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15 Things You Didn’t Know About Margaret Chan

15 Things You Didn’t Know About Margaret Chan

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Margaret Chan, director of the World Health Organization (WHO – the public health arm of the United Nations ), is accustomed to criticism. She is facing the biggest task of her career as the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa continues to defy containment. The Hong Kong national has had to deal with deadly disease outbreaks in the past. Here are 15 things you didn’t know about Margaret Chan.

Sources: WHO.int, MargaretChan.FMPRC.gov.cn, PLOS.org, Forbes.com, SingTaoDaily.com, USAid.gov, FT.com, WHO.int, TIME.com

Wikimedia.org
Wikimedia.org

She trained as a home economics teacher

Studying at the Northcote College of Education in Hong Kong, Chan trained as a home economics teacher. In 1973 she earned her bachelor of arts degree in home economics, and in 1977, her medical degree (MD) at the University of Western Ontario. She also went on to earn a master’s in public health at the National University of Singapore in 1985.

WHO.int
WHO.int

Chan is an officer of the Order of the British Empire

In 1997, Queen Elizabeth II appointed Chan an officer of the Order of the British Empire. It was also at this time that Chan received the prestigious fellowship of the faculty of public health medicine of the Royal College of Physicians of the U.K.

Adaring.com
Adaring.com

She was the first female in Hong Kong to head the Department of Health

In June 1994, Chan was named as the head of the Department of Health, the first female in Hong Kong to hold that position. She had previously served as the department’s assistant director and deputy director.

TheGuardian.com
TheGuardian.com

Chan was accused of misleading the public during the 1997 H5N1 avian flu outbreak

After H5N1 claimed its first victim in Hong Kong in 1997, Chan tried, as head of the Department of Health, to reassure the public. She drew ridicule for her public statements such as, “I eat chicken every day, don’t panic everyone,” and was accused of misleading the public as more cases cropped up. To bring the outbreak under control she ordered the slaughter of 1.5 million chickens in the region, and was credited with limiting the number of deaths from the disease. Her approach to containing the disease became the standard in avian flu control.

Source: SingTaoDaily.com

FanPhobia.net
FanPhobia.net

She received the Prince Mahidol Award for her H5N1 response

In 1999, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand awarded Chan the Prince Mahidol Award in the field of public health for her leadership in Hong Kong during the H5N1 outbreak. That year, she was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of science by her alma mater, the University of Western Ontario, for contributions to public health.

Wikimedia.net
Wikimedia.net

Chan was criticized during the 2003 SARS outbreak

In 2003, a SARS outbreak in Hong Kong led to 229 deaths. Chan was accused of passive and a slow response to the outbreak, as well as for disseminating misleading information fed to Hong Kong from mainland China. In the end, a SARS expert committee found that Chan was not at fault; instead, the problem lay within the Hong Kong health care system. Hospital authorities and public health authorities were separate, leading to issues in data sharing.

WHO.int
WHO.int

Chan served the Hong Kong government for 25 years before joining the WHO

Chan began service to the Hong Kong government in December 1978 as a medical officer. In August 2003, she joined the World Health Organization after 25 years of service to Hong Kong.

Forbes.com
Forbes.com

She sees primary health care as the cornerstone to access of quality health care in the developing world

In an interview with USAid, Chan expressed her view that primary healthcare, or the equitable distribution of quality essential services, is the key to improving healthcare worldwide, “In my view, the best way is to go back to the basics: the values, principles, and approaches of primary health care…Countries at similar levels of socioeconomic development achieve better health outcomes for the money when services are organized according to the principles of primary health care. A revitalization of primary health care is the smart move to make.”

Source: USAid.gov

TheGuardian.com
TheGuardian.com

Chan’s work at WHO began with Protection of the Human Environment

Chan first began working at the WHO as the director of the Protection of the Human Environment division. This division covered outside factors to health beyond the scope of the immediate healthcare system, including water and sanitation, radiation and chemical safety, pollution, and occupation health hazards.

NigerianCurrent.com
NigerianCurrent.com

She set up the Strategic Health Operations Centre to monitor outbreaks shortly after her arrival at the WHO

Seeing outbreak containment as one of the cornerstones of her position at the WHO, Chan set up the Strategic Health Operations Centre (SHOC) to monitor disease outbreaks around the world at all times. The center tracks potential outbreaks and gives Chan the information needed to determine the WHO alert level and activate a global response in emergency situations.

WHO.int
WHO.int

She is ranked the 30th most powerful woman in the world

Based on her position as director general of the WHO, Chan was ranked as the 30th most powerful woman in the world in 2014 by Forbes. This ranking was up from 2013, when she ranked No. 33.

ElDiario.com
ElDiario.com

Chan declared Ebola the biggest peacetime challenge to the U.N.

In an address to the U.N. Security Council in September 2014, Chan said, “This is likely the greatest peacetime challenge that the United Nations and its agencies have ever faced. None of us experienced in containing outbreaks has ever seen, in our lifetimes, an emergency on this scale, with this degree of suffering, and with this magnitude of cascading consequences…This is a social crisis, a humanitarian crisis, an economic crisis, and a threat to national security well beyond the outbreak zones.”

Source: WHO.int

Escambray.cu
Escambray.cu

She refers to this Ebola outbreak as a perfect storm

When discussing the Ebola outbreak, Chan admits the WHO’s response did not match the scale of the pandemic, but that other factors played a role. She said, “This was a perfect storm in the making. In the past, Ebola outbreaks happened in the bush in small villages; 20, 30, 40 years ago, there were less people in these countries, and less movement of people. It happened in three countries which came out of long-term conflict. Health systems were destroyed. And in terms of doctors and nurses, they have one or two per 100,000.”

Source: TIME.com

CubaDebate.cu
CubaDebate.cu

Chan said lack of money at the WHO limits its capabilities

Many World Health Organization members have not paid dues to the international body in decades, leaving it woefully underfunded. Chan said, “When a crisis gets to a certain level, the Director General has to have the ability to deploy the entire assets of the organization. At this point, I need to consult, ask, urge. We don’t have the money. When I talk to member states, I tell them, the system does not provide the flexibility and the agility for the director general to manage the organization. I said to them, if you want a credible, strong WHO, we need a WHO reform.”

Source: TIME.com

CajNewsAfrica.com
CajNewsAfrica.com

Chan vowed to examine mistakes in the Ebola response

As the Ebola outbreak continues, many have been quick to try to point to the holes in the process that allowed the spread to happen so quickly and massively. Chan said that her organization will examine the mistakes made and correct them, but only after the outbreak has been contained.