Dr. Elsa Moreno of Argentina (1929 -2021) was a world-renowned medical expert in the area of maternal and Child Health. She occupied important positions in Argentina, including National Director of Maternal and Child Health, and was a distinguished professor at the School of Public Health of the National University of Tucumán.
Dr. Moreno was also Secretary of Public Health for the Argentinean Ministry of Health and Social Action. From 1976 to 1989 she was an Advisor and later Director of the Maternal and Child Health Program of the Pan American Health Organization in Washington D.C
In the 1990s Dr. Moreno, along with other international specialists, signed the declaration of the suspension of the polio virus transmission in the Americas, the first continent to eradicate the virus.
During her outstanding professional career Dr. Moreno published 140 important articles and papers and 10 books in the areas of maternal and child health, clinics, public health, and health services research. Dr. Moreno worked actively in the Department of Public Health of the National University of Tucumán's Faculty of Medicine
As part of the Centennial celebration, in 2002 the Pan American Health Organization recognized Dr. Moreno as a Public Health Heroine for her invaluable contributions to public health in the Americas.
Links of interest:
Obituary for Dr. Elsa Moreno (in Spanish)
Interview: Dr. Elsa Moreno (2012) (in Spanish)
Public Health Heroes: www.paho.org/hero