Pedro Jose Greer Jr. MD, FACP, FACG

Professor & Asst. Dean for Academic Afffairs, Chair, Dept. of Humanities, Health & Society

Florida International University

Pedro J. Greer Jr., better known as Joe, is a physician, professor, author, father and husband. His commitment to the ethos of medicine and social justice, fuels his passion for healthcare and justice for all. As a medical intern, he established and ran a clinic for the homeless and then started and ran various free clinics for migrant workers, underserved, and undocumented individuals and families in Miami-Dade County.

Dr. Greer is currently the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs and Founding Chair of the Department of Humanities, Health, and Society at Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, where he has led the creation and implementation of a unique curriculum that prepares physicians to improve the future of all patients. He has integrated ethics, social determinants, cultural competency and clinical skills in a community based, multidisciplinary household centered care, in a longitudinal 4 year model.

Joe has published over 30 articles and book chapters on topics ranging from hepatic and digestive disorders to policy, poverty and health in America. He also published “Waking Up in America”, a book about his experiences, from providing care to homeless persons under bridges in Miami, Florida to advising US presidents on healthcare. Additionally, Dr. Greer has advised and continues to work with federal, state and local policy makers on healthcare policy.

Dr. Greer is a member of Alpha Omega Alpha, a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, and the American College of Gastroenterology. Among the many awards he has received, Dr. Greer is a recipient of the MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship (1993), the Presidential Medal of Service presented by President Clinton, Bush, Carter, and General Colin Powell at the Presidential Summit in Philadelphia in 1993. In 2009, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama, the highest civilian honor given in the United States. He has been honored with Papal medals and knighted as a Knight of Malta and the Order of Saint Gregory the Great. He has received various Honorary Doctoral Degrees.

Dr. Greer currently serves as Trustees of the RAND Corporation and is a member of their executive committee. Additionally, he chairs the Pardee RAND Graduate School Board of Governors, the largest PhD granting institution for policy analysis. He is the immediate past chair of the Hispanic Heritage Awards and has sat on the Board of Physicians for Human Rights, BNY Mellon Bank of Florida, and Dr. Pepper/7UP, as well as others.

Dr. Greer completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Florida and medical studies at La Pontifica Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. He completed his postdoctoral studies at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he trained in Internal Medicine, was Chief Medical Resident and completed fellowships in both Hepatology and Gastroenterology.

He has been married for over 30 years to Janus and they have two children, Alana and Joey, a dog and a cat.