PAHO’s director to help inaugurate new research center in El Salvador

Washington, February 20, 2003 (PAHO)-- On her first official trip as director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Dr. Mirta Roses Periago will travel this weekend to El Salvador to participate in the inauguration of the new Center for Research and Development in Health on the campus of the University of El Salvador in the country’s capital.

The center, which grew out of an agreement between the university and the government of Spain, will conduct studies in the areas of biomedicine, clinical medicine and public health. The center will work on joint interdisciplinary projects with partners in the health sector as well as the social sciences, biotechnology and environmental studies. The center will develop a Health Research System with support from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation of Brazil, the National Center for Research of Cuba’s Ministry of Public Health, the Carolina Foundation, the Carlos III Foundation of Spain, and PAHO.

During her visit, Roses will also meet with Minister of Public Health and Social Welfare Dr. José Francisco López Beltrán, as well as the U.N. Development Program representative, the ambassador of Argentina and the rector of the University of El Salvador.

Also attending the center’s inaugural ceremony, on February 24, will be Dr. Halfdan Mahler, director emeritus of the World Health Organization (WHO). Mahler is a leading proponent of the importance of primary care and of "Health for All" as conceived 25 years ago at the Alma Ata conference. Mahler will speak on "leadership and equity in health."

Roses’ remarks will focus on "the challenges of health in the Americas," including the continent’s key health goals and the United Nations Millennium Goals. These are: eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, universal primary education, gender equality, reduction in infant and maternal mortality, the fight against AIDS, environmental sustainability and the establishment of a global alliance for development.

Roses will also emphasize the importance of a new type of education to develop "new minds in a changing world," as well as the necessity of linking education and research with primary care and interdisciplinary health practices.

Dr. Alberto Pellegrini, coordinator of PAHO’s research program, will also speak at the center’s opening, on "the current state of health research in Latin America."

Roses, who took office as PAHO director on Jan. 31, noted in her inaugural address that the focus of her attention would be on the Organization’s "work in and with the countries," and on improving ties with communities and local stakeholders. This trip marks her first effort to put that policy into practice, forming new alliances and strengthening established ones to work more effectively to improve the quality of life and the health of the peoples of the continent.

PAHO was officially established in 1902 and is the oldest international public health agency in the world. It works with the countries of the Americas to improve the health and quality of life of its inhabitants. It functions as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization.

For more information please contact: Daniel Epstein, Office of Public Information, (202) 974-3459, e-mail: epsteind@paho.org.

Highlight

Subscribe