Triggered by our experience with the COVID-19 pandemic and the SARS epidemic, when infectious disease is mentioned, we might think of viral diseases like Ebola, Nipah or Hantavirus. 

Infectious disease can also be bacterial resulting in tuberculosis, pneumonia or food poisoning, fungal that cause yeast infection, ringworm or athlete’s foot, or parasitic that can lead to malaria.

At Singapore General Hospital, doctors in the Department of Infectious Diseases plays a critical supportive role across multiple disciplines at the hospital, ensuring infection control and prevention. They treat a wide spectrum of infections of varying complexity, ranging from simple community acquired infections to complex infections in immunocompromised patients.

Podcast guest Professor Azra Ghani, prominent Epidemiologist and Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at Imperial College London, discusses the future of pandemics our podcast hosts Associate Professor Goh Su-Yen and Professor Jenny Low in this SGH Hospital of the Future Podcast.

Professor Azra provides insights into her research on mathematical models and statistical methods to understand the transmission dynamics and control of a range of infectious diseases, and developing models to explore the impact of interventions and to inform and guide policy. She also shares about her work with the World Health Organization on their technical strategy for malaria and as a member of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) Scientific Advisory Committee.

In addition to being a Professor at the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, Professor Azra is Academic Director of Imperial Global Singapore. She explains why it’s important to for Imperial College London to have a presence is Singapore and how collaboration with universities, industry, government and private sector partners in Singapore will benefit the region.