LIM Poh Lian

Lim Poh Lian is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore's Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and a Senior Consultant in the Ministry of Health's Communicable Disease Division. She serves as Director of the High Level Isolation Unit at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and Head of the Travellers’ Health and Vaccination Clinic at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Her expertise bridges clinical infectious disease care and public health, with a focus on outbreak preparedness, emerging pathogens, and vaccine strategies.

Education:

• BA in Biochemistry (Harvard University)
• MD (Columbia University)
• MPH in Tropical Medicine (Tulane University)

Research Interests: Lim’s work concentrates on travel and tropical medicine, outbreak response mechanisms, and countermeasures against high-consequence pathogens. She investigates vaccine implementation strategies and HIV clinical management, particularly in the context of global health security. Her research emphasizes the role of travel in disease globalization and the development of evidence-based policies for emerging infections.

Professional Leadership: Lim has held leadership roles nationally and internationally, including chairing Singapore’s Antimicrobial Resistance Control Committee and contributing to WHO’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network. She currently leads the WHO Health Security Interface Technical Advisory Group and chairs COVAX’s Independent Allocation of Vaccines Group.

Recognition:

• Recipient of the Courage Star (2003)
• Nanyang Education Award (2019)
• Healthcare Humanity Award (2020)
• NUS Medicine Special Recognition Award (2020)

Advocacy and Grants: Lim has led initiatives to enhance Singapore’s outbreak detection systems and advised on mosquito-borne disease risks in transplant patients. Her work integrates clinical practice with public health policy, particularly during the SARS and COVID-19 outbreaks.

Labs/Teams: She oversees the High Level Isolation Unit and collaborates with global networks like GeoSentinel to monitor travel-associated infections. Her team focuses on improving surveillance systems and rapid response protocols for emerging threats.