Þórólfur Guðnason (born 28 October 1953) is an Icelandic doctor who served as the Chief Epidemiologist of the Icelandic
Directorate of Health from 2015 to 2022.
He was one of the lead members of the Iceland's Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management addressing the
COVID-19 pandemic in Iceland
The COVID-19 pandemic in Iceland was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have reached Iceland in February 2020. , the to ...
, along with
Alma Möller
Alma Dagbjört Möller (born 24 June 1961) is an Icelandic doctor and politician. On 1 April 2018 she became the first woman to serve as the Directorate of Health, Director of Health since the office was established in 1760. Since February 2020, ...
and
VÃðir Reynisson.
Early life and education
Þórólfur grew up in
Eskifjörður
Eskifjörður (in original spelling; ), or Eskifjördur, is a town and port in eastern Iceland with a large fishing industry. With a population of 1,043 it is one of the most populous towns in the municipality of Fjarðabyggð.
History
Eskifjörà ...
and later in
Vestmannaeyjar
Vestmannaeyjar (, sometimes anglicized as Westman Islands) is a municipality and archipelago off the south coast of Iceland.
The largest island, Heimaey, has a population of 4,414, most of whom live in the archipelago's main town, Vestmannaeyja ...
where he lived until the age of 19.
He specialized in
pediatrics
Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, Adolescence, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many o ...
and pediatric
infectious disease
An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...
.
In 2013 he defended his doctoral thesis on the epidemiology of
pneumococcal infections in young Icelandic children.
Career
Chief Epidemiologist of Iceland
The vaccination of Icelandic children aged 12 to 15 began on 22 August 2021, with only the Pfizer/BioNTech used; Chief Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason stating to the public that vaccinating children was "the right thing to do".
By 9 November 2021, 300,000 people had received a booster shot in Iceland, or 76% of the total population, and of those people, 10 had contracted COVID. Guðnason stated that of the around 270,000 people who were fully vaccinated, 4,500 or 1.6% had contracted COVID. At the time, eligible age groups did not include those under 12 years old.
See also
*
COVID-19 vaccination in Iceland
References
1953 births
Living people
Thorolfur Gudnason
Thorolfur Gudnason
Thorolfur Gudnason
Thorolfur Gudnason
Thorolfur Gudnason
Thorolfur Gudnason
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