Dr Janil Puthucheary
Senior Minister of State
Ministry of Digital Development and Information,
Ministry of Health
Eliminating HIV in Taiwan: The Challenges of Implementing a PrEP Programme
Ms Susan Huang
Section Chief
Taiwan CDC
The Role of the Community in HIV/STI Testing
Dr Eamonn Murphy
Director
UNAIDS
Ageing with HIV
Dr Wong Pui Li
Medical Lecturer
University of Malaya

Introduction

The 14th edition of Singapore AIDS Conference will be held on 30th November 2024. With the theme of “Communities in Action”, we will highlight how communities, healthcare providers, researchers and policy makers can work together to end HIV and STI transmission in Singapore. Join us as we explore how this collaboration extends to the field of HIV prevention, STI prevention, stigma and discrimination, as well as aging with HIV.

Programme and Speakers

0800-0900 REGISTRATION
0900-0905 WELCOME
0905-0920 OPENING ADDRESS
0920-0930 RED RIBBON PRESENTATION
0930-1045 SESSION 1
Community and HIV/STI Prevention Services
1045-1115 MORNING BREAK
1115-1250 SESSION 2
Community and HIV/STI Testing
1250-1345 LUNCH BREAK
Lunch Talk: From Surviving to Thriving: Connecting People With HIV to Care
1345-1525 SESSION 3
Community against Stigma and discrimination
1525-1545 AFTERNOON BREAK
1545-1725 SESSION 4
Living Well with HIV
1725-1730 CLOSING ADDRESS

Co-Organized by:

Supported by:

Sponsered by:

Programme Details

Session 1: Community and HIV/STI Prevention Services

Chair: Dr Choy Chiaw Yee (NCID) Co-Chair Organising Commitee

0935: Keynote 1 - Eliminating HIV in Taiwan: The Challenges of Implementing a PrEP Programme
Ms Susan Huang
Section Chief
Taiwan CDC
Ms. Susan Hsun-Yin Huang currently serves as the Section Chief at the Taiwan CDC, overseeing HIV testing policies and STIs prevention. She holds a degree in Public Health and a Master of Health Policy from National Taiwan University. After passing the national examination, she was appointed to the Taiwan CDC in 2011.
 
Ms. Huang has devoted herself to initiatives such as HIV self-testing and the PrEP program, as well as the epidemic of COVID-19 comorbidities with HIV. Most recently, she has been actively involved in promoting health awareness regarding Mpox and HIV in Taiwan.
1000: YMSM PrEP Project
Mr Aviel Tan
AfA Volunteer
AfA
Aviel is a graduate of the National University of Singapore (NUS), where he majored in Life Sciences and minored in Public Health. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Cancer Biology at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, under the Cancer Science Institute. His research interests includes immunotherapeutic and viral-related cancers/diseases.

Aviel's public health journey began as an intern at Action for AIDS (AfA) Singapore, where he was responsible for recruiting members of the GBQ community for PrEP studies. His role extended to analyzing and reviewing the collected data for the On-Demand PrEP study.

Passionate about the future of prophylaxis in preventing HIV transmission, Aviel aims to further contribute to the health literacy of Singaporeans by increasing awareness of prophylaxis usage in Singapore.
Dr Lee Pei Hua
Associate Consultant
NCID
Dr Lee Pei Hua is an Associate Consultant Infectious Diseases (ID) Physician at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She graduated from the University of Manchester, UK in 2012 and gained MRCP (UK) in 2017. She completed her specialist training in ID in 2022. Her areas of interests include HIV treatment and prevention, and sexual health.
1015: Updates on Local STI Epidemiology and STI Prevention
Dr Martin Chio
Senior Consultant
NSC/DSC
Dr Martin Chio is a Senior Consultant Dermatologist at the National Skin Centre Singapore and former Head of the DSC clinic. His clinical interests are STIs, HIV & genital dermatology, qualitative research and skin cancers.
 
He received his undergraduate training from the University of Bristol, UK and his basic speciality training in Internal Medicine in Singapore. He subsequently completed his advanced speciality training in Dermato-venereology at the National Skin Centre.
 
He was awarded a National Medical Research Council medical research fellowship as part of the Ministry of Health Health Manpower Development Plan to pursue a Master’s of Science at University College London and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine; he was awarded the 2007 best dissertation prize.
 
He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (London) and the Academy of Medicine Singapore - he was the Chair of the Chapter of Dermatologists (2015 – 2019). He is an avid clinician educator and has been appointed Adj Associate Professor with both the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health & Duke-NUS Medical School, Adj Assistant Professor with the NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Clinical Senior Lecturer with the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine - he was awarded the YLLSOM Dean’s award for Teaching Excellence twice.
 
He is a visiting consultant with the SAF Medical Corps & Tan Tock Seng Hospital and also an associate mediator with the Singapore Mediation Centre. For his active volunteer work as a visiting dermatologist at both the Dover Park Hospice and Villa Francis home for the aged, he was awarded the Healthcare Humanity Award.
1030: Overview on the Barriers to PrEP Access in Singapore
Dr Rayner Tan
Asst Professor
NUS SSHSPH
Dr Rayner Kay Jin TAN (he/him) is an Assistant Professor at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore and National University Health System, where received his PhD. He concurrently holds a position as visiting research fellow at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases in Singapore. His research interests revolve broadly about the social determinants of health, community engagement, implementation science, and health equity of vulnerable communities.
 
Rayner was a recipient of the Fulbright Visiting Research Scholarship for the academic year 2022/2023 and has received training in implementation sciences as a fellow of the HIGH-IRI program at Washington University in St. Louis. He is currently deputy editor of a leading HIV scientific journal, the Journal of the International AIDS Society, an Academic Editor at PLOS Global Public Health, and a perspectives editor at the BMJ journal, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI). He also actively contributes to the organizing and scientific committees of international HIV and STI-related conferences, including being an organising committee member at the International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference 2023 in Brisbane, organising and scientific committee member for the Asia-Pacific AIDS and Co-Infections Conference (APACC) 2023 (Singapore) and 2024 (Hong Kong), and early career researcher committee co-chair at the International Union Against Sexually Transmitted Infections (IUSTI) World Congress 2024 in Sydney.
 
He leads several community-based organizations in the region as well. He currently is the president of Project X Society serving the health and social needs of sex workers, and a Director at The Greenhouse Community Services Limited, a charity providing substance use recovery services for marginalized groups in Singapore. He also currently serves as the Treasurer for the Society of Behavioural Health, Singapore and a co-lead at SG Mental Health Matters. He is currently a co-lead of Project Hayat, a community-led initiative to develop a national suicide prevention strategy in Singapore. He is currently a representative on the Ministry of Health Agency for Care Effectiveness (ACE) Consumer Panel.

Session 2: Community and HIV/STI Testing

Chair: Mr Chronos Kwok (AfA) Co-Chair Organising Committee

1115: Keynote 2 - The Role of the Community in HIV/STI Testing
Dr Eamonn Murphy
Director
UNAIDS
Eamonn Murphy, UNAIDS Regional Director for Asia Pacific region and Eastern Europe and Central Asia region
 
Eamonn Murphy leads UNAIDS’ efforts in promoting an expanded and integrated United Nations system response to HIV for the Asia Pacific; and Eastern Europe and Central Asia regions.
 
Mr. Murphy was Deputy Executive Director, Programme a.i. supporting the transition and realignment of the UNAIDS Secretariat to support the implementation of the new Global AIDS Strategy in 2022. Formerly, he was the UNAIDS Regional Director for Asia Pacific and previously the UNAIDS Country Director in Myanmar and Viet Nam. He also served as UNAIDS’ Director of Governance, United Nations System and Donor Relations.
 
Before joining the UN in 2002, Mr. Murphy held several senior positions with the Australian Government, including Director for Health Sectors with AusAID in the Foreign Ministry, Head of the Communicable Diseases and Environmental Health Branch, and Director of the National AIDS Programme for the Commonwealth Health Department.
1140: Advances on POC and Community Based STI testing
Dr Tay Woo Chiao
Senior Resident
NSC/DSC
Dr. Tay is currently the Chief Resident of the Dermatology Residency Programme in Singapore. He has a strong clinical interest in Venereology and actively volunteers in community efforts to improve sexual health literacy. An enthusiastic learner and advocate for patient-centered care and innovation.
1155: Update on the Singapore HIV Care Cascade 2022
Dr Santhya
Assistant Manager
NPHEU
Dr Santhya is a Senior Epidemiologist with the National Public Health Epidemiology Unit (NPHEU) in NCID. She has previously done research on the UNAIDS response to HIV prevalence in third world countries while pursuing her Masters in International Public Health.
 
Dr Santhya currently manages the National HIV Registry Team within NPHEU which handles the national HIV surveillance & screening programmes, contact tracing and case management operations, oversees data collation for the Registry and conducts statistical analysis mainly in the areas of HIV seroprevalence in key populations and key populations at risk of late-stage diagnosis in Singapore.
 
The team also initiates and manages process improvement projects and academic studies related to HIV surveillance and epidemiology.
1210: Results from the 10th MSM Seroprevalence Study
Dr Isabel Tavitian-Exley
Principal Epidemiologist
NPHEU
Dr Isabel Tavitian-Exley is an epidemiologist and public health researcher recognised for epidemic analysis and research in the fields of HIV, behavioural epidemiology and Hepatitis in vulnerable populations in Southeast Asia and Europe. She holds a PhD in Infectious Disease Epidemiology from Imperial College, London and MSc from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
 
Prior to joining the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, Singapore, she advised technical agencies including the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Joint Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS), where she designed and conducted evaluations, research and bio-behavioural surveillance studies of HIV infection, and developed HIV research agendas in Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan.
 
She contributed to national HIV estimates and projections in collaboration with government, multilateral agencies, academic and non-governmental organisations. Her research focuses on the determinants of HIV infection risk as well as analytical methodologies to better inform and target differentiated interventions.
Mr Chronos Kwok
Executive Director
AfA
Chronos first started as a volunteer with AfA way back in 2005. He was a counsellor at the Anonymous Testing Service and also conducted talks at schools as well as military bases to increase awareness for HIV prevention. He was also actively involved in several fundraising gala events. Prior to becoming to Executive Director, he spent 5 years running the MSM outreach programme and Anonymous Testing Service. During this time, he worked closely with the community to implement effective outreach, testing and research programmes that contribute towards reducing the rate of new infections and advocate against HIV-related stigma.
 
Chronos strongly believes that more can be done to support marginalized groups in Singapore, to build a more inclusive and compassionate society. Before to joining AfA, Chronos worked many years in the civil service and with a Foundation dedicated to eldercare. He obtained his Master of Social Work from the Singapore University of Social Sciences in 2021.
1225: Achieving the First 90: Insights from Taiwan's HIV Testing Policies and Innovative Testing Programmes
Dr Susan Huang
Section Chief (HIV Testing Policy and Programs)
Taiwan CDC
Ms. Susan Hsun-Yin Huang currently serves as the Section Chief at the Taiwan CDC, overseeing HIV testing policies and STIs prevention. She holds a degree in Public Health and a Master of Health Policy from National Taiwan University. After passing the national examination, she was appointed to the Taiwan CDC in 2011.
 
Ms. Huang has devoted herself to initiatives such as HIV self-testing and the PrEP program, as well as the epidemic of COVID-19 comorbidities with HIV. Most recently, she has been actively involved in promoting health awareness regarding Mpox and HIV in Taiwan.

Session 3: Community against Stigma and discrimination

Chair: Dr Rayner Tan (NUS SSHSPH) Co-Chair Organising Committee

1345: Debate - Foreign workers with HIV should not be allowed to remain in Singapore
Proposition
Dr Edwin Sng
Consultant
CGH
Dr Edwin Sng is an Infectious Diseases consultant at Changi General Hospital where he is the director of the CGH enhanced HIV programme.
Mr Dhanesh Thiru
Research Assistant
NUS
Dhanesh is a early career public health practitioner who is currently a research assistant and MPH student in the Courage Lab at NUS School of Public Health. His areas of interest are in HIV, STI prevention, suicide prevention, migrant health and implementation science, particularly with vulnerable populations in Singapore. Prior to joining the Courage Lab, Dhanesh worked at the Ministry as the policy lead on mental health policies and programmes for migrant workers, observing the intersections of health in manpower and foreign worker space.
Opposition
Dr Teh Yii Ean
Consultant
SGH
Dr. Teh Yii Ean is a consultant in the department of Infectious Diseases at the Singapore General Hospital. She graduated from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore in 2011 and obtained her specialist accreditation in Infectious Diseases in 2017.
 
She has a keen interest in the management of infections in imunocompromised individuals and is particularly driven to improve the health-related quality of life for people living with HIV by providing patient-centred care. She was awarded the Health Manpower Development Plan Award to pursue further subspecialty training in the management of HIV patients with complex comorbidities and malignancy at the Chelsea and Westminister Hospital in London. She is currently the director of the Singapore General Hospital HIV Clinical Programme and a member of the National HIV Programme.
Dr Ho Lai Peng
Sr Principal MSW
NCID
Dr Ho is a Senior Principal Medical Social Worker at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She has been a social worker for more than 30 years. She obtained her PhD in social work from the National University of Singapore in 2019.
1415: Employment: HIV Discrimination in Employment and What Can Be Done
Mr Jerry Seah
Senior Director
SNEF
Jerry Seah has been a member of the National HIV Policy Committee since 2013, representing the Singapore National Employers Federation. In this role, he has played a key part in shaping national HIV/AIDS workplace policies. Additionally, Jerry has been actively involved with the ASEAN Business Coalition on HIV-AIDS since 2011. This coalition works to enhance the capacity of employers across ASEAN member states to implement effective HIV/AIDS workplace programs.
 
Jerry has been instrumental in developing a comprehensive implementation guide for managing HIV/AIDS in the workplace. This guide is structured into three tiers: Tier 1 (education), Tier 2 (supportive environment), and Tier 3 (workplace policies), offering organizations a step-by-step approach to adopting best practices for creating a supportive workplace.
 
Beyond his professional achievements, Jerry has a notable history of volunteer work. Early in his career, he volunteered at a Patient Care Center for seven years, dedicating his Saturdays to providing massage therapy and emotional support to HIV patients. This long-term commitment underscores his dedication to advocating for individuals affected by HIV/AIDS both professionally and personally.
1430: Exploring the Narratives of Wounded Healers and Peer Supporters in a Substance Recovery Centre
Mr Daniel Ho
Volunteer Clinician, Learning Coordinator
The Greenhouse
Daniel Ho volunteers as a learning coordinator and group supervisor at the The Greenhouse Community Services Ltd, where he provides group supervision for the counsellors, and coordinates the learning programmes within the centre.
 
Aside from his work as a clinical psychologist in a tertiary healthcare institute, he volunteers extensively with marginalised communities and stigmatised minorities.
 
He obtained his Masters in Clinical Psychology from the National University of Singapore.
 
His current clinical and research interests lie in the fields of at-risk youth, trauma, and stigmatised minorities.
 
His personal views and research are not affiliated to any organisation he is associated with.
1445: Stigma and Discrimination faced by Sex Workers
Ms Caittrin Lee
Volunteer
Project X
Caittrin Lee is a Professional Dominatrix and Kink Educator with over 38k followers internationally. A career path she has chosen since 2017, she specialises in mindful consensual power exchange.
 
Caittrin spends her free time giving back as a member with Project X, a sex worker rights organisation in Singapore. She is passionate in advocating a safe space for everyone engaged in adult consensual erotic labour, and believes that nobody deserves to be discriminated against.
1500: HIV Sensitivity Training Workshop
Mr P Arun Kumar
Programme Manager
NCID
Arun is currently the programme manager for the Enhanced HIV Programme at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) and has previously worked with the National HIV Programme. He is a former nurse with 12 years of experience in HIV and sexual health community engagement and programme management. He has collaborated on theoretically informed and community-engaged HIV social research with culturally and linguistically diverse people living with HIV at the national level.
Mr Seth Tjia
Director
Transbefrienders
Seth is a volunteer at Transbefrienders since 2020. Having a biological science background and years of research experience, he has been providing resources and summaries of trans-related scientific resources for international online groups before joining Transbefrienders, where he hopes to empower transgender youths in Singapore with knowledge and support.

Session 4: Living Well with HIV

Chair: Dr Dariusz Olszyna (NUH)

1545: Keynote 3 - Ageing with HIV
Dr Wong Pui Li
Medical Lecturer
University of Malaya
Dr. Pui Li Wong is an Infectious Disease Clinician and Lecturer at Universiti Malaya in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Her main interests and passion are in implementation research focused on reducing stigma in healthcare settings and improving the care for people living with HIV as they grow older. This also includes a focus on integrating screening for cognition and other mental health conditions into routine clinical care to provide more holistic care for healthcare clients.
1610: The Mental Burden of HIV - New Insights
Dr Chan Lai Gwen
Sr Consultant
TTSH
Dr Chan Lai Gwen is a subspecialist in Neuropsychiatry and received her training in the neuropsychiatry of HIV from the University of Toronto, St Michael’s Hospital. She has been 1 of 2 local HIV Psychiatrists having regular clinic at NCID for the last 12 years. Her expertise is in HIV-related cognitive impairment. Aside from HIV patients, she also sees patients with neurodegenerative disorders, stroke and acquired brain injuries and has a research interest with several publications on these topics.
1625: Care of the Aging Person Living with HIV: Unique Challenges and Solutions
Ms Verena Tan
Sr MSW
NCID
Verena is a senior medical social worker at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She has a degree in social work from the National University of Singapore and a Specialist Diploma in Satir Transformational Systemic Therapy. She has been working with patients living with HIV and their families for the past 10 years.
Ms Cheng Hong
ANP
NCID
Ms Cheng Hong is an Infectious Disease Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) at the National Centre for Infectious Disease and Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She attained her Mr daniel homaster of Nursing degree from National University of Singapore in 2019. She also worked as an Intensive Care Unit Nurse for 8 years with an Advance Diploma in Critical Care Nursing.
 
Her clinical interest is in providing holistic aging-related HIV care and managing metabolic syndromes in PLHIV.
1640: The Evolving Role of the Community in Supporting the Aging Population
Dr Wong Pui Li
Medical Lecturer
University of Malaya
Dr. Pui Li Wong is an Infectious Disease Clinician and Lecturer at Universiti Malaya in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Her main interests and passion are in implementation research focused on reducing stigma in healthcare settings and improving the care for people living with HIV as they grow older. This also includes a focus on integrating screening for cognition and other mental health conditions into routine clinical care to provide more holistic care for healthcare clients.
Dr Chan Lai Gwen
Sr Consultant
TTSH
Dr Chan Lai Gwen is a subspecialist in Neuropsychiatry and received her training in the neuropsychiatry of HIV from the University of Toronto, St Michael’s Hospital. She has been 1 of 2 local HIV Psychiatrists having regular clinic at NCID for the last 12 years. Her expertise is in HIV-related cognitive impairment. Aside from HIV patients, she also sees patients with neurodegenerative disorders, stroke and acquired brain injuries and has a research interest with several publications on these topics.
Ms Verena Tan
Sr MSW
NCID
Verena is a senior medical social worker at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She has a degree in social work from the National University of Singapore and a Specialist Diploma in Satir Transformational Systemic Therapy. She has been working with patients living with HIV and their families for the past 10 years.
Ms Cheng Hong
ANP
NCID
Ms Cheng Hong is an Infectious Disease Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) at the National Centre for Infectious Disease and Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She attained her Mr daniel homaster of Nursing degree from National University of Singapore in 2019. She also worked as an Intensive Care Unit Nurse for 8 years with an Advance Diploma in Critical Care Nursing.
 
Her clinical interest is in providing holistic aging-related HIV care and managing metabolic syndromes in PLHIV.
Mr Calvin Tan
Executive
Afa
Calvin has been living with HIV since 2016 and uses his lived experience as a young PLHIV to educate the public and advocate for change. He assists in planning HIV/STI prevention and safer sex programmes for the MSM community and provides counselling to newly diagnosed PLHIV and connects with existing ones.

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