SPM Department members strengthen national dialogue on tobacco control.
From 30 May to 1 June 2025, the National Tobacco Control Conference (NTCC) convened leading voices in tobacco prevention, policy, and advocacy, and members of the NARCC (Nicotine Addiction Research Group) team from Universiti Malaya played a key role in shaping the conversation.
Associate Professor Dr Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin, from the Department of Psychological Medicine, served as a member of the Scientific Organising Committee, helping to curate the conference’s multidisciplinary programme. Associate Professor Dr Amani Natasha Ahmad Tajuddin led a mini HEBAT workshop, which highlighted youth-led advocacy and peer-to-peer cessation strategies. The workshop also featured contributions from Associate Professor Dr Farizah Mohd Hairi, who spoke on the HEBAT Advocacy workshop, guiding its application in community settings.
Dr Farizah was also invited as a plenary speaker for the session Heat Not Burn (HnB): Smoke or Fire?, and served as moderator for a panel discussion titled From Policy to Practice: Multisectoral Strategies to Democratise Smoking Cessation Support. Her insights helped bridge research, policy, and practice in advancing equitable tobacco control.
Other NARCC team members who contributed to the conference included:
- Dr Siti Idayu Hasan (Social & Preventive Medicine)
- Dr Megat Amirul Amzar (Primary Care Medicine)
- Dr Ian Choong (Primary Care Medicine)
The team’s presence reinforced Universiti Malaya’s commitment to collaborative, evidence-based public health leadership. NTCC 2025 featured CPD-accredited sessions, abstract presentations, and policy dialogues, with selected abstracts to be published in a Scopus-indexed journal. We congratulate the NARCC team for their impactful contributions and continued dedication to a tobacco-free future.
This write-up was prepared by Associate Professor Dr Farizah Mohd Hairi from the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya.
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