Chris Whitty is a physician and epidemiologist who works in public health, science policy and clinical medicine. Previously Professor of Public and International Health (to 2019) and now honorary professor at LSHTM. Currently Chief Medical Officer for England and chief medical adviser to the UK government, Consultant NHS physician at UCLH and The Hospital for Tropical Diseases. Previously Chief Scientific Adviser Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and head (CEO) of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) 2016-21; Interim Government Chief Scientific Adviser, head of the Government Office for Science and head of the government science and engineering profession 2017-18; Chief Scientific Adviser and Director of Research and Evidence, UK Department for International Development (DFID) 2009-2015. Previous Gresham Professor of Physic (now emeritus and visiting professor), Gresham College. 

Worked as a clinician and in research in the UK, Africa and Asia especially on malaria and other infectious diseases. Postgraduate training in epidemiology (MSc LSHTM, DTM&H, DSc), economics (MBA, DipEcon), medical law (LLM). Trustee of Sightsavers. Previous roles include director of the multidisciplinary LSHTM Malaria Centre, trustee of the international health NGO Merlin, chair of the UK Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens (ACDP) and of the National Expert Panel on New and Emerging Infections (NEPNEI), and director of the international ACT Consortium on malaria prevention and treatment led from LSHTM.