Dr. Lisa Koonin founded Health Preparedness Partners after her 30+ year career with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During that time, she led the development of national emergency preparedness and response plans and policies, served in leadership positions for multiple national and international emergency responses, conducted large-format exercises, and consulted with businesses, state and local governments, healthcare facilities, non-governmental organizations, academia, and ministries of health around the world, to improve emergency preparedness. Dr. Koonin is recognized as an international expert in emergency preparedness and response, especially for pandemic influenza response. She was the originator of private sector pandemic and emergency response programs at CDC, and has extensive experience working with businesses and non-governmental organizations.
Dr. Koonin is known as an engaging and informative national and international speaker on a number of emergency preparedness and response topics. She has provided over 200 lectures, workshops, and presentations in the U.S. and in over 20 countries. Dr. Koonin has published more than 85 peer-reviewed scientific publications on an array of public health and preparedness topics. She has clinical experience as a family nurse practitioner and earned master of nursing and master of public health degrees from Emory University and a doctorate degree in public health leadership from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Gillings School of Global Public Health.
