Programmes and Events

19 February 2024

Our school hosted a visit from the GHIT Fund (Dr Osamu Kunii) and Remedy & Company (Mr Masakuni Ukita, Ms Tomoko Eguchi, Mr Beh Teik Jun, Dr Motoko Arakaki) on 19 February 2024.

Dr Kunii introduced the GHIT Fund as a Japan-based international public-private partnership fund which aims to promote global partnerships by investing in research and development projects for an array of infectious diseases, including but not limited to neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), tuberculosis and malaria.

Prof David Paterson showcased some of the work the ADVANCE-ID network had been undertaking, including the RAPID trial, which tests an intervention linking rapid bacterial isolate identification, antibiotic resistance gene detection and prompt administration of targeted antibiotic. This intervention is hypothesised to improve clinical outcomes amongst patients with healthcare-acquired bloodstream infection and pneumonia compared to standard of care antibiotic susceptibility testing.

Mr Beh then introduced Remedy & Company to the SSHSPH team. It is a Japanese company that provides end-to-end clinical research services, with an extensive network in Asia, Africa and Australia. Remedy & Company contributes to the GHIT Fund as a partner due to the common goal of combating infectious diseases through research and development.

The subsequent discussion ended on a positive note, with all parties keen to explore future collaboration in the space of clinical trials, antimicrobial resistance and other neglected tropical diseases.

24 January 2024

On 24 Jan 2024, Professor Teo Yik Ying together with a delegation of faculty members from the School visited Mahidol University in Thailand. They were warmly hosted by Associate Professor Sarawut Thepanondh, Dean of the Faculty of Public Health at Mahidol University, along with the local administrative team and faculty members.

The agenda was packed with discussions on academic collaboration, education, and service to strengthening future partnerships. The fruitful meetings laid the foundation for collaborations between our institutions, fostering a future of shared purpose in public health.

Here’s to furthering global health and harnessing the limitless potential of collaborative efforts!

31 August 2023

The School’s Global Health Office hosted a visit from faculty members and 16 students currently undertaking a Master of Public Health Administration at Mahidol University. The delegation received a warm welcome from A/Prof Jason Yap who introduced the School as Singapore’s flagship school of public health and delved into the School’s history.

Renowned experts from SSHSPH specialising in a wide range of fields delivered talks pertaining but not limited to digital health innovation, health intervention, nutrition, primary healthcare. The Physical Activity and Nutrition Determinants in Asia (PANDA) programme was also introduced, which aims to improve understanding and promotion of physical activity and nutrition behaviours in an urban Asian setting. Representation from SSHSPH included A/Prof Jeremy Lim, A/Prof Mary Chong, Dr Adam Chee and Dr Sarah Edney.

The delegation engaged in sharing their insights and perspectives on the various topics with the speakers, sparking open discussion on the differences between Singapore and Thailand in areas such as primary healthcare and BMI classification, allowing for exchanging of experiences. Healthy campus initiatives were also showcased when A/Prof Mary Chong took the delegation on a tour of the Frontier Canteen.

10-14 July 2023

On 10-14 July 2023, the School’s Global Health Office and Australian National University jointly conducted a 5-day in-person course on Responding to Pandemics and Future Preparedness. This course, organised  by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the Singapore Cooperation Programme, focused on four key areas – Pandemics and Public Health Emergencies, Vulnerable Populations, Pandemic Response Strategies and Interventions, and Building Preparedness for Future Pandemics.

The course was attended by 14 foreign government officials. Distinguished experts, including Professor Vernon Lee, Professor Linfa Wang, Dr. Halina Talib, Dr Marc Ho, Asst. Prof Ayelet Berman, Dr. Shawn Vasoo, and Dr. Michael Friedman shared invaluable insights during the course.

The course emphasised on interactivity. Participants were encouraged to share their experiences and thoughts for the future, and collaborate on provided case studies.  Participants also had the opportunity to visit two of Singapore’s key facilities for pandemic preparedness — the Migrant Worker Onboard Centre and the National Centre for Infectious Disease.

16 May 2023

The Leadership Institute for Global Health Transformation (LIGHT) hosted a seminar on the ongoing New Zealand health reforms. Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith outlined the driving forces leading up to the health reforms and the structural changes which arose as a result of the reform. In addition, she went into details about the challenges and opportunities arising from the ongoing health reform, including the impacts and healthcare needs of the Māori people.

About the speaker:

Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith is a public health physician and epidemiologist. She is currently Director of Intelligence for the New Zealand National Public Health Service, with previous Ministry of Health positions as Clinical Chief Advisor (primary care), Clinical Lead of COVID-19 response, and Clinical Lead of the COVID19 vaccine roll-out. Her medical and research career has been largely focussed on equity, reflecting her belief that all people should receive the same opportunities for health and well-being, irrespective of wealth, ethnicity, or gender.

31 March 2023

The School and University of Health Sciences hosted the official launch of the Project “Innovation Mobile Technology for Maternal and Child Health Care in Cambodia (i-MoMCARE): A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial” on March 31, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. This research initiative, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, aims to investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of a mobile technology solution for maternal and child healthcare services in rural Cambodia.

The i-MoMCARE project is a collaborative effort between the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, the University of Health Sciences, and the National Maternal and Child Health Center. Its goal is to provide digital tools to empower Village Health Support Groups and health center staff, improving the delivery of essential health services.

The launch event was well attended, with remarks from A/Professor Alex R. Cook, Vice-Dean of Research at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, NUS, and Dr. Kim Rattana, Director of the National Maternal and Child Health Center. The opening speech by H.E Prof. Saphonn Vonthanak, Advisor to the Ministry of Health, Cambodia, Rector of University of Health Sciences, further highlighted the significance of the project’s mission.

Dr. Yi Siyan, UHS-SPH Integrated Research Programme Leader, Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, NUS, and Principal Investigator of the i-MoMCARE Project, presented the study protocol and provided an overview of the project’s research goals. Attendees had the opportunity to ask questions and engage in meaningful discussions about the project during the Q&A session.

The i-MoMCARE mobile technology has the potential to improve the quality and accessibility of maternal and child health care in rural Cambodia, which could lead to significant improvements in health outcomes and quality of life for these communities. The project is set to begin its pilot phase in the coming months.

6-10 March 2023

On 6-10 March 2023, the School’s Global Health Office conducted a Workshop on Risks to Health Security, under the auspices of the Singapore-United States Third Country Training Programme. The workshop addressed five of the key environmental drivers of health insecurity, namely (a) land use change, (b) urbanisation and globalisation, (c) wildlife trade, trafficking, and markets, (d) climate change, and (e) degraded ecosystem services. These drivers are among those that are key to national, regional, and global health security, pandemic preparedness, and environmental sustainability.

23 participants from Southeast Asia attended the workshop. The workshop consisted of in-person as well as remote lectures by experienced trainers, academics and policy makers from Singapore and the USA. These included Dr Kimberly Fornace and AssociateProf Yann Boucher from NUS Public Health Associate Prof Yu Liya, Associate Prof Bae Sung Woo, Ms Audrey Tan from other departments in NUS US Science Envoy Dr Christine Kreuder Johnson, and Dr Barbara Knust from US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Participants were also able to visit the (a) National Environment Agency Environmental Health Institute’s Mosquito Production Facility, (b) Public Utilities Board NEWater Visitor Centre, (c) National Parks Board Animal and Plant Health Centre, including the Centre for Wildlife Forensics and (d) Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES).

Participants also had the opportunity to share about their countries and participate in discussion and networking sessions during the programme.

On October 20th, 2022, the Leadership Institute for Global Health Transformation (LIGHT) at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health organised a webinar on mass vaccination campaigns in Southeast Asia. Dr Jemilah Mahmood and Dr Kenneth Hartigan-Go shared about their experiences coordination COVID-19 vaccination campaigns in Malaysia and the Philippines. They considered issues such as gaining popular trust, selecting suitable vaccines and logistics for future pandemics.

The webinar was part of the ALPHA Fellowship supported by the Temasek Foundation, bringing together 20 Fellows from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam on the topics of pandemic preparedness and digital health.

About the speakers:

Dr Jemilah Mahmood is a medical professional with over two decades of experience managing crises in health, disasters and conflict settings. She is currently Professor and Director of the newly established Sunway Centre for Planetary Health in Malaysia. She is also the Pro-Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University Malaysia. She was the Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Malaysia on Public Health from April 2020-September 2021. She is the recipient of numerous national and international awards for her work including the Merdeka Award, Isa Humanitarian Award, as well as the Gandhi, Ikeda, Luther King Award for her contribution to peace, community development and humanitarian work.

Prof Kenneth Hartigan-Go has more than 25 years of experience as a clinician, professor, and manager of health programs. He holds Doctor of Medicine degrees from the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and from Newcastle University in the United Kingdom. Prof Hartigan-Go is currently a senior fellow of Ateneo Policy Center, School of Government, an adjunct faculty of the Asian Institute of Management. He served as Director General of the Food and Drugs Administration Philippines and later as an Undersecretary of the Philippine Department of Health. He was the founding executive director of the Zuellig Foundation.

Catch the recording of the session below:

April to December 2022

The Covid-19 crisis has highlighted the need for robust health systems as well as for collaboration across regions of the world. The ALPHA programme, funded by Temasek Foundation International, aims to address both aspects by training young public health leaders across ASEAN in precision public health, pandemic preparedness, digital health and technological innovation.

ALPHA aims to build synergistic partnerships across the participant cohort to promote the co-development of future capabilities and enhance mutual support in times of new disease threats. The cohort will consist of 20 selected fellow from Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, and the programme will address digital interventions in public health by adopting a mix of  learnings from public health experts, global industry players, site visits, practical case studies and renowned guest speakers.

Please click here for more information on the programme.

27 May 2022| 2.30pm – 3.30pm SGT| 1:30pm – 2.30pm ICT

Digital health technologies have played a crucial role in COVID-19 prevention and control, as well as for the diagnosis and treatment of other diseases during the pandemic.

Experts from the Hanoi University of Public Health will share experiences and practical examples of digital health technologies used in COVID-19.

6 April 2022 [Webinar]

New Zealand and Malaysia have recently proposed to end tobacco use for future generations by introducing a new law that progressively raises the smoking age by one year every year, effectively banning the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 2005 in Malaysia and 2008 in New Zealand. This bold policy reform has attracted great interest among health policymakers and researchers as an experiment on whether smoking can be phased out for good.

Should this unique policy intervention be adopted in Singapore and the rest of Southeast Asia? This dialogue will explore the opportunities and challenges that will arise in New Zealand and Malaysia with the proposed introduction of the smoke-free generation law and discuss the lessons that we can draw for tobacco policymaking.

Click here to view a recording of the session.

17 February 2022 [Webinar]

Three Singaporean doctors that have spent time in Afghanistan shared their experiences and insights on the state of healthcare in this country.

Dr Tiah Ling discussed excerpts from her work with the International Emergency Medicine Fellowship programme to identify key themes impacting the delivery of hospital services in Afghanistan, a qualitative analysis based on in-depth interviews with key stakeholders in the healthcare sector.

Dr Lim Chin Siah shared about his day-to-day work during his stint in Afghanistan in 2021. Finally, Dr Hakim Young posed a dilemma: How can ordinary Afghans survive and thrive in a holistically healthy way, despite an Afghan healthcare system that has all but “collapsed”? Is that even possible?

Click here to view a recording of the session.

25 January 2022 [Webinar]

Two years after the emergence of Covid-19, countries around the world are transitioning to an endemic state after the initial period of emergency and concentrating efforts in trying to live with the pandemic.

As experienced in the earlier phases of the pandemic, the role of policy and planning is still of great importance in shaping the direction each country will take, which in turn can influence approaches at a global level.

In this webinar, we will hear about the experiences, lessons learned and plans on the road to endemic Covid-19 in two very different countries on different continents: Singapore and the USA.

Click here to view a recording of the session.

30 November 2021 [Webinar]

In this webinar, the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore, and UNAIDS aimed to discuss some of the contemporary issues on HIV and AIDS that remain challenging for ASEAN countries, and how digital technologies can help drive change in prevention and support of key populations, contributing to address structural inequalities that continue to put populations at risk.

The audience included academics, students, public health leaders, government, and civil society organisations in ASEAN and the wider Asia Pacific region.

Click here to view a recording of the session.

March to August 2021

Funded by Temasek Foundation International, the HEAL (Health Executive in Asia Leaders) programme took place between March and August 2021 and comprised of 4 webinars, open to a wide audience, and 4 workshops attended by a small cohort of participants from different sectors and different countries in Asia.

The workshops and webinars complemented each other and focused on 4 topics (click on the links below to read the report):

• Precision Public Health
• Food for Health through the Life Course
• Health-Promoting Cities
• Commercial Determinants of Health

The programme aimed to explore the impact that decisions taken by leaders in all sectors have on health and, in turn, how public health decisions can affect all sectors of society and business. The importance of the relationship between health and all parts of society has become increasingly apparent over the years, and has played a central role in the Covid-19 experience. It is therefore timely to address some aspects of this complex interrelation, and each of the four webinars will examine one specific topic under this lens and with a focus on the experience in South East Asia, and Asia more broadly.

More information as well as the recordings of the webinars can be found here.

17-20 May 2021

Under the Japan Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21), which is part of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP), the School convened this online course for government officials in Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Pacific Island States, who work in the healthcare sector. This training platform is specially designed for agencies to build a sustainable field epidemiology workforce to meet the challenging future of public health fraught with emerging infectious diseases.

Facilitated by expert trainers from SSHSPH and the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, this short course introduced participants to knowledge and skills in applied epidemiology and rapid response for participants. Through group work, participants investigated into issues and reflected on the creation of a profile of community health, which can provide important clues to the at-risk groups in need of targeted interventions. The course also touched on the importance to ensure that health security extends beyond human health to involve good hygiene, sanitation, environmental health, animal health, food safety and even social resilience.

21 October 2020 [Webinar]

The COVID-19 outbreak has brought global travel to an unprecedented halt as countries worldwide imposed travel restrictions in an attempt to contain spread. Yet, many look towards reopening and return to a sense of normalcy while striking a balance between protecting public health and economic survival. As the coronavirus outbreak steadies and comes under control across countries in the Asia Pacific region, governments are exploring different options to reopen their borders.

This webinar examined and discussed the experiences, ideas and practical considerations for border control as well as the role of diagnostic testing in the reopening pathway. The 90-minute-long session moderated by Dean, Professor Teo Yik Ying was attended by over 450 participants from 18 countries.

The discussion focused on three broad takeaways:

1. Diagnostic testing remains central to the management of borders
2. Gradual easing of restrictions is possible through careful risk management
3. Global collaboration is essential to drive greater reopening

The event report is available here.

This webinar is supported by Roche Diagnostics Asia Pacific.