Dr Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat, Director of the Division of Health Systems, WHO Regional Office for Europe. 

Dr Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat is a medical doctor and a specialist in public health medicine. 

Following her qualification as a medical doctor from the University of Malta in 1995, Dr Azzopardi-Muscat worked in various clinical specialties, including maternal and child health, mental health, and primary care. Having successfully completed a Master’s Degree in Health Services Management at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the London School of Economics and Political Science she returned to work at the Ministry of Health in Malta. 

Between 2001 and 2013, she occupied various senior positions in the Ministry including Director for EU and International Affairs, Director General for Strategy and Chief Medical Officer. 

In 2016 she obtained her PhD from the University of Maastricht having successfully defended her transdisciplinary research on “The Europeanisation of health systems: a small state perspective”. She is the author of several publications in public health and European health policy.

Between 2016 and 2020 she served as the President of the European Public Health Association (EUPHA) where she was actively involved in health advocacy at the European level.

In 2020, Dr Azzopardi-Muscat joined WHO/Europe and was appointed Director of the Division of Country Health Policies and Systems She served continuously in that position until her re-appointment as Director Health Systems in June 2025. 

She is an associate professor at the University of Malta and a visiting scholar at the University of Maastricht. 

In 2024 she was awarded the Andrija Stampar medal by the Association for Public Health Schools of the European Region (ASPHER) and in 2025 she was awarded an Honorary Fellowship by the Faculty of Public Health of the United Kingdom in recognition of her important contributions to public health.

Dr Azzopardi-Muscat is married to Dr Conrad Azzopardi and has three children Aidan, Sereena and Nathan.