August 6, 2026. at 10 am PT / 11 am MT /12 pm CT / 1 pm ET for 60 minutes via Webinar
In recent years, Candida auris has emerged as an urgent public health threat, particularly in high-risk congregate settings such as correctional facilities. This one-hour expert-led session—developed in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—delivers critical, current, and correctionally relevant insights into the identification, transmission, and containment of C. auris in secure environments.
Participants will gain an actionable understanding of the organism’s resistance profile, clinical presentation, and environmental persistence, and they will develop an understanding of how these characteristics might threaten the unique vulnerabilities of incarcerated populations. The course will highlight infection control best practices, screening protocols, environmental decontamination strategies, and outbreak mitigation measures that are feasible and effective within the constraints of correctional settings.
Designed specifically for correctional health professionals, custody leadership, infection prevention teams, and facility administrators, this session will equip attendees with the foundational knowledge to prepare for, prevent, and respond to C. auris exposures in a manner that protects staff, incarcerated individuals, and the broader public health ecosystem.
Webinar Learning Objectives:
During this 60-minute webinar, participants will:
- Describe the clinical and microbiological characteristics of Candida auris, including its drug resistance and diagnostic challenges.
- Identify risk factors for colonization and transmission within correctional settings.
- Apply CDC-recommended infection control and environmental cleaning practices tailored to secure environments.
- Formulate a facility-specific action plan for responding to suspected or confirmed cases.
Series Take Aways:
During this webinar series, focus areas include:
- Educating correctional healthcare providers about the latest developments in superficial fungal infections.
- Discussing best practices for diagnosis and treatment.
- Addressing the growing challenge of antifungal resistance.
- Providing strategies for prevention and control in correctional environments.
- Sharing expertise from three leading federal agencies to improve health outcomes in correctional facilities.
- Evaluating the current strategies of disease management within the carceral setting and analyzing novel approaches to improve patient care, decrease costs, and optimize resource allocation.
- Envisioning how implementing novel strategies for the management of complex disease processes can enhance the operation of a correctional institution through technology and a paradigm change, optimizing screening and treatment practices.
Speakers
Sophie Jones (Allen), PhD, MSc
Epidemiologist
Mycotic Diseases Branch
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Sophie Jones (Allen), PhD, MSc, graduated from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK, with a Master of Science in Medical Microbiology and a PhD specializing in malaria epidemiology. She then served as an epidemic intelligence service officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, where she led consultations for healthcare-associated infection outbreaks. Sophie is now working as an epidemiologist in the CDC Mycotic Diseases Branch, focusing on Candida auris.
Commander Ellen Smith, DNP, MPH, CPH, CIC
Section Chief
Surveillance and Epidemiology
U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Prisons
Commander Ellen Smith began her career in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps in 2009 as a Senior Commissioned Officer Student Training and Extern Program officer. Following her graduation from Yale School of Nursing in 2010, she joined the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) as a primary care and women’s health nurse practitioner at Federal Correctional Institution Danbury, later transferring to Federal Detention Center Houston to serve a dynamic, high-turnover population.
In 2017, after earning her master’s degree in public health from the University of California, Berkeley, she became the infection control and quality improvement officer at Federal Detention Center Houston, where she led infectious disease surveillance and implemented public health interventions. She holds both Certified in Public Health and Certified Infection Control certifications. In 2021, she was appointed national infection prevention and control consultant for the BOP, providing nationwide expertise. Since 2022, Commander Smith has served as section chief of the Surveillance and Epidemiology Division of the BOP Population and Correctional Health Branch, where she leads efforts to advance health equity through data-driven strategies.
Enid Vélez-Valle
Epidemiologist
U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Prisons
Lieutenant Commander Vélez is an epidemiologist at the Federal Bureau of Prisons and a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service. She specializes in data integration to enhance communicable and chronic disease prevention, healthcare utilization, and surveillance, focusing on vulnerable populations. By identifying risk factors, disparities, and trends, she assists in the development of targeted interventions to address complex challenges and improve health outcomes. Her most recent publication contributions are focused on coronary artery disease, diabetes, and obesity. She holds a Master of Public Health from Rutgers University with a dual concentration in Epidemiology and Environmental and Occupational Health. She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in public health.
Who Should Attend?
Correctional healthcare providers, infectious disease clinicians, facility medical directors, pharmacists, public health officials, and anyone involved in respiratory illness management within incarcerated populations.
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