Dame Sally Davies, MB ChB

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Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific Adviser, UK Department of Health

Professor Dame Sally Davies is the Chief Medical Officer for England and also advises the UK Government. She holds responsibility for Research and Development, and is the Chief Scientific Adviser for the Department of Health.

The CMO is the independent advisor to the Government on all medical matters, with particular responsibilities regarding Public Health. In particular, she provides professional leadership for Directors of Public Health and will lead a public health professional network for those responsible for commissioning and providing public health services.

The CMO supports the Health Secretary in strengthening the Government’s collective effort to protect, promote and improve the health and wellbeing of the people of England.
The CMO carries the rank of Permanent Secretary and advises the Secretary of State for Health on medical matters. She is also the professional head of the Department’s medical staff and head of the Medical Civil Service.

Sally has been actively involved in NHS R&D from its establishment. As Director-General she established the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) with a budget of £1 billion.

Sally led the UK delegation to the World Health Organization (WHO) Ministerial Summit in November 2004 and the WHO Forum on Health Research in November 2008. She spoke on R&D at the World Health Assembly in May 2005 and is a member of the WHO Global Advisory Committee on Health Research (ACHR). She also chaired the Expert Advisory Committee for the development of the WHO research strategy, endorsed by the World Health Assembly in May 2010. She is a member of the International Advisory Committee for A*STAR, Singapore and has advised many others on research strategy and evaluation including the Australian NHMRC.

Her own research interests focused on Sickle Cell disease.

Sally was awarded a DBE (Dame Commander of the British Empire) in the New Year Honours 2009 for services to medicine.

In September 2011 Sally was conferred as Emeritus Professor at Imperial College London.

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