Professor Wendel Abel is Head of Community Health and Psychiatry in the Faculty of Medical Sciences at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, Jamaica. He has an outstanding record of public service, serving on multiple boards and committees in both the public and private sectors.
His research interests include public health policy, human behaviour and stigma, and clinical psychiatry. Professor Abel has published numerous articles in medical journals from topics such as domestic violence, suicide among adolescents to patterns of depressive symptoms among younger elderly (60-74 years old).
He received his Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, diploma and Doctor of Medicine from the UWI, Mona, Jamaica, and a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.
In 2007, Professor Abel received a national award from the Government of Jamaica, the Order of Distinction, for innovations in the fields of community mental health and social services. For him, “service to country is the greatest honour”.