Susan Hopkins

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

is an Irish epidemiologist and civil servant working in the UK. She is honorary clinical senior lecturer in the Department of Medicine at

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

, and Chief Medical Advisor for the

UK Health Security Agency The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is a government agency in the United Kingdom, responsible since April 2021 for England-wide public health protection and infectious disease capability, and replacing Public Health England. It is an executiv ...

(UKHSA).

Career

Hopkins trained in infectious diseases, microbiology and epidemiology in Ireland, France and the UK. In 2006 she was appointed a consultant in infectious diseases and microbiology at the

Royal Free Hospital The Royal Free Hospital (also known simply as the Royal Free) is a major teaching hospital in the Hampstead area of the London Borough of Camden. The hospital is part of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, which also runs services at Barn ...

. She became Clinical Director of Infection Services at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, and Deputy Director of the National Infection Service at Public Health England. In 2018 she was called as a witness by the Health and Social Care Committee on

antimicrobial resistance Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from the effects of antimicrobials. All classes of microbes can evolve resistance. Fungi evolve antifungal resistance. Viruses evolve antiviral resistance. ...

. In January 2020 Hopkins was appointed Incident Director within Public Health England's COVID-19 incident response. In August 2021 she was appointed Interim Chief Medical Advisor at

NHS Test and Trace NHS Test and Trace is a government-funded service in England, established in 2020 to track and help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Despite its name, the programme was never in fact run by the NHS: the programme is part of the UK Health Secur ...

and the Strategic Response Director for COVID-19 at Public Health England. In November 2021 Hopkins raised concerns about the new B.1.1.529 variant, later named the

omicron variant Omicron (B.1.1.529) is a variant of SARS-CoV-2 first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa on 24 November 2021. It was first detected in Botswana and has spread to become the ...

, of Covid-19. In December 2021 she warned that further restrictions may be needed to tackle an "inevitable" and "big wave of infections".

Awards

In December 2021 Hopkins was awarded the

Presidential Distinguished Service Award President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Michael D. Higgins Michael Daniel Higgins ( ga, Mícheál Dónal Ó hUigínn; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, sociologist, and broadcaster, who has served as the ninth president of Ireland since November 2011. Entering national politics throug ...

. In May 2022, she was awarded as

Honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE), for services to Public Health.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hopkins, Susan Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Irish epidemiologists 21st-century Irish medical doctors Irish women medical doctors Physicians of the Royal Free Hospital Academics of Imperial College London Public Health England Honorary Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Women epidemiologists