PROFESSOR CHRISTOPHER CHENG WAI SAM
Senior Consultant, Urology, Singapore General
Hospital & Sengkang General Hospital
Senior Adviser, SingHealth
Prof Christopher Cheng graduated from National University of Singapore in 1982 and obtained his FRCS (Surg) in 1986, and FAMS (Urology) in 1993. He was the first urologist from Singapore to be fellowship certified in Uro-oncology at the Mayo Clinic in 1992.
He is a senior consultant urologist at Sengkang General Hospital and Singapore General Hospital. Prof Cheng spearheaded the development of robotic urological surgery early in 2003. He has over 90 publications in local and international journals on Prostate Cancers, Bladder Cancers and Stone Diseases. He has contributed to several book chapters on urology in local and international publications.
He was awarded the National Outstanding Clinician Award at the National Medical Excellence Awards 2017. He was inducted into the Hall of Master Academic Clinicians of the Duke-NUS Medical School in 2022.
Prof Cheng was awarded The Public Administrative Medal (Silver) at the National Day Awards 2015. He was the founding CEO of the Sengkang General Hospital.
PROFESSOR JOSEPH SUNG
Distinguished University Professor
Senior Vice President (Health & Life Sciences)
Dean, Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine,
Nanyang Technological University
Professor Sung received his medical degree (MBBS) from The University of Hong Kong, and conferred PhD in biomedical sciences by the University of Calgary and MD by The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). He holds fellowships from the Royal Colleges of Physicians of Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, and Australia, the American College of Gastroenterology, the American Gastroenterological Association, the Hong Kong College of Physicians, the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine and Academy of Sciences of Hong Kong (ASHK). He is an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering of the People's Republic of China and Academician of the International Eurasian Academy of Sciences.
He served as the Vice-Chancellor and President of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (2010 – 2017) and the Chair of Worldwide Universities Network (2016 - 2017). In November 2022, he was awarded a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Professor Sung is currently Distinguished University Professor, Senior Vice President (Health & Life Sciences) and Dean, Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is also Emeritus Professor of Medicine at CUHK.
He has published over 1000 full scientific articles in leading medical and scientific journals. He was listed as “Highly Cited Researchers”, released by the Clarivate Analytics, for the years 2018 to 2022. He has edited and authored around 30 books, as well as many chapters in major textbooks including the Oxford Textbook of Medicine (5th Ed.), Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease (7th &8th Ed) and Yamada’s Textbook of Gastroenterology (4th Ed).
PROFESSOR LEO YEE-SIN
Executive Director
National Centre for Infectious Diseases
Professor LEO Yee-Sin is the Executive Director of the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, Singapore.
As an adult Infectious Disease specialist, Prof Leo has led her team through multiple outbreaks in Singapore. These include Nipah in 1999, SARS in 2003, the pandemic influenza in 2009, Zika in 2016 and multiple surges of Dengue. She successfully managed Singapore's first imported case of the Monkeypox in May 2019. Her current priority is now in the fight against COVID-19.
Prof Leo has published close to 400 peer-reviewed scientific papers. Her experience and expertise in outbreak management is frequently called upon as advisor and conference speaker at the national, regional and international level. She has served in multiple World Health Organization workgroups on outbreak management, and as an international expert in scientific and research bodies.
Apart from her clinical and administrative duties, she is also heavily involved in research and teaching. Topics of her research interest include dengue, influenza, emerging infections, HIV and COVID-19.
She has won many awards among which are three National Day Awards including the most prestigious Public Service Star in recognition for her outstanding battle against SARS in 2003 and two Public Administration Medals in 2012 and 2020. Other awards include the Excellence Service Star Award 2005, Red Ribbon Award 2014, Lee Foundation-NHG Lifetime Achievement Award 2021 and the NUS Distinguished Alumni Service Award 2021.
Prof Leo is also named in BBC's 100 women list in 2020 and was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame in 2022.
In April 2022, Prof Leo was conferred the title of Knight of the French Order of the Legion of Honour, by France's Ambassador to Singapore Marc Abensour on behalf of the President of the French Republic.
PROFESSOR NG WAI HOE
Deputy Group CEO (Strategy & Planning),
Singapore Health Services
CEO, Changi General Hospital
Professor Ng Wai Hoe is the Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (Strategy & Planning) of SingHealth, Chief Executive Officer of Changi General Hospital (CGH) and Professor at Duke- NUS Medical School. He was previously Medical Director of the National Neuroscience Institute, Academic Chair of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Neuroscience Academic Clinical Programme and Deputy Chair of the SingHealth Medical Board. He has present and past national administrative responsibilities as Member of the Medical Device Advisory Committee (MDAC) with the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) Singapore, Member of the Medical Technology Advisory Council (MTAC) of the Ministry of Health (MOH), Member of Expert Panel on Human Potential Optimisation (Prenatal/Early Childhood Development) with the National Research Foundation (NRF), Co-Chairperson of the Workgroup to Review the Taking of Informed Consent and Singapore Medical Council Disciplinary Process with the MOH, Panel of Chairmen of Disciplinary Tribunal with the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) and Member of the Governing Board for the Institute for Digital Molecular Analytics and Science with Ministry of Education/Nanyang Technological University (MOE/NTU).
His clinical practice focuses on neurosurgical oncology, epilepsy surgery and stereotactic and functional neurosurgery. He has interests in advanced neuro-imaging, intra-operative imaging, brain mapping and awake surgery. He is a member of the Neuro-oncology Committee of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS), recipient of the Sugita Fellowship (2010), GCEO Outstanding Clinician Award (2014) and Yahya Cohen Memorial Lecture (2017).
He has a keen academic interest and has published over 100 scientific papers and book chapters mainly on neuro-oncology, functional neurosurgery and neurotechnology. He has been awarded research funding from the National Medical Research Council (NMRC) and Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) as Principle Investigator. He is a member of the Editorial Boards of several major neurosurgery journals such as the Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, and CNS Oncology.
He is active in local and international neurosurgery education and is Chairman of the Neurosurgery Residency Advisory Committee (RAC), past Chairman of the Chapter of Neurosurgeons (Singapore), and member of the Education and Training Committee of the Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons (ACNS).
He graduated with MBBS from the National University of Singapore (NUS), Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) and Fellow of the Academy of Medicine Singapore (FAMS). He also has a Doctor of Medicine (MD) by research from NUS and executive MBA from INSEAD.
CLIN A/PROFESSOR CHAN YOKE HWEE
Chairman, Medical Board,
KK Women's and Children's Hospital
Clinical Associate Professor Yoke Hwee Chan is the Chairman Medical Board at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH). She is a Paediatric Intensive Care physician by training and was previously the Head, Children’s Intensive Care Unit and Director, Neonatal and Paediatric Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Programme at KKH. She also led the establishment of the Paediatric Home Care Programme to enable children with chronic illness who require medical technological assistance to be discharged home. With her roles as an intensive care physician and complex care physician, Dr Chan worked with children with critical illness and complex chronic diseases as well as their families, often dealing with end-of-life journeys. Dr Chan is also passionate in the shaping of the delivery of Maternal and Child Health in Singapore, working on new models of care with the larger ecosystem of primary care, community services and tertiary healthcare
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Senior Consultant, Department of Anaesthesiology, Singapore General Hospital, Sengkang General Hospital and Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiologist, National Heart Centre
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Master Academic Clinician, Duke-NUS Medical School
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Associate Professor Duke-NUS Medical School and Clinical Associate Professor, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
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Former Chairman, Medical Board, Sengkang General Hospital
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Group Chief Risk Officer, Singhealth
A/Prof Ong Biauw Chi is Senior Consultant at SGH Department of Anaesthesiology. She also serves as Visiting Consultant to Outram Campus institutions. She was the Head of Anaesthesiology, SGH from 2009 till 2014. She was Director of Patient Safety and Director of Clinical Governance till August 2015 for a period of 9 years, and has set up the Clinical Governance framework in SGH. She is actively involved in the Joint Commission International process and organizes and promotes quality improvement, safety and peer review in the hospital. A/Prof Ong has spearheaded and been involved in various Clinical Practice Improvement Projects and has won several awards in this area. She was appointed first Chairman Medical Board, Sengkang General Hospital, from 2014 till 2021. Sengkang General Hospital is a public hospital opened in 2019. with 1000 acute beds and 31 ORs and 400 Community hospital beds.
She was awarded Woman of the Year 2020 for her work in management of the dormitory outbreak during Covid. She was awarded the National Day Public Administration Silver Medal in 2013 and the National Medical Excellence award for National Outstanding Clinical Quality Activist in 2014. She teaches and trains undergraduates and postgraduate trainees with teaching appointments as Clinical Associate Professor with the Faculty of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Associate Professor, Duke-NUS Medical School. She was given the Master Academic Clinician title in 2021. She teaches and mentors undergraduates and postgraduate trainees in both Anaesthesia as well as patient safety and clinical quality. She is a College Master of Seah College in Duke-NUS and is currently Group Chief Risk Officer for the SingHealth group.
Senior Consultant, Anaesthesiology,
Singapore General Hospital and Sengkang General Hospital
Group Chief Risk Officer, SingHealth
ASSOC PROFESSOR ONG BIAUW CHI
PROFESSOR CHONG YAP SENG
Lien Ying Chow Professor in Medicine
Dean, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
Deputy Chief Executive (Education & Research),
National University Health System
Professor Chong Yap Seng is the Dean of the National University of Singapore Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (NUS Medicine), Singapore’s first institute of higher learning and one of the leading medical schools in Asia. Since Professor Chong assumed the role of Dean in 2019, NUS Medicine has risen to rank 14th on the 2023 Times Higher Education World University rankings and 20th on the 2023 QS World University Rankings for Medicine.
In his recently appointed role as Deputy Chief Executive (Education and Research) of the National University Health System (NUHS), Professor Chong will be furthering NUHS’ academic mission and augmenting the Academic Health System through his oversight of the academic and research development at all NUHS institutions.
As the former Executive Director (2015-2021) and now the Chief Clinical Officer at the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Professor Chong oversees clinical programmes that seek to promote health and human capacity in Singapore and the world. These programmes include the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) and the Singapore Preconception Study of long-Term maternal and child Outcomes (S-PRESTO) longitudinal studies that examine how conditions in pregnancy and early childhood influence the health and development of women and children.
In addition to his special research interest in the developmental origins of health and disease, Professor Chong has co-authored more than 500 research publications in top journals including The Lancet, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the British Medical Journal (BMJ). He received the National Outstanding Clinician Scientist Award from Singapore’s Ministry of Health in 2017 for his research efforts in early human development and nutrition, and was recently conferred the Public Administration Medal (Sliver) at the 2022 Singapore National Day Awards.
For the past few years, his energies have been focused on helping develop national strategies to advance child and maternal health and well-being, promoting healthy living for families, and improving health resources equity in Singapore.
Professor Chong continues to care for mothers and babies in his role as a Senior Consultant in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at the National University Hospital (NUH) under the National University Health System and, till today, still looks forward to welcoming newborn babies into the world.
PROFESSOR JOHN EU-LI WONG
Isabel Chan Professor in Medical Sciences
Executive Director, Centre for Population Health,
National University of Singapore
Senior Advisor, National University Health System
JOHN EU-LI WONG is the Isabel Chan Professor in Medical Sciences at the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Senior Advisor, National University Health System (NUHS) Singapore. A medical oncologist-hematologist, he currently co-chairs a multisectoral initiative in a location based, real-world township, to co-develop programs which increase healthy longevity, enable purposeful longevity, promote intergenerational bonding and support a community to allow ageing in place.
He has previously served as Senior Vice President (Health Innovation and Translation), NUS; Chief Executive, NUHS; Director of the National University Cancer Institute, Singapore; Dean, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS. He has also served as Chairman, Board of Directors, Health Sciences Authority, Singapore and served on the Singapore Medical Council. He is involved in the development of biomedical sciences as a key pillar of Singapore’s economy and in the development of academic medicine in Singapore. He represents Singapore in the M8 Alliance of Academic Health Centers and the Association of Academic Health Centers International. He is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Personalized and Precision Medicine, the Nature Index Panel of Senior Medical Advisors, the international editorial board of the American Journal of Medicine, and the editorial board of the Journal of the American Medical Association. He cofounded the Cancer Therapeutics Research Group, a multinational consortium of nine academic institutions, and has served as a member of the International Education Council for Molecular Targeted Therapy for Cancer, the American Society of Clinical Oncology International Affairs Committee, and the International Oncology Foundation Advisory Board. He was elected as a member of the Academia Europaea in 2022, and an international member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine in 2019.
He has received the degree of doctor philosophiae honoris causa from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2019, the Public Administration Medal (Gold) in 2016, and Singapore’s President’s Science & Technology Medal in 2014, among other awards. He is a fellow of the Academy of Medicine Singapore, the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh and London, and the American College of Physicians.
DOCTOR TAN YIA SWAM
President, 63rd Council of Singapore
Medical Association
Breast surgeon in private practice
Dr Tan, a married mother of three boys, is a breast surgeon in private practice, the first woman President of the Singapore Medical Association and a Nominated Member of Parliament. She is known as a strong advocate for doctors and patients in her leadership positions. In her term she has focused on three key agendas – to better work with the healthcare system locally, on healthcare workers’ welfare and for the association to take the lead in being the bridge between doctors and patients and between doctors and government.
PROFESSOR KUA EE HEOK
MBBS(UM), MD(NUS), FRCPsych(UK), PBM, BBM
Tan Geok Yin Professor in Psychiatry and
Neuroscience
NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
Dr Kua Ee Heok is the Tan Geok Yin Professor in Psychiatry and Neuroscience at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, and Emeritus Consultant, National University Hospital.
His private practice is at Mind Care Clinic, Farrer Park Medical Centre.
His early education was at High School, Batu Pahat and Muar, and he graduated as a doctor from University Malaya in 1973. His postgraduate training in Psychiatry, was at Oxford University and Geriatric Psychiatry at Harvard University.
A member of the WHO Dementia Research Team, he is the former Head, Dept of Psychological Medicine, NUS, and CEO/Medical Director, Institute of Mental Health.
He has won many international research prizes and published 370 research papers and 35 books on ageing, suicide, dementia, depression and alcoholism.
His first novel, ‘Listening to Letter from America’, is now used in Harvard University in a course on Anthropology.
PROFESSOR A. VATHSALA
Head & Senior Consultant, Department of
Medicine, National University Hospital
Co-Director, National University Centre For
Organ Transplantation, National University Hospital
Head, Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin
School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
Prof A Vathsala graduated with a Bachelors of Science in the Premedical Curriculum from Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama and studied Medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. She completed her training in Internal Medicine in Singapore and obtained her Membership in the Royal College of Physicians (United Kingdom). She underwent training in Renal Medicine at the Singapore General Hospital and received a Health Manpower Development Programme scholarship to undergo training in Transplantation at the University of Houston, Texas and the Cornell University School of Medicine, USA. She is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and a Fellow, Academy of Medicine (Singapore).
Upon completion of her training in transplantation, Prof Vathsala has devoted her entire career to develop clinical renal transplantation. She is passionate about transplantation as the treatment of choice for patients with kidney failure and has been a strong advocate for transplantation in general and equally strong opponent of commercialisation of organ donation. She has been at the helm of many of the milestones in renal transplantation Singapore, including the first spousal kidney transplant in 1991, crossmatch positive deceased donor kidney transplants since 2007, the rare blood group incompatible and cross match positive kidney transplant performed at NUH in 2009 and part of the team that managed the first pancreas kidney transplant at NUH and Singapore in 2012. Under her guidance, the outcomes of renal transplantation in Singapore are among the best in the world. These excellent results have led to recognition of her as an individual as well as acknowledgement of the transplant programme under her charge as a centre of repute for clinical excellence, quality of care, teaching and research.
She receives referrals for clinical care of patients from centres all over the world, including Malaysia, Brunei, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Philippines, UK and USA. Professor Vathsala also has a strong interest in research in immunosuppression in transplantation and has participated in many laboratory and clinical studies and clinical trials in the field. Her research in transplantation, which has led to optimising the use of immunosuppressants in an Asian transplant population, has also contributed to the success of renal transplantation in Singapore by minimising toxicity while improving outcomes. She has more than 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals to her credit and has also written several book chapters in topics in transplantation and nephrology.
PROFESSOR WILLIAM HWANG
CEO & Senior Consultant
National Cancer Centre Singapore
Dr William Hwang is CEO of the National Cancer Centre Singapore, Professor at the Duke-NUS Medical School, Senior Consultant Haematologist at the Singapore General Hospital, Head of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Cell Therapy Centre, and Director of the Regenerative Medicine Institute of Singapore. He is the incoming Vice President (Asia) of ISCT, former President of the World Marrow Donor Association, and former Executive Board Member of the Asia Pacific Blood and Marrow Transplant Group. He has two patents and over 130 publications in his field of interest in cancer, stem cell transplantation and cellular immunotherapy.
Dr Ranjana Srivastava OAM
Oncologist, Author & Fulbright Scholar
Dr Ranjana Srivastava OAM, is an internationally-renowned oncologist, Fulbright scholar and award-winning writer. She is the recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia for her contribution to the field of doctor-patient communication. In 2020, Ranjana received the John F Kennedy Merit Award and a second prestigious Fulbright award to obtain a Master in Public Administration at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Ranjana specialises in geriatric oncology and has a keen interest in serving patients from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, who are often disadvantaged and vulnerable.
Ranjana’s acclaimed writings on medicine and humanity have made her a two-time finalist for the Walkley Award for Excellence in Journalism. Her first book, Tell Me the Truth: Conversations with My Patients about Life and Death, was shortlisted for the New South Wales Premier’s Literary Award. Her second book, Dying for a Chat: The Communication Breakdown between Doctors and Patients won the Human Rights Literature Prize. Her two books on navigating cancer, A Cancer Companion and After Cancer: A Guide to Living Well have been warmly reviewed and widely used. Her fifth book, What It Takes To Be A Doctor: An Insider’s Guide, was a finalist in the Australian Career Book Awards. Her most recent book, A Better Death: Conversations about the art of living and dying well, was published in 2019.
Dr Rob Grenfell
Special Health Advisor, Commonwealth Scientific
and Industrial Research Organisation
Dr Rob Grenfell practiced as a rural General Practitioner in the early days of his career. Rob’s career has focused on public health with extensive experience in government, not-for-profit and private sectors. After a stint in Melbourne – where he held roles at CSIRO as Director of Health and Biosecurity, National Director of Cardiovascular Health at the Heart Foundation, and Senior Medical Advisor at the Department of Health Victoria – he returned to Natimuk in 2020 and shortly after commenced as Public Health Physician Specialist in the Grampians Public Health Unit.
Rob has specialist expertise in health system analysis, strategic planning, governance, health risk management, and equity-focused care. He is passionate about access to healthcare in rural communities and bringing innovative systems to improve equity in regional settings.
Sir Gustav Nossal
Immunologist, Walter & Eliza Hall Institute
Sir Gustav Nossal AC CBE FRS FAA FTSE is an Austrian-born Australian research biologist. He is famous for his contributions to the fields of antibody formation and immunological tolerance.
At the age of 35 Nossal became director of Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, a position that he kept until 1996. In parallel, he was Professor of Medical Biology at the University of Melbourne. Nossal's research is in fundamental immunology, in the field of antibody formation and immunological tolerance. He has written five books and 530 scientific articles in this and related fields.
Nossal has been President (1970-1973) of the 30,000-member world body of immunology, the International Union of Immunological Societies; President of the Australian Academy of Science (1994-1998); a member of the Prime Minister's Science, Engineering and Innovation Council (PMSEIC) (1989 to 1998); and Chairman of the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (1987-1996). He has been chairman of the committee overseeing the World Health Organisation's Vaccines and Biologicals Program (1993-2002) and Chairman of the Strategic Advisory Council of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Children's Vaccine Program (1998-2003).
Sir Nossal was knighted in 1977 for his groundbreaking work in immunology. His plethora of awards and medals include the Albert Einstein World Award of Science 1990 and Australian of the Year in 2000.
Professor Sanchia Aranda AM
Cancer Control Specialist, Cancer Council
Australia, Union for International Cancer Control
Professor Sanchia Aranda AM is the Chair of City Cancer Challenge, the former CEO of Cancer Council Australia and the immediate Past President for Union for International Cancer Control and inaugural Board Chair of the Cancer City Challenge Foundation. She is regarded as one of the world’s pre-eminent experts in cancer control with 40 years’ experience as a clinician, researcher, educator and health-system administrator.
From her early career as a Registered Nurse in New Zealand, Professor Aranda specialised in cancer treatment and palliative care, completing a Bachelor of Applied Science, a Master of Nursing and a doctoral thesis in the nurse-patient relationship and psychosocial issues in palliative care. She has extensive experience in health-system administration and prior to joining Cancer Council Australia was Director of Cancer Services and Information and Deputy CEO at the Cancer Institute NSW.
Professor Aranda is highly experienced in all fields of cancer from prevention through to survivorship and has a particular professional interest in improved ways to care for and support people with cancer. Her passion is to improve outcomes for all Australians with cancer and reduce the inequalities experienced by Australians who are Indigenous, have a lower socio-economic background, live in regional or remote areas or have a cancer type with typically poor survival.
Dr Stephen Duckett
Health Economist, Grattan Institute
University of Melbourne
Dr Stephen Duckett has held senior health care leadership positions in Australia and Canada, including as Secretary of what is now the Commonwealth Department of Health, and Director of Acute Health in the Victorian public service. He is currently Director of the Health Program at Grattan Institute.
He was Dean of Health Sciences and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) at La Trobe University (1996-2006) and completed a Doctor of Business Administration in Higher Education Management at the University of Bath during that time.
Professor Duckett has a PhD and DSc from the University of New South Wales and is a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences and the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Professor Duckett is currently Chair of the Board of Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network and a member of the Board of the Brotherhood of St Laurence.
Dr Mark Boughey
Deputy Director of the Centre for Palliative Care
Director of Palliative Medicine, St Vincent's Hospital
Associate Professor, The University of Melbourne.
Mark has oversight of the Centre’s education programs, as well as supervising a broad range of palliative services, research and education in his dual roles at the Centre and at St Vincent’s Hospital. He is also involved in service development on a local, state and national level as Chair and Clinical Lead of the Victorian Palliative Care Network. Mark is involved in the International Collaborative for Best Care of the Dying Person, and Chairs both the Renal Supportive Care Pathway Working Group and the Victorian Aboriginal Palliative Care Collaborative.
Nationally, Mark is the immediate past president of the Royal Australian College of Physicians Chapter of Palliative Medicine, and has mentored emerging palliative medicine leaders in less developed countries through the International Palliative Medicine Leadership Development Initiative.
Dr Bo Reményi
Paediatric Cardiologist, Menzies School of Health Research
NT Australian of the Year 2018
As a junior doctor working in remote communities, Dr Bo Remenyi was tasked with filling out death certificates for children dying of preventable heart disease. Finding this unfair and unacceptable, Bo spent a further six years studying to become one of Australia’s first female paediatric cardiologists. Now an internationally-recognised expert, Bo is tackling the Northern Territory’s rate of Rheumatic Heart Disease, which among the Indigenous population is currently the highest in the world.
While primarily a clinician Bo’s ground-breaking PhD research has been published in top tier journals Lancet and Nature Reviews Cardiology, and has seen her assist the American Heart Association and work with the World Heart Federation for global public health projects. Bo also undertakes humanitarian work with Rotary in resource-poor countries in our region. Bo’s contribution is even more extraordinary, given she arrived in Australia as a political refugee after fleeing Hungary as a teenager. She started school in Australia without any English language skills, but today Bo’s education, expertise and sheer hard work is saving lives.
Professor Andrew Steer
Paediatric Infectious Diseases Physician,
Royal Children’s Hospital
Professor Steer is a consultant paediatrician and paediatric infectious diseases physician at the Royal Children's Hospital. He is a Principal Research Fellow at the Centre for International Child Health in the Department of Paediatrics at the University of Melbourne, as well as Group Leader of the Group A Streptococcal Research Group at MCRI. Prof Steer's interests centre on the control of group A streptococcal disease in developing countries, with specific interests in public health efforts at controlling rheumatic heart disease, impetigo and scabies; understanding the pathogenesis of acute rheumatic fever; and developing a global group A streptococcal vaccine.