Lucy Lum Chai See joined the University of Malaya, Department of Paediatrics in 1990. Assigned to the paediatric acute care ward, she recognised the need of acutely ill children and set to look after them even though resources were meagre, the resistance to expansion stiff and the doctors and nurses lacking in knowledge and skills. Pioneers of Paediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) were invited to Malaysia to begin PALS training. Over the next four years, Lucy and colleagues contributed to twenty-five consecutive training courses for >800 doctors and nurses in 12 of 13 states. Her enthusiasm and perseverance saw her refining the management of severe dengue in children and other critical conditions. She underwent clinical-fellowship training in paediatric intensive care in The Hospital for Sick Children, in 1996. The Toronto and the North American experience shaped Lucy’s physiological approach to mechanical ventilation of healthy and sick lungs.  She later became the first Malaysian to complete the Paediatric examination for the European Diploma in Intensive Care.  Back in Malaysia, the P1 Acute Care Ward was hit by a shortage of funding and support. Despite of the limited resources, the unit played a key role in defining the pathophysiology of EV71 outbreak which caused many deaths in 1997. In 2001 the Hospital allowed a charity fund to be established.  Soon after The Star highlighted the PICU work, generous support poured in through individual, public and corporate donations. Then UMMC eventually acknowledged the work and formed the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit.  For the first time the PICU received a stronger allocation of nurses and budget needed to ensure the smooth delivery of intensive care for children. Humanitarian medicine should not be a casualty of technology.  Lucy is very much a hands-on bedside doctor. Her clinical rounds are characterised by both an incisive analysis of history, physical examinations and investigations as well as standing back to view the “Google map”.  Doctors and nurses are trained not just to treat the disease, but to treat the patient as a human being connected to families and societies. Her clinical expertise was sought after by WHO, and regional offices in the Western-Pacific Region where she has been to China, Laos, the Solomon Islands and Africa.  She was invited by WHO/TDR to be the lead author of the handbook on clinical case management of dengue and by WPRO to design a training curriculum of dengue management.  She was credited for bringing calm to a chaotic situation in the Solomon Islands, a poor nation of islands in the middle of the Pacific. Re-training doctors in basic clinical techniques which identify the high risk patients was her legacy. She has managed to unify the various clinical departments in UMMC to work together so that dengue patients do not fall between the cracks. She collaborated with the various hospitals in Ministry of Health and WHO, Geneva, Oxford University, Brandeis University, and other universities in Singapore, SEAsia, Latin America and European Union. In the field of paediatric intensive care, she collaborates with colleagues in North America and around the world in pediatric sepsis, congenital diaphragmatic hernia and neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.   Compassion has to be the driving force behind the otherwise just another slogan, “First, do no harm”. Through her inspirational leadership, the PICU which used to record high rates of nosocomial infections has been transformed into one with high rates of hand hygiene and low rates of infection.  Yet, the work is not finished; her KPI (key performance index) for her staff is zero blood stream infection.  Indeed this is possible.

Nik Elyna Myeda currently serves as the Director of the Academic Policy Division within the Academic Strategic Planning Department (ASPD) of Universiti Malaya (UM), where she plays a pivotal role in shaping the university's academic initiatives. She is also a senior lecturer and researcher at the Department of Building Surveying, Faculty of Built Environment, UM. Elyna holds a PhD in Facilities Management from University College London (2013) and both MSc in Building and Bachelor’s in Building Surveying from UM. Her research has been widely published in high-impact journals, and she has authored several books.  Elyna was also selected as the University Representative for the Asia Pacific Women in Leadership (APWiL) Stewardship Program (2023–2024), an initiative by the Asia Pacific Research Universities (APRU), where she enhanced her leadership skills and broadened her academic network. She is a recipient of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) - Dialogue on Innovative Higher Education Strategies (DIES) Program (2020), which has further strengthened her international academic connections. Elyna has led and collaborated on numerous research projects funded by international and national grants, including the Sumitomo Foundation (2024–2025), British Council Catalyst Grant (2022–2023), and University of Fukui Publicly Solicited Grant (2022–2023), driving advancements in Facilities Management practices. Her research outputs include publications in high-impact journals, contributions to special issues, and presentations at global conferences. She is an active member of the Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM) and is certified as a BIMFM Master Trainer by CIDB Malaysia. A recipient of multiple accolades, including the UM Service Excellence Awards, Best Presenter and Best Paper Awards at international conferences, Elyna has also served as an invited speaker at academic and industry events. Beyond academia, she holds editorial roles, including Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Surveying, Construction & Property (2023–2026), and contributes as a Technical Committee Member for ISO Facilities Management Standards Malaysia. Elyna is committed to advancing education and research in the built environment.  

Dr. Purabi Mazumdar is a Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture (CEBAR), Universiti Malaya. She earned her Master’s degree in Botany from Gauhati University and a Doctoral degree in Bioenergy from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG), India. Dr. Mazumdar’s research focuses on urban farming, enhancing crop nutritional quality, and crop protection through customized UV radiation, as well as agronomic, molecular, and biochemical strategies. She leads projects funded by grants from CREST, the Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE), and industry partners. Her current work emphasizes advanced crop protection and urban farming systems, including aquaponics, hydroponics, and aeroponics. Driven by the pursuit of sustainable agricultural practices, Dr. Mazumdar aims to answer a critical research question: How can we achieve sustainable, nutrient-dense, and clean food systems that promote health and well-being for all?