CITYWIDE— NYC HEALTH + HOSPITALS/BELLEVUE, IN PREPARING FOR THE U.S. HOSTING THE WORLD CUP SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIPS THIS YEAR, has trained close to 500 health care and public health professionals to respond to high-consequence infectious disease threats.
The city’s public hospital system announced on Tuesday, Jan. 27, that during 2025, the health care professionals were trained across four jurisdictions encompassing New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These trainings support Health and Human Services Region 2 preparedness efforts in advance of the more than one million international visitors expected for the 2026 World Cup Finals at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.
Bellevue Hospital is the federally designated Regional Emerging Special Pathogens Treatment Center for Region 2, delivering hands-on education in the use of personal protective equipment, patient isolation, laboratory safety and emergency transport to health care professionals working in health care facilities across those four jurisdictions. The facility plays a central role within the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center consortium, a leader in national special pathogen preparedness and response.
Bellevue Hospital supported regional partners through technical assistance and speaking engagements, providing real-time guidance and subject matter expertise to strengthen jurisdiction-specific preparedness needs, a training which 97% of participants rated as highly effective.
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