Paola Barrientos is a Health Economics Advisor at the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (CIFS). She holds a PhD in Economics from Aarhus University and works at the intersection of policy, data, and societal outcomes.
Her experience covers public policy, quantitative analysis, innovation, and health economics, with roles across Bolivia, the Andean Community, and Denmark. She has worked with economic policy, research, data-driven analysis, and the evaluation of research and innovation investments, including at Innovation Fund Denmark. Prior to joining CIFS, she served as a health economist at Region Sjælland, focusing on economic evaluations of preventive healthcare.
At CIFS, she contributes to international projects with a focus on Latin America, including oncology patient journeys in Mexico City and respiratory health. Her work focuses on strengthening health systems, improving access to care, and supporting more equitable and sustainable outcomes.
Her core interest lies in prevention and in applying economic and data-driven approaches to inform decision-making and reduce inequality in health.
She grew up in La Paz, Bolivia (around 4,000 meters above sea level) and has since lived in Belgium, Peru, the USA, and Denmark.
