Yerko Berrocal

Yerko Berrocal, MD, MHPE, serves as the Assistant Dean of Foundational Sciences for Alice L. Walton School of Medicine. In this role, he oversees Foundational Science faculty and education, working closely with the Vice Dean of Education to advance strategic education goals. Berrocal ensures integration of Foundational Science education into students’ clinical settings.

Prior to this position, Berrocal was a clinical associate professor in the Department of Health Sciences Education at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria (UICOMP), where he served as the Director of the Circulation & Respiration Block and chaired the Phase 1 Curriculum committee. Berrocal was involved in all aspects of pre-clinical medical education, including the delivery, development, and improvement of the curriculum. Prior to his work at UICOMP, Berrocal was an assistant professor with a focus on medical education at Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine (HWCOM), where he held several leadership positions. 

Before becoming a medical educator, Berrocal worked on developing cellular transplantation strategies to repair human central and peripheral nervous system injuries at University of Miami’s Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. He contributed to studies required by the FDA to approve phase 1 clinical trials for patients with spinal cord injuries.

A native of Chile, Berrocal earned his medical degree from Catholic University Santiago de Guayaquil, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroscience from the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. He also received a Master of Health Professions Education from the University of Illinois Chicago.

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