Prior to joining Chatham House, Louis was Surgeon-General of the British Armed Forces from 2006 until December 2009. Since retiring from the Armed Forces, Louis has served as Chief Medical Officer for St John’s Ambulance England and has provided his medical expertise on a number of government and research committees and boards. He was appointed MBE in 1985, OStJ in 2007, CB in 2009 and QHS from 2002 until 2010.

Louis Lillywhite is a Senior Research Fellow at Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security where he specialises in the relationship between conflict and health. At Chatham House he led on developing the Global Health Security Track for the Munich Security Conference as well as the World Health Organizations International Health Regulations Review Committee following the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.  

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Louis is currently part-time Master General of the Army Medical service, having retired as Surgeon General of the UK Armed Forces in 2010.  His 42-year full-time Army career included medical appointments as the commanding officer of the Army's Parachute Medical Unit, Commander Medical One (UK) Armoured Division (which included the first Gulf War), Chief Executive of the British Forces Health Service in Germany, Director General of the Army Medical Service and Director General: Medical Operational Capability, during which he led a major review of the Armed Forces medical capabilities. After leaving the Army, he was for 6 years, the Chief Medical Officer for St John’s Ambulance England. 

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He is a member of the Tribunal Appeal Service: Social Entitlement Chamber in south Wales and until 2014, a member of the Bevan Commission for Wales. He chairs the Welsh Government Health and Social Services R&D External Advisory Board, is on the External Advisory Boards for for the Imperial College Blast Injuries Research Centre and the EC-funded CBRN Research Toxi Triage project.  

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Louis is an accredited Occupational Medicine Consultant. He joined the Membership of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (MFOM) in 1990 and the Membership of the Institute of Healthcare Management (MHIM) in 2008. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine; the British Medical Association; and a trustee of the Medical Society of London (President 2009 – 2010). Alongside his British State Honours (CB, MBE, CStJ) he was also awarded the USA Secretary of State for Defense for Exceptional Public Service and is an honorary member of the Association of Medical Consultants to the US Armed Forces.