Professor Pedro Más Bermejo

Professor Pedro Más Bermejo MD, PhD, DrSc, leader of Cuba’s COVID-19 National Technical Group

Professor Más Bermejo is a Physician with more than 25 years’ experience in the disciplines of hygiene, epidemiology, microbiology and nutrition.

The National Technical Group advises the Cuban government on its response to COVID-19. It promotes numerous investigations in multiple branches of science, with the aim of providing results that allow authorities to make accurate and well-founded decisions at all times. It started with just six members, and currently brings together dozens of specialists who, in turn, are connected with student groups that support them.

Current positions

National Director of Epidemiology, Ministry of Public Health.

Emeritus Research Scientist, Tropical Medicine Institute “Pedro Kourí”.

Emeritus member of the Cuban Academy of Sciences.

Full Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health, National School of Public Health (Medical University of Havana).

Adjunct Professor School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, USA.

Education and training

Graduated from Central University in Cuba

Trained in Epidemiology at the Cuban National Institute of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Microbiology.

PhD, Karlova University Prague, Czech Republic.

Postdoctoral training in Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK.

Professional appointments

General Director of Cuban National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (1988-2003)

Director, WHO Collaborating Center for Health in Housing (1998-2003).

PhD program Director, University of Aden, Yemen (2005-2008).

Sustainable Development and Environmental Health Advisor, Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), Jamaica (2011-2012).

Temporary Advisor, World Health Organization (WHO): 4 times.

Temporary Advisor, PAHO: 12 times.

WHO Expert Committee: 3 times.

Publications and editorial roles

Professor Más Bermejo has published six books and more than 95 papers, primarily dealing with epidemiology and public health.

External reviewer, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada.

Editor, Hygiene and Epidemiology Journal, Cuba.

Editorial Board member, Journal of Public Health Policy, USA.

Editorial Committee member, Public Health Journal, Cuba.

Professional Associations

Member of the American Public Health Association.

Deputy President of the Cuban National Society of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

Executive Committee member of the Health Equity Network of the Americas.

Experience in the field

Cuba

Since 1981, Professor Más Bermejo has worked in Cuba at the national level as epidemiologist in dengue outbreaks, and HIV AIDS program, in 2012 in cholera outbreak, in 2016 outbreaks of Zika and Chinkungunya. In each case he had coordination and control responsibilities at national level.

Overseas

Epidemiology and health advisor in Ecuador, Mexico, Thailand, Colombia, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Nicaragua, Guyana, and Jamaica.

In 2005, he worked with an outbreak of Poliomyelitis in the Republic of Yemen.

In 2012, he worked with Panamerican Health Organizatiom (PAHO) in preparing Jamaica, Cayman Islands and Barbados in response to a Chikungunya outbreak.

COVID-19 activities

In addition to his role in Cuba’s National Technical Group, in July 2020 Professor Más Bermejo was appointed as advisory group member of the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP). The goal of this advisory group is to provide a mechanism for other national academies, national governments and others to obtain reliable information related to COVID 19 and its implications in different countries.

Papers published relating to COVID 19:

1. Mas Bermejo P, et al. Lucha anti epidémica en la COVID-19 en Cuba. Organización de la investigación epidemiológica. Epidemic fight in COVID-19 in Cuba. (Organization of epidemiological research in Cuba). Journal INFODIR Vol. 32, mayo.agosto 2020.
2. Galbán-García E, Más Bermejo P. COVID-19 in Cuba: Assessing the National Response. MEDICC Review, October 2020, Vol 22, No 4.
3. Pelaez O, Mas Bermejo P. Brotes, epidemias, eventos y otros términos epidemiológicos de uso cotidiano (Brotes [outbreaks], epidemias [epidemics], eventos [events], and other Epidemiological Terms of Daily Usage) Revista Cubana de Salud Pública. 2020;46(2):e2358.
4. Sanchez L,… Mas Bermejo (co.author) How mathematical approaches could help decision-making to epidemic control? The successful experience against COVID-19 in Cuba. Preprint Available at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3629271.
5. Mas Bermejo P .Editorial La COVID 19 y la práctica epidemiológica en Cuba (COVID 19 and epidemiological practice in Cuba) Revista Cubana de Higiene y Epidemiología. 2020; 57:e307.
6. Rodriguez N……., Mas Bermejo P (coauthor). Distribución de la población vulnerable a la enfermedad COVID-19 en La Habana, Cuba (Distribution of the population vulnerable to COVID-19 in Havana, Cuba) Revista Cubana de Higiene y Epidemiología. 2020;57:e371.
7. Sanchez L ,…..Mas Bermejo P. COVID-19in Cuba: the interplay of government and societal actions with statistics. Radical Statistics. Issue 126 Special Coronavirus Issue. 2020.
8. Castro A……, Mas Bermejo P. Red da las Americas para la Equidad en Salud: Inclusion, compromise y accion. Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública/Pan American Journal of Public Health.October 2020.
9. Mas Bermejo P et al. Equidad en salud y respuesta intersectorial de Cuba ante la COVID-19. Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública/Pan American Journal of Public Health. Currently under peer review.