![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/53290576146_09023cbb07_3k-768x432.jpg)
![Helen Branswell](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/helen-b-profile-1024x1024.png)
Helen Branswell
Senior Writer, Infectious Diseases
Helen Branswell is a senior writer at STAT covering infectious diseases and global health; she joined STAT at its founding in 2015. Helen was introduced to epidemic reporting during the 2003 SARS outbreak; in the years since she has written about bird flu, the H1N1 flu pandemic, Ebola, Zika, polio, mpox, and led STAT’s coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic. Helen was a 2011 Nieman Global Health Fellow at Harvard. She was the recipient of the 2020 George Polk Award for Public Service for coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic and was awarded the 2021 Victor Cohn Prize for Excellence in Medical Science Reporting.
Written By Helen
Unlock more articles from Helen Branswell by subscribing to STAT+
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/53290576146_09023cbb07_3k-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/GettyImages-2150341572-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/H5N1-Questions-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AP16113803490739-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AP24107677450143-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/H5N1-vaccine-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/52761900537_e750453b85_k-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/GettyImages-1241307430-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/1841-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AP23210027217582-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/1841-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/GettyImages-516091964-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AP630933525501-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/AP24085768727367-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/CovidResearch_Illustration_MollyFerguson_021924-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1243482827-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/AP24060748062192-768x432.jpg)
![](https://www.statnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1240085132-768x432.jpg)