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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Outbreak science is a burgeoning field that harnesses real-time epidemiological data and statistical and mathematical models to assist public health decision-making during an epidemic. Drawing on recent collaborations with public health officials I will discuss how we can estimate the risk for disease transmission before diseases arrive and guide decision-making when they do, improve infectious disease forecasts, and how fine-grain spatial burden estimates were used to reduce COVID-19 spatial disparities during the pandemic. As the risk for disease emergence and re-emergence continues to grow globally, these techniques can help guide public health responses in the face of uncertainty.
Bio: Spencer J. Fox is an Assistant Professor in the department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the Institute of Bioinformatics at the University of Georgia. Spencer obtained a BSc in Biology from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and a PhD from the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior program at The University of Texas at Austin. His research focuses on integrating biology, epidemiology, and statistics to understand pandemic emergence risk and response with a focus on emerging infectious diseases like influenza, Zika, Ebola, and COVID-19. Prior to joining the University of Georgia he was the Associate Director of the UT COVID-19 Modeling Consortium.
Host: Lauren Castro (A-1) and Casey Gibson (CCS-6)