2009, Number 1
Generating appropriate technologies for Health Equity: José Luis Fernández Yero, MD, PhD Director, Immunoassay Center, Havana
Reed G
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Immunologist by training, Dr Fernández Yero began his career in medical technology at the National Center for Scientific Research in Havana, working at the behest of several hospitals to develop the first Cuban alpha-fetoprotein test. It was the 1970s, a time when a single public health system was taking shape in Cuba and many of the main poverty-related social determinants of health had been tackled. “We were looking for technologies of the future,” he says, “to see what we could do that could be applied throughout a national public health system.” Sixteen generations of equipment later, Dr Fernández Yero heads the 21-year-old Immunoassay Center, a leader in the field of medical technology for population health. The road traveled has not been an easy one, lack of resources threatening delays and detours along the way. He shares his thoughts with MEDICC Review on his work, the meaning of appropriate technology and the challenges he foresees ahead.