was born in the United States. Her family is of Pakistani background. Her mother and father married and then immigrated to the United States from Pakistan; her mother, Rehana Sikandar, was 18 at the time. Madad's interest in public health and infectious disease began at a young age, including after she saw the 1995 film Outbreak.
In 2008, Madad received a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park. In 2010, she received a master's degree in Biotechnology with a concentration in Biodefense and Biosecurity, also from the University of Maryland, College Park. In 2014, Madad received an DHSc degree in health science with a concentration in Global Health from Nova Southeastern University.
In 2014, Madad was Lead Continuity of Operations Liaison and State Trainer for the BioThreat and Chemical Threat Teams in the Emergency Preparedness Branch at the Texas Department of State Health Services. In this position she worked in the Ebola and Other Infectious Disease Agent Surge Team in response to a 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in Texas.
During this time, Madad volunteered at the Texas State Medical Operations Center as a Planning and Intelligence Specialist. She also volunteered as Logistics Specialist and Trauma Medical Responder at Sector 7 of the Texas Emergency Medical Task Force.
In 2015, Madad was hired as Senior Director of the System-wide Special Pathogens Program at NYC Health + Hospitals which oversees 11 public hospitals in the largest municipal healthcare system in the United States.