In the Aftermath of the Pandemic, IDSA Looks to Address COVID-19's Health Care Disparities

IDSA is an organization that consists of over 12,000 physicians, scientists, and public health officials. The organization’s mission is “to improve the health of individuals, communities, and society by promoting excellence in patient care, education, research, public health, and prevention relating to infectious diseases.”

The organization is actively involved in public health policy as it relates to infectious disease, and one area it has been working in is the development of antibiotics. Specifically, the organization has been working toward the passage of the Pasteur Act, which is currently in Congress.

Within the organization they have a board of elected medical professionals. Tina Q. Tan, MD, professor of Pediatrics at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, and a pediatric infectious diseases physician at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital, Chicago, Illinois, was elected to serve on the IDSA board as vice president and a member of the Executive Committee.

Tan said one of the disparities they are looking to address is clinical trials and the lack of participation of the pediatric population. “Most trials of drugs and vaccines are generally done in adults to begin with,” Tan stated. “Now there is a push to see if these trials can be done in infants and children.”

In the second part of a two-part interview, Tan provides a glimpse of the IDSA’s priorities for this year, how the organization will continue to serve as clinical guide for providers and educational resource for the public.

To view her interview on looking at the recent RSV surge and considering vaccine candidates for the virus, go here.