Koos van der Velden is professor and head of Department of Public health at the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre. His main research topics are infectious diseases control and health systems development.

He received his medical training at Utrecht University and further specialized as tropical doctor, family physician and as community medicine specialist in London. His PhD thesis ‘General practice at work’ was defended at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
He started his career as Medical officer of Health at Kola Ndoto Hospital in Shinyanga Tanzania, where he combined work in the hospital with the management of large primary health care programmes.

This work was followed by a function as programme leader Family Medicine at the Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research (NIVEL) during which he designed and co-ordinated the First Dutch National Survey of General Practice. During that period he also managed many health sector reform programmes in various EU and former CEE countries.
Later he was director of the Netherlands School of Public Health, a medium sized national training and consultancy body in Utrecht. He is chairman of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control funded European Influenza Surveillance Scheme (EISS). In his current job he manages an unit with 25 staff and an annual turnover of almost Euro 2 Million. He is engaged as chairman / member of the board of various international health organisations. He is (co-)author of over 200 peer reviewed publications and several books.