Margarida Tavares was born in Vale de Cambra in 1970.
She has a Medical Degree from University of Porto Medical School and completed a master’s in public health (MPH) at École de Santé Publique Institut Pasteur - Conservatoire national des arts et métiers, Conférence des Grandes Écoles, Paris, France.
She is an infectious diseases consultant and worked at the Infectious Disease Department - University Hospital Centre of São João (CHUSJ) in Porto, where she coordinated the Emerging Infectious Diseases Unit.
She was the Director of the National Programme on Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV - Directorate-General of Health, 2021-2022.
She was a member of the National Public Health Council from 2020 to 2022.
She was responsible for the discipline of Control of Transmissible Disease in the Master of Public Health at University of Porto from 2018 to 2022, and researcher at the EPI Unit of the Institute of Public Health of the University of Porto.
She was a member of the National Response Team to Mpox (Monkeypox), of the Task Force for COVID-19 response, and national working groups for contingency plans for Ebola and flu.
She was the Director of the Medical Residency Program (2007-2010), Deputy Clinical Director (2006-2010) and Clinical Director (2010-2015) at CHUSJ.