Partnering one of the world's leading institutions in global and public health

01 November 2011

Research and education in areas of infectious disease control, health systems, and chronic diseases with an Asian focus will be strengthened through the collaboration between the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health (SSHSPH) and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). The partnership was formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Vice-Director of LSHTM Prof Anne Mills and SSHSPH Dean Prof Chia Kee Seng on 31 October 2011.

Witnessing the signing ceremony were UK's Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Dr Vince Cable, Singapore's Minister of State for Health Dr Amy Khor and Chief Executive of the National University Health System Assoc Prof Benjamin Ong.

Sharing the two institutions' collaborative plans in the next few years, Prof Chia said that they will embark on two key projects, namely, the the Population Health Metrics and Analytics (PHMA) project and the Master of Public Health (MPH) course.

"The first collaboration, the PHMA, leverages cutting-edge technology to bring together researchers and practitioners from both schools and multiple disciplines to integrate the disparate areas of public health research and making it relevant and accessible to practitioners like policy makers by generating usable real-world projections. In our MPH collaboration, we will draw upon each other's experience and expertise in developing our graduates to work towards improving the health of populations," explained Prof Chia.

On choosing an Asian partner, Prof Mills said: "We see Asia as a critical region, home to 60 per cent of the world's population with some of the most rapidly growing economies in the world with both outstanding health achievements and significant health challenges. The creation of this partnership is a unique opportunity to create a new regional hub for public health research, training and innovation which draws on the collective strengths of the specialist research-led higher education institution in global and public health and a leading global university centred in Asia."

The two institutions will cooperate strategically in areas including staff and students exchange as well as joint academic and scientific activities.