The Academy of Medicine of Malaysia (AMM) and the Faculty of Medicine at Universiti Malaya (UM) co-hosted a scientific event, “Building Capacity and Partnerships for Health Advocacy”, at the T.J. Danaraj Auditorium, UM, Kuala Lumpur on 23 August 2020.
The scientific event was aimed at building bridges between the different areas of the health system, i.e. amongst specialist doctors, academicians, global health practitioners and the Ministry of Health (MOH), as well as equipping specialist doctors with skills and knowledge to become better health advocates.
The event opened with a welcome address from the AMM Master, Professor Dr. Rosmawati Mohamed and the Dean of Faculty of Medicine, UM, Professor Dato’ Dr. Adeeba Kamarulzaman, followed by a talk by Dr. Khor Swee Kheng, founder of the Malaysian Health Coalition, on “The Anatomy of Health Advocacy in Malaysia”. An experienced broadcaster, Sharaad Kuttan also shared insights on engaging the public on health issues.
The keynote address, “Planetary Health – the Next Frontier in a Changing World”, was delivered by Tan Sri Dr. Jemilah Mahmood, Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister on Public Health. This was followed by a panel session on the event theme, “Building Capacity and Partnerships for Health Advocacy”, which was moderated by Dato’ Professor Dr. Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud, AMM Council Member and also a Professor at Faculty of Medicine, UM. The panelists of this session were Professor Dr Rosmawati Mohamed, AMM Master; Professor Dr. Pascale Allotey, Director of the United Nations University International Institute for Global Health; and Dr. Feisul Mustapha, Deputy Director of the Disease Control Division, Minisry of Health. The event ended with the launch of the Basic Surgical E-training Management Platform by the AMM and the College of Surgeons.
