Silvia Calzón Fernández (born June 3, 1975) is a Spanish epidemiologist and politician who is currently serving as Spain's , a role she has held since August 5, 2020.
Biography
Calzón was born in Utrera, Seville, Spain, on June 3, 1975. She was the second of three children. Her father worked as a builder, while her mother managed the family's affairs at home. Calzón studied at Álvarez Quintero and, later, Ruiz Gijón. She studied medicine at the University of Seville and completed her residency as a specialist in preventive medicine and public health. Calzón has also earned a number of other degrees. She earned a doctorate in economic and business sciences from the University of Granada, a masters in public health and health management from the Andalusian School of Public Health, a masters in the economics of health and medicine from Pompeu Fabra University, and, finally, a diploma of specialization in gender and health from the Andalusian School of Public Health.
Professional career
Political work
As a child, Calzón was interested in medicine and politics, joining the Socialist Youth of Spain (the youth arm of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party). In 1999, she was elected for the first time to the Utrera City Council, serving simultaneously as deputy mayor. In 2007, she ran for mayor of Utrera but lost to her opponent.
By 2020, Calzón was serving as the president of her political party's organization in Utrera.
Health-focused work
In October 2013, Calzón began working as a primary epidemiologist for the Málaga-Valle del Guadalhorce Health District. In 2015, she resigned from the Utrera City Council to serve as the Managing Director of the South of Córdoba Health Management Area; two years later, in 2017, she took up the same job for the South of Seville Health Management Area. Starting in 2019, Calzón served as the primary epidemiologist for the Health District of Seville as part of the Andalusian Health Service.
Secretary of State for Health
In August 2020, the then-Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, reestablished the as the highest governing body of the Ministry of Health, with the goal of reforming the health response of Spain in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Illa chose Calzón to lead the Secretariat, and she was officially named for the job on August 5, 2020, making her the second-in-command of the Ministry of Health.