Tropical diseases, many of which are zoonotic or environmentally driven, underscore the need for a unified, cross-sectoral approach to health. This symposium highlights the One Health framework, which integrates human, animal, and environmental health disciplines to prevent, detect, and respond to emerging infectious threats in tropical regions. It focuses on transdisciplinary collaboration and community-based strategies to build health resilience in vulnerable settings.
Speakers
Dr Ho Ai Chia (Sarawak State Health Department, Malaysia) is a Public Health Consultant Physician with the Sarawak State Health Department, Ministry of Health Malaysia. A graduate of the Epidemic Intelligence Program (EIP) Malaysia, she now serves as a technical supervisor and trainer for the programme. Dr Ho has played a leading role in managing the rabies outbreak in Sarawak since its onset in 2017 and currently heads the Communicable Disease Control Section, overseeing outbreak management from the human health perspective. She has presented extensively on rabies control at local and international conferences and contributes as a technical expert to national and state strategic planning for rabies elimination.
Dr Thura Kyaw (SEAOHUN) is a medical doctor and public health professional with over a decade of experience advancing One Health and health systems initiatives in Southeast Asia. As Regional Program Manager at the Southeast Asia One Health University Network (SEAOHUN), he leads regional programmes that strengthen cross-sectoral collaboration and workforce development under the One Health approach. He has overseen the successful implementation of SEAOHUN’s regional online learning platform, expanding access to training across multiple countries. His expertise spans health systems strengthening, communicable diseases, and pandemic preparedness, and he continues to promote collaborative, evidence-based approaches to operationalise One Health principles across the region.
Professor Dr Mas Ayu (Universiti Malaya, Malaysia) is a Professor of Epidemiology at the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, and a consultant epidemiologist at the University Malaya Medical Centre. Her research focuses on mental health, psychopharmacology, and the metabolic side effects of schizophrenia treatment. She also studies alcohol use and psychosocial factors related to substance use in Malaysia. In addition, she conducts research on vector-borne diseases such as dengue and chikungunya, including collaborative work with Umeå University on dengue early warning systems and public responses to prevention initiatives.
Moderator
Professor Dr Rafdzah Ahmad Zaki (Universiti Malaya, Malaysia) is a distinguished Public Health Medicine Specialist with experience in Evidence-Based Medicine, infectious disease modelling and implementation science. Her leadership in research and public health education enables her to foster collaborations across disciplines and sectors to tackle the multifaceted impacts of climate change on health, building resilience in health systems by integrating expertise from epidemiology, environmental science, policy, and technology.
This session advocates for the One Health approach as a foundational strategy to address tropical disease threats and to safeguard both human and planetary health through science-based, inclusive solutions.