No 2 at Health Bureau is just what the doctor ordered
Professor Sophia Chan has shown she knows her subject since becoming No 2 at the Health Bureau. As for the politics, she's learning fast
Fresh from overseeing the School of Nursing at the University of Hong Kong, it seemed Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee needed little time in her new role as No 2 at the Food and Health Bureau to start issuing orders.
There is little doubt of Chan's knowledge when it comes to health but she herself has had to acknowledge her lack of experience when it comes to politics.
"I will have to learn along the way," Chan told the Post. "And there's no time for me to be slow about picking it up either."
Her decision to quit academia to try to stand the searing heat of the kitchen, as Leung Chun-ying has described his government, came as a surprise.
Explaining what prompted her decision, she said: "I have worked in clinical research and in education; it is only natural to take the next step into policy."
Chan added: "The purpose of doing research is to push for change, but a university paper can only point out the problems and suggestions on how to solve them. Real action comes with policymaking."