THE commemorative medal for 80 years of the National School of Public Health (ENSAP) was conferred this Thursday on the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, for his exceptional contributions to the development of Cuban society, and for building the foundations of and consolidating the health care system in its national and international projections.

The high distinction was received by Health Minister and Political Bureau member José Ramón Balaguer, from the hands of the scientist Pastor Castell-Florit, ENSAP director, during the closing ceremony of a scientific event at that academic institution. The ENSAP is dedicated to postgraduate education, professional development, and research.

"If anything is to be said about the development of public health, it is that it is the fruit of the concepts, principles, and ideas of Fidel," Balaguer stated.

The medal was also conferred on Ernesto Che Guevara, José Ramón Machado Ventura, the health minister, and José M. Miyar Barruecos, minister of science, technology and the environment. Likewise, it was awarded to a group of professionals for their active participation in the development of the Cuban health system: Orlando Carnota, Gregorio Delgado, Antonio Granda, Juan José Ceballos, Francisco Rojas Ochoa, Pablo Resik, Norma Eneida Ríos, Helenio Ferrer and Benito Pérez Maza.

Founded in 1927 as the Carlos J. Finlay Institute, the guiding center of the National Health School, the ENSAP holds important academic, scientific and technical achievements. It has conferred master’s degrees on 1,506 students and trained 61 doctors in health sciences, and 120 health professionals are currently being trained there.