Published 27 April 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b1689
Cite this as: BMJ 2009;338:b1689

News

Judith Mackay: brandishing a sword for health

¹ Hong Kong

In the 25 years that Judith Mackay has been fighting the tobacco industry, she has been described as dogmatic, meddlesome, puritanical and "psychotic human garbage." Jane Parry finds out the truth

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Judith Mackay typically starts her day with a session of t’ai chi. Her teacher is strict and demands high standards from her students, but the discipline suits Mackay, as does t’ai chi’s emphasis on harmony and balance.

Mackay, originally from Yorkshire, has lived in Hong Kong for 42 years, and credits living in an Asian society with teaching her about the value of negotiation over confrontation. Despite her reputation as a terrier at the heels of the tobacco industry, she sees herself as an advocate for good rather than an adversary of harm. She sees herself as a promoter of public wellbeing, helping governments and individuals to make decisions that are in the interests of good health.

The shift from activist to advocate happened in the 1980s, when she started working with governments in Asia, particularly China, as a World Health Organization consultant. Since then her name has long been . . . [Full text of this article]

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    StumbleUpon    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Promoting hand washing, stroke prevention, and tobacco control are recognised at BMJ Group award ceremony

Nigel Hawkes
BMJ 2009 338: b1428. [Extract] [Full Text]

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Response to Judith Mackay: Brandishing a sword for health

Mary Assunta, et al.
bmj.com, 29 May 2009 [Full text]

We are proud of Judith Mackay, our honorary professor in Hong Kong U

Tai Hing Lam
bmj.com, 12 Jun 2009 [Full text]

Judith Mackay: changing the course of public health

Candida Lacey
bmj.com, 1 Sep 2009 [Full text]

Online poll

Find out more>>