Peter Salama

Peter Salama (1968 – 23 January 2020) was an Australian epidemiologist who worked for UNICEF (2002–16) and the World Health Organization (2016–19). He was particularly known for his work at both organisations managing their responses to Ebola epidemics in Africa. Richard Horton, editor of The Lancet, described him as "a loyal and committed health advocate and multilateralist" who "brought depth and strength to WHO". He also worked in Asia and Africa for the charities Médecins Sans Frontières and Concern Worldwide. In 2002, Salama started to work for UNICEF as Chief of Health and Nutrition in Afghanistan (2002–04), He was appointed head of WHO's Universal Health Coverage in March 2019, a position that he held until his death. Other responsibilities included board membership of GAVI (from 2019)

His published research was in the areas of HIV, infectious diseases for which there are vaccines, nutrition, mother and child health, and health issues relating to war, refugees and emergencies. He died from a heart attack on 23 January 2020 in Geneva, Switzerland, at the age of 51.

Selected publications Reviews

Research papers