Sir Jonathan Van-Tam | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Van-Tam in 2017 | |
| Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England | |
| In office 2 October 2017 – 31 March 2022 | |
| Preceded by | John Watson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jonathan Stafford Nguyen Van-Tam (1964-02-02)2 February 1964 (age 61)[3] Boston,Lincolnshire, England |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Nguyễn Văn Tâm (grandfather) Nguyễn Văn Hinh (uncle) |
| Education | Boston Grammar School |
| Alma mater | University of Nottingham (MBBS, BMedSci, DM) |
| Profession | Public health physician[4] |
| Awards | Christmas lectures (2021)David Attenborough Award (2023) |
| Nickname | JVT[5] |
Sir Jonathan Stafford Nguyen Van-Tam (born 2 February 1964)[3] is a British physician specialising ininfluenza, including itsepidemiology, transmission,vaccinology,antiviral drugs andpandemic preparedness.
After hospital work, Van-Tam was involved variously as a university lecturer and within the pharmaceutical industry. Van-Tam became aDeputy Chief Medical Officer for England on 2 October 2017. He played a very significant part in theUK's response to the Covid-19 pandemic which started in 2020[6] as one of two deputies.[7] In May 2023 he joined Covid-19 vaccine maker Moderna as a consultant.[8]
Van-Tam was born and grew up inBoston,Lincolnshire.[9] He is partially ofVietnamese descent; his grandfather wasNguyễn Văn Tâm, the Prime Minister of theState of Vietnam, and his uncle,Nguyễn Văn Hinh, wasChief Of Staff of theVietnamese National Army and the first Vietnamese officer in theFrench Armed Forces to be promoted to the rank of general.[10][11] He attendedBoston Grammar School where his father, Paul Nguyen Van-Tam, was a teacher of Mathematics.[10] He graduated in medicine from theUniversity of Nottingham in 1987.[4] He was awarded bachelor's degrees inMedical Sciences in 1985 and aBachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (BM BS) in 1987.[12][13] He was awarded a Doctorate of Medicine (DM) in 2001, supported by a thesis on epidemiology.[14]
After five years of hospital-based clinical medicine, Van-Tam pursued academic training in public health and epidemiology and developed an interest in influenza and respiratory viruses, mentored for many years by Professor Karl Nicholson. He became a senior lecturer at the University of Nottingham (and consultant regional epidemiologist,Public Health Laboratory Service) in 1997,[15] before joining the pharmaceutical industry as an associate director atSmithKline Beecham in 2000.
In April 2001 he moved toRoche as head of medical affairs, before joiningAventis Pasteur MSD in February 2002 as UK medical director.
Van-Tam returned to the public sector in 2004 at theHealth Protection Agency Centre for Infections, where he was head of the pandemic influenza office until October 2007. He then returned to Nottingham as professor of health protection. He has published over 100 scientific papers and written four textbooks. He chaired theEuropean Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) Expert Advisory Group onH5N1 human vaccines, sits on the UK national Scientific Pandemic Influenza Committee (SPI), and was a member of the UKScientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) during the 2009-10 pandemic. He is co-editor of the textbookIntroduction to Pandemic Influenza[16] and was editor-in-chief of the journalInfluenza and Other Respiratory Viruses from 2014 to 2017.[17]
His unit is an officially designated WHO Collaborating Centre for pandemic influenza and research and a UK Faculty of Public Health "National Treasure" research training location.
Since 2014, he has been chair of the UK government'sNew and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (NERVTAG).
On 2 October 2017, he took up the role of deputy chief medical officer for England.[18] In this capacity, he gained nationwide visibility during the2020 COVID-19 pandemic.[19][20] In May 2020, he was appointed to the expert advisory group for the UK Government'sVaccine Taskforce, chaired byPatrick Vallance.[21]
It was announced in January 2022 that Van-Tam would step down from the role of deputy chief medical officer for England at the end of March 2022.[6] His new academic post as Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Medicine & Health Sciences at theUniversity of Nottingham was due to start on 1 May 2022.[22]
On 2 May 2023, Van-Tam began work as a senior medical consultant to the Covid-19 vaccine makerModerna.[8]
Van-Tam was appointedMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the1998 New Year Honours as an acting major in the LincolnshireArmy Cadet Force. It was awarded in recognition of his work in designing a medical kit to meet the special requirements of large groups of teenagers on camping expeditions. This sprang from his work with the Lincolnshire Army Cadets since 1988. His ideas were accepted by theMinistry of Defence.
His other qualifications include Fellowships of the Faculty of Public Health (FFPH), the Royal College of Pathologists (FRCPath) and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine Hon (FFPM). He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Public Health (FRSPH), of theRoyal Society of Biology (FRSB)[23][24] and the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci). He delivered theRoyal Institution Christmas Lectures in 2021.[25] In 2021, theRoyal College of Physicians invited Van-Tam to hold theHarveian Oration, the most prestigious lecture of the learned society.[26]
On 1 December 2021 he was announced as one of the Boston Heroes along with 9 other residents of Boston out of 240 put forward by the people of his home town. In March 2022 he was awarded theFreedom of the Borough ofBoston in appreciation for his work on theCOVID-19 pandemic.[27][28][29][30]
Van-Tam wasknighted in the2022 New Year Honours for services to public health.[31][32] He was unable to attend his scheduled investiture ceremony atWindsor Castle on 17 May 2022 due to self-isolating, having contractedCOVID-19.[33] He was invested by theDuke of Cambridge atBuckingham Palace on 7 July 2022.[34]
In 2023, he was awarded the David Attenborough Award byThe Royal Society for his 'outstanding public engagement with science' through communicating COVID-19.
In October 2022, Van-Tam was promoted toHonorary Colonel for Medical Support, in theArmy Cadet Force (ACF).[35] Van-Tam has many years of experience working with the ACF.[36]
He was appointed Honorary Colonel Lincolnshire Army Cadet Force on 1 December 2024.[37]
Van-Tam is a supporter and season ticket holder atBoston United F.C.[38][39] He has three children.
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