October 07, 2014
UK’s Chief Medical Officer talks about the power and promise of genomics and public health
Vancouver, BC – Public health is everyone’s business according to Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) for the UK. The first woman to ever hold the position of CMO in 155 years and named Britain’s 6th most powerful woman by the BBC, Dame Sally is the government’s principal medical adviser and guides government decisions on diverse subject such as superbugs, drug trials, obesity, addiction and mental health.
As Genome BC’s keynote speaker at the 5th Annual Don Rix Distinguished Keynote Address taking place in Vancouver today, Dame Sally will be addressing several public health issues, focusing most notably on the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to currently available antibiotics. She’ll discuss what can and should be done globally to preserve our remaining antibiotics and how genomics will play a key role in the effectiveness of new antibiotics as they are developed.
“Genomics and DNA is the foundation of our health,” says Dame Sally. “In my role of Chief Medical Officer I am working hard to promote understanding and applications of genomics to the betterment of public health.”
Dame Sally is a strong proponent of genomics medicine and supports Genomics England who recently launched their “100,000 Genomes Project”. Dame Sally also believes that genomics can make significant headway in understanding and treating patients with rare diseases. With “deep” phenotyping of patients and whole genome sequencing research into very rare diseases could be extremely advanced.
“We are honoured to host Dame Sally and excited to share her experience and insight with our community,” says Dr. Alan Winter, President and CEO of Genome BC. “I believe that there are opportunities for valuable information exchange and potential collaborations.”
EVENT INFORMATION: Tuesday, October 7, 2014 – Keynote begins at 4:30pm sharp! Hyatt Regency Vancouver, 655 Burrard Street, Vancouver.
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