The Global Convening of Deans of Global Public Health, a side meeting of the Prince Mahidol Award Conference (PMAC) in Bangkok was held on 27 January 2026.
Building Stronger Public Health Systems Through Education
The Side Meeting convened Deans and senior representatives from Schools of Public Health across Asia, Europe, Australia, and North America. Its primary purpose was to examine the shifting global health landscape and to reflect on the responsibilities of academic institutions in advancing public health governance, equity, and evidence-based practice.
The meeting was jointly organised by the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health (National University of Singapore), the Vanke School of Public Health (Tsinghua University), the Institute of Global Health (University of Geneva), and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, reflecting strong cross-regional academic collaboration.
Key Discussions and Themes
The programme featured contributions from prominent global public health leaders. Opening remarks were delivered by Professor Teo Yik Ying, Vice President (Global Health), National University of Singapore, and Dr Margaret Chan, Founding Dean of the Tsinghua Vanke School of Public Health and former Director-General of the World Health Organization.
Three core themes guided the discussion:
- Strengthening academic–government partnerships to support public health governance;
- Improving access to high-quality and equitable public health curricula; and
- Tackling health misinformation and disinformation, with insights led by Dr Karla Soares-Weiser, Chief Executive Officer of Cochrane.
Beyond the structured sessions, participants shared institutional experiences, educational reforms, and innovative models in addressing contemporary public health challenges. These exchanges highlighted both shared global concerns and region-specific responses, reinforcing the value of peer learning.
Malaysian Representation and Contribution
Professor Dr Victor Hoe, from the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, participated in the meeting in his dual capacity as a representative of Universiti Malaya and as Secretary-General of the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH). He contributed to discussions on strengthening academic–government collaboration, enhancing access to quality public health education, and addressing the challenges of misinformation in health communication.
Conclusion: Aligning Global Themes with Malaysian Practice
The discussions at the Global Convening of Deans of Global Public Health highlighted several priority areas, including the importance of academic–government partnerships, curriculum relevance, workforce readiness, and the safeguarding of scientific integrity. Taken together, these themes align closely with approaches that have been progressively implemented within the Malaysian public university system.
In Malaysia, public universities have established long-standing collaborations with the Ministry of Health Malaysia since the 70s when the first Master of Public Health programmes was started in UniversitiMalaya. The collaboration is to ensure that graduates of public health programmes met the competencies relevant to national health priorities and service delivery needs. In the past decades with the inclusion of more public universities providing postgraduate public health medicine training, a structured mechanisms, such as the Public Health Conjoint Committee was established. This brought together representatives from public universities offering Master of Public Health and Doctorvof Public Health programmes, the Ministry of Health Malaysia, and the College of Public Health Medicine, Academy of Medicine Malaysia. This platform supports coordination across academia, government, and professional bodies, and promotes alignment between training, workforce development, and public health practice.
In particular, the development and implementation of the Malaysian Standard and Standardised Rubric (SSR) for Public Health Medicine (PHM) in 2023 has provided a national benchmark to guide the structure and content of the Public Health Medicine Specialist (PHMS) curriculum. The SSR ensures consistency in competency standards across institutions and alignment with the evolving needs of the health system. Notably, the SSR also mandates compulsory attachments in public health organisations, such as District Health Offices, to provide trainees with real-world exposure and practical experience in frontline public health service delivery, an essential component for building a responsive and effective public health workforce.
Viewed in this context, the themes emerging from the Global Convening reinforce the relevance of sustained cross-sectoral collaboration and provide an opportunity to reflect on how existing models can be further strengthened and adapted in response to evolving global and regional public health challenges.
Acknowledgement
The Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya acknowledges the organisers of PMAC 2026 and the Global Convening of Deans of Global Public Health for fostering an inclusive platform for academic collaboration and knowledge exchange.
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