Helmut Brand, Prof. Dr. med., Dr. h.c., MSc, MFPH, DLSHTM
Specialist for Public Health and Social Medicine

Born 1957 married to Prof. Dr. med. Angela Brand MPH

Recent Position:

Professor of European Public Health at Maastricht University and Head of the Department for International Health

Training in Medicine, Public Health and Social Medicine:

1978 - 1984            Study of Medicine (Medical Doctor MD) at the Universities of Düsseldorf, Germany and Zürich, Switzerland

1984                         PhD in Medicine at the University of Düsseldorf

1985 - 1987/1990  Clinical training in internal medicine, surgery and psychiatry

1987/88                   Master of Science in Community Medicine at the University of London, Faculty of Medicine, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

1991                         Specialist in Public Health and Social Medicine in Germany

1996                         Postgraduate Diploma of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in Community Medicine (DLSHTM)

1998                         Member of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine (MFPHM)

2010                         Dr. h. c. Medical University Sofia, Bulgaria

Scientific Public Health Societies:

2001 - 2007 Vice-President of the German Society of Social Medicine and Prevention (DGSMP)

since 2008  Member of the Board of the German Society of Social Medicine and Prevention (DGSMP)

since 2002  Member of the Governing Board of the European Public Health Association (EUPHA)

1996-2003  Managing Director of the European Public Health Centre NRW (EPHZ)

since 2004  Vice-President of the EPHZ

since 2008 Member of the Executive Board of the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER)


Member of Editorial Boards:

1995 -2008  Scientific Series of the Institute of Public Health NRW

since 1998  Das Gesundheitswesen

since 2000  European Journal of Public Health

since 2003  Italian Journal of Public Health

since 2008 Health Policy and Management (Bulgaria)


European Union:

since 1994  Advisor in Public Health and Social Medicine to the European Commission (e.g. DG Sanco, Office of the European Policy Advisors)

since 1995  Projects in the Public Health Programme of the European Union

since 2006  Leader of the “Health System Working Party” of the Public Health Programme


other International Cooperation:

since 1995 WHO, Kopenhagen:

            - Regions for Health Network (RHN); member of the Steering Committee until 10 2008   

            - Partner of the Health Evidence Network (HEN)

           - Collaborating Center for Regional Health Policy and Public Health (since 2008)

since 2006  National Public Health Institute Tokio, Japan


Teaching Experience:

since 1989  Epidemiology, and Health Service Research at the University of Bielefeld , Faculty of Health Sciences

since 1990  Social Medicine at the Academy of Public Health Düsseldorf

since 1995  (European) Health Policy (lectures at various Universities in Europe, lectures at various Summer Schools in Europe )


Professional Work in Public Health and Social Medicine:

1988 - 1993  District Health Authority Minden-Lübbecke , Germany (Social Medicine, Public Health)

1990              Ministry of Health Lower Saxony , Germany (Pilot Study for the Cancer Registry of Lower Saxony )

1993 - 1995  Ministry of Health Hamburg, Germany (Health Systems Analysis, Cancer Registry, Public Health Reporting, Medical Statistics)

1995 - 2007  Director of the Institute of Public Health NRW (lögd)

2007 - 2008  additionally: Managing Director of the Epidemiological Cancer Registry NRW

2008              Scientific Director of the Institute of Health and Work, NRW (LIGA)

since September 2008 Professor of European Public Health at Maastricht University