THIS portrait of epidemiologist and executive director of the World Health Organisation Dr Michael Ryan is to go on display at the National Portrait Collection next month. The work is a commission by artist Aidan Crotty, winner of the Zurich Portrait Prize in 2020 and is now a permanent part of the collection. Dr Ryan began his career as an orthopaedic and trauma surgeon. After he sustained a serious injury working in Iraq, he moved away from practice and towards a life at the forefront of managing global health emergencies. Since beginning work at the WHO in 1996, Dr Ryan has been involved in the emergency response to the 2003 SARS outbreak and the Ebola crisis. Most notably, he led the WHO’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, Dr Ryan is among those engaging in humanitarian work in Gaza, as well as leading the response to the food insecurity and health emergency in the Greater Horn of Africa and the health crisis in Afghanistan.