Dr. Karshini has a deep passion for diagnostic microbiology and parasitology. After earning her Master’s in Pathology (Microbiology) in 2022, she gained experience as a medical microbiologist at Hospital Kuala Lumpur and Hospital Queen Elizabeth in Kota Kinabalu. Her interests focus on diagnostic tools and technologies that can identify pathogens causing parasitic illnesses in laboratories. In December 2023, she joined the Department of Parasitology, University Malaya.  Currently, Dr. Karshini is a medical lecturer in the Department of Parasitology at the University of Malaya and the coordinator of the Parasitology Diagnostic Unit at the University Malaya Medical Centre.

Norhafiza Muda is an Education Officer at Centre of Foundation Studies in Science, University of Malaya, where she is teaching in Physics subject since 2007. She graduated from the University of Malaya, with Master of Philosophy (Advanced Material) in 2011. She also completed the Postgraduate Diploma in Education at University of Malaya.  

  Dr Benedict Francis is an associate professor and consultant psychiatrist at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya. He graduated from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya and was selected for the Brightsparks scholarship to pursue his Masters in Psychological Medicine at his alma mater, the University of Malaya. Subsequently, he completed a fellowship program in Aged Healthcare Services at St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne, in 2019. Dr Benedict is one of the research leads at the Psychological Medicine Research Unit and has been involved as principal investigator and sub-investigator for several international, multi-centre clinical trials including the ESCAPE-TRD, REMISSIO, ASPIRE, SUSTAIN-3, ROUTE 6, and CONNEX-2 trials. He has also published in several international and regional peer-reviewed journals and presented in international congresses. Dr Benedict has and continues to exhibit stellar leadership in his field. He was part of the Ministry of Health’s  National Advisory Board committee that drafted the guidelines for prescribing and dispensing Esketamine, a novel adjunct antidepressant treatment. In addition, he has been part of several steering commitees that paved new directions in mental health. For example, he was appointed to be part of the Southeast Asian steering committee to develop a patient decision aid for people living with schizophrenia. He is also part of the regional Asia Pacific steering commitee to develop a module for cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia (CIAS). In 2023, he received the Excellent Service Award from the University of Malaya in recognition of his contributions. Dr Benedict is regarded as a Key Opinion Leader in the field of treatment resistant depression and schizophrenia and is a regular invited speaker at both local and regional events. He is actively involved in several associations at various levels. He is a life member of the Malaysian Psychiatric Association and a corresponding member of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He is also a member of the Asian College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He was inducted as Fellow of the Pacific Rim College of Psychiatrists. He currently serves on the editorial board of Scientific Reports, a Q1 journal published by the Nature Portfolio. Besides clinical medicine, Dr Benedict is keenly interested in the various facets of research ethics, particularly in the subfield of Neuroethics. He was recently awarded a scholarship under the auspices of the Fogarty International Centre of the United States National Institutes of Health, in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University, to pursue a Master's in Health Research and Ethics at the University of Malaya.