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The WHO Executive Board has appointed Dr Carissa Etienne for a second term as WHO Regional Director for Americas. Dr Etienne was elected Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) by the countries of the Americas on 19 September 2012 during the 28th Pan American Sanitary Conference. She was re-elected for a second term in September 2017.
PAHO serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of WHO (WHO/AMRO). Dr Etienne has begun her second five-year term as PAHO Director and WHO Regional Director from 1 February 2018. Prior to her appointment as WHO’s Regional Director for the Americas, Dr Etienne was Assistant Director General, Health Systems and Services, of WHO in Geneva. From 2003 to 2008 she served as Assistant Director of PAHO, WHO's Regional Office for the Americas.
She holds degrees in medicine and surgery from the University of the West Indies as well as a Master's in community health and an honorary diploma in public health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Under her leadership, during these past five years PAHO led preparedness and response efforts to the regional Zika and chikungunya epidemics as well as to yellow fever outbreaks in Brazil. The Americas became the first WHO Region to eliminate the endemic transmission of measles, rubella and congenital rubella syndrome.
