News and Events
2025 HPM & Center for Public Health Systems Healthcare Conference:
Local Public Health: Shaping Policies, Partnerships, and Progress
The 2025 HPM Healthcare Conference examined the evolving role of local health departments in addressing the nation’s most
pressing public health challenges. Through a series of thought-provoking discussions, the conference explored national trends in the structure, priorities, activities, and funding of local health departments.
One session highlighted innovative collaborations between public agencies and private sector partners, with a particular focus on the role of private foundations in advancing public health initiatives. Another session featured an in-depth conversation on how local health agencies respond to emerging public health crises—including gun violence and social isolation—as well as their role in addressing the social determinants of health, such as housing instability and inequitable educational systems. There was also an important discussion of innovative strategies aimed at improving the finances of the public health sector.
Bringing together public health officials from New York, Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and Oregon, along with national leaders from organizations such as NACCHO and the Common Health Coalition, the conference served as a platform for developing strategies to strengthen and stabilize the nation’s public health system.
Center for Public Health Systems Launch Event
A December 12 (2024) event officially launched a new Center for Public Health Systems within the Columbia Mailman School’s Department of Health Policy & Management (HPM). The event underlined the importance of research, education, communications, and community engagement to forge connections across a fragmented public health system in the U.S.
Michael Sparer, HPM chair and director of the new center, emceed the event at the Columbia University Forum on 125th Street, speaking in conversation with author and philanthropist Chelsea Clinton, ‘10 MPH, an adjunct porfessor in HPM and member of the School’s board of advisors, and Umair A. Shah, secretary of health for Washington State. Read more about the launch event here.
2024 Columbia Healthcare Ventures Fast-Pitch Competition
The 2024 Fast-Pitch Competition brought together 25 passionate student teams from across Columbia University to pitch ideas aimed at transforming and scaling innovation in healthcare and public health. This year’s competition showcased ideas from students across graduate and undergraduate programs, representing the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia Business School, Columbia University, Columbia Engineering, Columbia School of Social Work, Columbia University School of Nursing, and Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Congratulations to all the participants for their incredible innovation and drive to create a better future in healthcare! 💡
APHA Thought Leadership Film Series
HPM was featured in APHA's Thought Leadership Film Series!
Curing Global Health: The Case for Ending Neo-Dependency on Foreign Aid
Tuesday, January 25, 2022 - 5:30pm - 6:30 pm
- Moderator: Alexander S. Preker, HPM Adjunct Assistant Professor and Editor in Chief of Health Investment and Financing at World Scientific Publishing
- Panelists: Sir George Alleyne, Director Emeritus, PAHO; Olusoji O. Adeyi, MD, MBA, DrPH, President of Resilient Health Systems
Mandating COVID-19 Vaccines: What Happens Next
Thursday, October 28, 2021 - 11:45 am –12:45 pm ET
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, JD, PhD, Professor & Department Chair of Health Policy & Management
- Panelists: Robert Galvin, MD, Operating Partner and Chief Medical Officer, Blackstone; Magda Schaler-Haynes, JD, MPH, Adjunct Professor, Health Policy and Management; Olajide A. Williams, MD, MS, Professor and Chief of Staff, Department of Neurology, CUIMC, Founder and Chair of Hip Hop Public Health
2021 HPM Healthcare Conference Webinar Series: Promoting Public Health and the Role of Health IT
Thursday, May 13, 2021 - 4:00pm – 5:00pm EST
Thursday, May 13, 2021 - 4:00pm – 5:00pm EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, JD, PhD, Professor & Department Chair of Health Policy & Management
- Host: Judith R. Faulkner, CEO & Founder of Epic Systems
Meg Fitzgerald Book Event: “Ascending Davos: A Career Journey From the Emergency Room to the Board Room”
March 3, 2021 - 4:00 PM-5:00 PM EST
2021 Rosenberg Lecture on Healthcare Quality
February 24, 2021 - 4:30 PM-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, JD, PhD, Professor & Department Chair of Health Policy & Management
- Host: Mark P Jarrett, MD, MBA, Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer, Northwell Health
Mark Bittman Book Event: "Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food, From Sustainable to Suicidal"
February 3, 2021 - 4:00 pm-5:00 pm EST
A Holiday Cooking Class Hosted by Mark Bittman
December 10, 2020 - 7:00 PM-7:45 PM EST
- Introduction: Michael Sparer, JD, PhD, Professor & Department Chair of Health Policy & Management
- Host: Mark Bittman, lecturer, Department of Health Policy & Management, Bestselling cookbook author, journalist, and TV personality
- Moderator: Saba Rawjani, MPH '21, Member, HPM Student Mentor Program Leadership Board
Health Care and the Courts
November 19, 2020 - 4:00 PM-5:15 PM EST
Moderator: Michael Sparer, PhD, JD, Moderator Professor and Department Chair; Abbe R. Gluck, JD, Professor of Law and Faculty Director, Solomon Center for Health Law and Policy, Yale Law School; Kristen Underhill, JD, DPhil, Associate Professor of Law Columbia Law School; Magda Schaler-Haynes, JD, MPH, Adjunct Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management
Election 2020: What Can Public Health Do Now?
November 12, 2020 - 4:00 PM-5:15 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Wafaa El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA, University Professor, Dr. Mathilde Krim-amfAR Chair of Global Health, Epidemiology (In ICAP), Director, ICAP
- Ross Frommer, VP for Government and Community Affairs, Associate Dean at Columbia University Medical Center
- Terry McGovern, Harriet and Robert H. Heilbrunn Professor and Chair of Population and Family Health
- Jeffrey Shaman, Professor of Environmental Health Sciences (in the International Research Institute for Climate and Society/Earth Institute), Director, Climate and Health Program
Covid-19: Will It Forever transform Hospital Design & Patient Care?
November 5, 2020 - 10:00 AM-11:30 AM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Giacomo Centini, Chief Executive Officer of the Azienda Ospedaliera di Alessandria
- Niyum Gandhi, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Population Health Officer of the Mount Sinai Health System
- Alexandre Lourenco, President of Portuguese Association of Hospital Managers
2020 Election: What’s at Stake for Public Health?
October 29, 2020 – 4:00 PM-5:00 PM EST
- Terry McGovern, Professor and Chair of Population and Family Health
- Michael Sparer, Professor and Chair of Health Policy and Management
- Monette Zard, Allan Rosenfield Associate Professor of Forced Migration and Health in Population and Family Health
Hospital Management During a Pandemic: Lessons Learned and the Preparation for a Second Wave
September 10, 2020 - 11:00 AM-12:00 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: Joseph Masci, Chief of Global Health at H+H/Elmhurst and Chair of the COVID-19 Research Executive Steering Committee; Arthur Gianelli, Chief Transformation Officer for the Mount Sinai Health System and President of Mount Sinai Morningside; Stefano Fagiuoli, Chair of the Department of Medicine and the Director of the Gastroenterology and Transplant Hepatology Unit of the Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital in Bergamo
Fighting Inequities: Should NYC Have an Elected Civilian Review Board?
July 23, 2020 - 4:00-5:00 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: Inez D. Barron, NYC Council Member, District 42; Gale A. Brewer, Manhattan Borough President; Susan E. Williams, MD, Representative of the ECRB Committee
Please visit: https://www.stoppoliceviolencenyc.org to learn more about the campaign, read a copy of the legislation and to learn how to volunteer.
Beyond the Headlines: State Responses to COVID-19
July 9, 2020 - 4:00-5:00 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: Susan E. Birch, MBA, BSN, RN, Director, Washington State Health Care Authority; Jennifer Sullivan, MD, MPH, Secretary, Indiana Family and Social Services Administration; Howard A. Zucker, MD, JD, Health Commissioner, New York State
Beyond the Headlines: Public Health Commissioners and COVID-19
June 25, 2020 - 4:00-5:00 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Featuring NY Health Commissioners: Sherlita Amler, Westchester County; Patricia Schnabel Ruppert, Rockland County; Kevin Watkins, Cattaraugus County
Beyond the Headlines: COVID-19 and the NYC Jail Population
June 11, 2020 - 4:30-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelist: Patsy Yang, Senior Vice President for Correctional Health Services, NYC Health + Hospitals
Beyond the Headlines: COVID-19 and the NYC Health System
May 13, 2020 - 4:30-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: LaRay Brown, President & CEO of One Brooklyn Health System, INC; Donna Lynne, Senior Vice President & COO at CUIMC; Wayne Riley, President of SUNY Downstate Medical Center
Beyond the Headlines: Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Supply Chain During COVID-19
April 29, 2020 - 4:30-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: George Barrett, Former Chairman & CEO of Cardinal Health; Meg FitzGerald, Senior Advisor to LetterOne Private Equity; Peyton Howell, Chief Commercial & Strategy Officer at Parexel
Beyond the Headlines: Healthcare Industry Leaders on the Impact of COVID-19 (Panel I)
A Special Webinar With Hpm National Advisory Board Members, April 13, 2020 - 4:30-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: Richard Barasch, RAB Ventures and Former Chairman & CEO of Universal American; Robert Galvin, Operating Partner, Blackstone, CEO Equity Healthcare; Jonathan Perlin, CMO & President, Clinical Services at Hospital Corporation of America
Beyond the Headlines: Healthcare Industry Leaders on the Impact of COVID-19 (Panel II)
A Special Webinar With Hpm National Advisory Board Members, April 14, 2020 - 4:30-5:30 PM EST
- Moderator: Michael Sparer, Professor & Department Chair
- Panelists: Karen Ignagni, President & CEO of EmblemHealth; Kieran Murphy, President & CEO of GE Healthcare; Todd Richter, Senior Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners
The Price of a Pandemic: The Financial Impact of COVID-19 a Special Webinar With Adjunct Professor & Hpm National Advisory Board Member
April 17, 2020 - 1:00-2:00 PM EST
Hosted by Todd Richter, Senior Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners