COVID-19 and HIV: Latest updates and guidance

Meg Doherty has been the Director of the Department of Global HIV, Hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections Programmes at WHO since February 2020. Meg was previously the Coordinator of Treatment and Care in the Department of HIV at WHO Headquarters. She has more than 25 years of experience in HIV and infectious diseases, including leading WHO’s normative and programmatic work on expanding HIV treatment to all and reducing inequalities in access to the most effective antiretrovirals for people living with HIV. Meg spent 10 years in low- and middle-income countries, advising ministries of health and international partners on implementing comprehensive HIV and infectious disease programmes, including five years in Ethiopia as the Director of Clinical and Training Services for JHUTSEHAI, a PEPFAR implementing partner supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A graduate of Monash University and trained in internal medicine and infectious diseases in Melbourne, Australia, Adeeba Kamarulzaman established the Infectious Diseases Unit at the University of Malaya (UM) Medical Centre. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Yale University and was the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, UM, from 2011 to 2019. Currently, she is a member of several state COVID-19 task forces and a member of the Malaysian National Recovery Council.

In addition to her clinical and academic commitments, Adeeba has been actively involved in the community response to HIV and AIDS in Malaysia. As convenor of the Malaysian Harm Reduction Working Group of the Malaysian AIDS Council, she led advocacy for the implementation of harm reduction measures to tackle the HIV epidemic among people who inject drugs in Malaysia. She was President of the Malaysian AIDS Council from 2006 to 2010 and in this capacity, was involved in advocating for and overseeing the implementation of community-based HIV and AIDS programmes across the country. She remains Chairman of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation, a trust that raises funds for HIV prevention, treatment and care programmes implemented by the Malaysian AIDS Council.

In 2008, Adeeba established the Centre of Excellence for Research in AIDS (CERiA) at the University of Malaya. Research activities undertaken at CERiA include clinical and basic science studies and epidemiological and socio-behavioural research focusing on key populations in Malaysia, particularly people who use drugs, prisoners and men who have sex with men.

Adeeba is a member of the WHO Science Council, UNAIDS Advisory Group and WHO Academy’s Quality Committee. Her achievements have been recognized through several national and international awards, including an Honorary Doctor of Laws from her alma mater, Monash University, for her contributions to medicine and as a health advocate.