Directing the NIV and the NICD: A three-decade odyssey through the world of communicable diseases

摘要

T he word “odyssey” is defined in the Oxford Dictionaryas “a long journey full of experiences.” I have served asDirector, for almost 30 years, of the two institutes which haveserved as national and the regional centres of excellencefor communicable diseases: from April 1976 to 2002 at theNational Institute for Virology (NIV) and, since January 2002,the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD). Thismay or may not be a directorship record, but it certainly hasbeen a long journey. Unquestionably it has been filled withmany experiences. It is from these experiences that I feel thatI have gained a certain degree of knowledge and, dare I say it,wisdom which could provide some lessons of value to publichealth institutions serving similar functions to that of the NICD.