In the United Kingdom, a chief medical officer (CMO) is the most senior government advisor on matter relating to health. There are four chief medical officers in the United Kingdom who are appointed to advise their respective governments:
Each CMO is assisted by one or more deputy chief medical officers, and complemented by a chief nursing officer.
The chief medical officer is a qualified medical doctor whose medical speciality traditionally was public health medicine, and whose work focused on the health of communities rather than health of individuals. More recently, some appointees have been senior clinicians without training in public health medicine. In the UK, the CMO is one of the chief professional officers who advise the government in their respective health and social care disciplines.[2] The CMO has independent statutory authority, first established in the 19th century, to issue reports without requiring government approval.[3]