Dr. Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih was the former health minister of Republic of Indonesia from 2009-2012.On May 2nd, 2012, she passed away after her battle against lung cancer at the age of 57.She is known as a smart, humble, transparent and devoted person with excellent leadership and interpersonal skills. Not only was she a good listener, but was also decisive and an agile thinker, and a hard worker. When the news of her disease was leaked to the media, in breach of medical-ethics, she did not choose to disappear into anonymity as most of us would have done, nor did she opt to concentrate solely on her treatment.Rather, she continued to perform at the highest level, and demonstrated that sick people have a lot to contribute, and that relegating them to isolation or inactive roles is a loss to society.Her commitment to research and public health for the benefit of society, particularly vulnerable groups, has been reflected in the way she lived her professional and personal lives. Her ability to “normalize” cancer while bringing attention to the need of preventing and controlling it is her last tribute to the tenets of public health education and practice, a tribute that will be long-lasting in its effects on improving and saving many lives.After Dr. Endang’s death, colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health, the IPHA (Indonesian Public Health Association/IAKMI) and the Ministry of Health of Republic of Indonesia, sought to establish the Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih Scholarship Program (ERS-SP) as a tribute to dr. Endang, allowing her legacy to reach even further, and promote her vision and message to all of us to work hard and smart for the health of the Nation and the world.
