Faculty and Staff

Francisco Alvarado-Ramy, MD, LCDR USPHS

Elena Batista, EdD,MSHP

José A. Capriles, MD, MPH, MHSA

María Inés Castro, BSN, MPH, MSN, PhD

Jesús Irizarry, PhD

Ruth Rios, PhD

Francisco Alvarado-Ramy, MD, LCDR USPHS
Medical Officer and Deputy Director
Div of Epidemiology Puerto Rico Department of Health

Work history and leadership experience: After completing a residency in Internal Medicine in Cleveland, Dr. Alvarado joined the Epidemic Intelligence Service of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There he was assigned to the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. He had the opportunity to learn the basics of outbreak investigations and about other applied epidemiology skills. After a brief assignment related to post 9/11 events, he was transferred to the Puerto Rico Department of Health, as an advisor to the Secretary of Health. He served as the Deputy Commonwealth Epidemiologist and now as the Deputy Director for the Epidemiology Division.

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Elena Batista, EdD,MSHP
Advisor to Health Secretary
P.R. State Health Department

Work history and leadership experience: After finishing graduate studies Dr. Batista worked as health planner for four years at municipal and state health departments in P. R. Afterwards, for twenty-five years she performed academic and administrative duties at the Medical Sciences Campus of the University of Puerto Rico. She reports as the most important and gratifying leadership roles experienced her time as professor at a health management program and as consultant to health organizations and higher education institutions in P.R. and abroad.

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José A. Capriles, MD, MPH, MHSA
Professor and Program Coordinator Health Services Administration
University of Puerto Rico, School of Public Health

Work history and leadership experience: Dr. Capriles received his BS in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico in 1977. After his MD degree in 1981, he completed two degrees in Public Health (MPH and MHSA, and a post- graduate certificate in developmental deficiencies) from the same university. Dr. Capriles practiced pediatrics and neonatal perinatal medicine for 16 years. Prior to his actual position, he was the medical director of Neonatal Perinatal Medicine Professional Corporation, a for-profit organization, dedicated to administered neonatal intensive care services at the Island. He also has been appointed as leader in many committees such as information's management, bioethics, and pharmacy-TPN. At the present, he serves as medical consultant in utilization in perinatal care in Triple S, Inc., one of the main health insurance leaders in PR. He had participated in technical assistance in the field of Healthcare Administration, Public Health and Neonatal Perinatal Medicine to professional organizations, private and government agencies.

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María Inés Castro, BSN, MPH, MSN, PhD
Consultant
Department of Health

Work history and leadership experience: Dr. Castro started her professional career at hospitals, in Intensive Care Unit and Pediatrics as staff nurse. After a couple of years, she studied a Master in Public Health. She recalls this period as one of the most significant experience of her life. Subsequently, she entered the academia and advanced her expertise in Family and Community Nursing. During the last six years she has shared her professional academic responsibilities with other activities. Dr. Castro was the editor of the only Journal of Nursing in PR (Impulso) for more than four years. She also offers Continuing Education courses for nurses and other health professionals in subjects such as: identification and management of domestic violence, and elder violence and child abuse, among others. During the last two years she has worked at the Department of Health as a consultant in education and several other matters.

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Jesús Irizarry, PhD, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Advisor to the Secretary of Health of the Commonwealth of PR
Puerto Rico State Department of Health

Work history and leadership experience: Dr. Irizarry started a masters degree in demography in 1982 at the University of Puerto Rico, School of Public Health. He moved to Ann Arbor to complete a Ph.D. in Population Planning at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. After completing his doctoral degree, he moved to New Jersey and worked as Deputy Director for a community-based organization, mostly in fundrasing activities to develop HIV prevention programs for minorities in Newark. One year later, he worked as Planning Analyst at UMDNJ Hospital in Newark. In 1994, he returned to PR and worked first as Director of Planning and Development at Medical Sciences Campus of the UPR. From 1997-2000, Dr Irizarry was the Director of Education and Prevention at Humana Health Plans, mostly overseeing health promotion programs for the Medicaid and commercial population. He has been the advisor to the Secretary since February '02 for planning, statistics, health care reform and special projects.

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Ruth Rios, PhD
Associate Professor
School of Public Health, University of Puerto Rico

Work history and leadership experience: Dr. Ríos work experience has been mainly in social research projects and evaluation studies. She has worked as data analyst, quality supervisor, consultant, and researcher in several health services research and evaluation projects. For the past two years, she was the senior evaluator for the Puerto Rico AIDS Education and Training Project (PRAETC) and the Targeted Provider Education Demonstration Project (PRTPED) sponsored by HRSA. Currently, she works as an Associate Professor at the Department of Health Services Administration of the Puerto Rico Graduate School of Public Health, researcher of the Center for Evaluation and Sociomedical Research, and Coordinator of the program of Evaluation Research. In addition, she also works as the evaluator for the Puerto Rico site from the Florida/Caribbean AETC where is responsible to develop and implement all evaluation activities that include needs assessment, process evaluation, continuous quality improvement and outcomes of all educational and training activities of this program in Puerto Rico.

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This website is supported by a Research Centers in Minority Institutions Award, G12RR-03051,
from the National Center for Research Resources, National Institutes of Health