Anna van der Gaag has been a member of the HPC Council since it was set up in 2001. She was elected President in 2006 and became its first appointed Chair in 2009. As a speech and language therapist, she has worked with social workers in community and hospital settings in Glasgow, London and Gloucestershire, in addition to working in teaching and research.

Anna was part of the working group that developed the HPC standards on continuing professional development. A Public Appointments Ambassador for the Government Equalities Office, she has been a member of government working groups on regulatory reform, including the work on revalidation, and health for health professionals. From 2006 - 2008 she was a member of the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence, the body that oversees health professional regulation in the UK.