Dr. Margaret Chan

Dr. Margaret Chan is the Director-General of WHO and was first appointed by the World Health Assembly on 9 November 2006. Dr. Chan's current term began on 1 July 2012 and will continue until 30 June 2017. Before being elected Director-General, Dr. Chan was WHO Assistant Director-General for Communicable Diseases as well as Representative of the Director-General for Pandemic Influenza. Prior to joining WHO, she was Director of Health in Hong Kong. During her nine-year tenure as director, Dr. Chan confronted the first human outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza in 1997. She successfully defeated the spate of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in Hong Kong in 2003. She also launched new services to prevent disease and promote better health.