Prof Cohen, Cheryl

Cheryl Cohen is a Professor in Epidemiology at the University of the Witwatersrand and head of the Centre for Respiratory Diseases and Meningitis at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases. She qualified as a medical doctor at the University of the Witwatersrand and is a Fellow of the College of Pathologists of South Africa in the discipline of Microbiology.
Cohen obtained an MSc in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (United Kingdom) and a PhD from the University of the Witwatersrand. In her current position she works closely with the South African Department of Health to generate evidence to guide policy with regard to the control and management of respiratory diseases. She led the establishment of a national surveillance programme for severe acute respiratory infections in South Africa in 2009 and is the epidemiology lead for national surveillance for pneumonia and invasive bacterial infections causing pneumonia. She heads up a team with an active research agenda in the field of respiratory diseases with a focus on the burden of disease and risk groups for severe illness, as well as assessment of the impact and effectiveness of interventions to reduce respiratory disease burden.