NEW CEO FOR HEALTH SCIENCES AUTHORITY (HSA)

            Dr Mimi Choong May Ling will be appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) on 1 July 2014 and will assume the CEO-designate appointment during the interim. She will take over from A/Prof John Lim Chien Wei, who will be returning to the Ministry of Health on 1 July 2014 as Deputy Director of Medical Services (Industry and Research Matters) and concurrently heading a new initiative to promote regulatory excellence at the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School.

2          Dr Choong is currently Deputy Secretary (Services) in the Ministry of Education (MOE). As Deputy Secretary (Services), Dr Choong played a key role in talent development, financial resource management, and transformation of customer service. 

3          Prior to her appointment as Deputy Secretary (Services), MOE, Dr Choong was Deputy Secretary (Security) in the Ministry of Home Affairs. She also held various key positions in other Ministries, such as Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. Dr Choong graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the National University of Singapore. She was awarded the Public Administration Medal (Silver) in 2004 and the Public Administration Medal (Gold) in 2010.

4          As the incoming CEO, Dr Choong will build on the foundations laid by A/Prof Lim and previous CEOs, and continue to build and sustain HSA as a reputable and high performing organisation that protects and advances national health and safety.

5          During his eight-year stint as CEO HSA, A/Prof Lim has significantly strengthened the agency’s organisation, culture and manpower to more effectively deliver across its diverse functions of health product regulation, transfusion medicine and forensic/applied sciences. He has grown its professional expertise and capabilities, promoted strong scientific commitment across its technically complex areas, encouraged engagement with its diverse stakeholders, and enhanced HSA’s global reputation. 

6          Under A/Prof Lim’s leadership, HSA’s regulatory frameworks and systems were strengthened to address the challenges of new types of health products through risk stratification, targeted expertise development, and robust collaboration with local and overseas partners in information exchange, enforcement activities and post-market surveillance. The blood service has also grown during A/Prof Lim’s tenure with the opening of the first fixed satellite blood centre at Woodlands in 2011, and the second at Dhoby Ghaut in 2012.  HSA’s forensic and analytical chemistry services have also been expanded to better support law enforcement agencies, the judicial system and other government agencies.

7          During his tenure, A/Prof Lim has done much to position HSA among the leading international regulatory and scientific organisations, and developed a strong network of collaborations with Interpol and regulatory agencies in several countries.     

8          The Ministry of Health and the Health Sciences Authority wish to express their deep appreciation to A/Prof John Lim for his contributions during his eight years as CEO, and to extend a warm welcome to Dr Mimi Choong as the new Chief of HSA.