Experienced Epidemiologist, Public Health, and Population Health Consultant with over 24 years of leadership experience as a Chief Officer, General Supervisor, and Director in public health policy, health systems strengthening, and the healthcare industry. Demonstrated expertise in managing large-scale initiatives, including national vaccination programs, public health operations, population health management, epidemic intelligence, emergency preparedness and response, surveillance, and field epidemiology training. A skilled medical doctor with a Ph.D. in Medicine (Epidemiology and Public Health) from the University of Leeds, with a strong academic background, significant contributions to research and teaching, and a proven track record in strategic planning, data analysis, program management, and global health diplomacy.

Dr. Alfadhalah, an infection prevention and control specialist, is the director of the Infection Control Directorate, Kuwait. Her research interests and professional experience span a wide range of topics including the impact of active surveillance of health care associated infections, epidemiology of health care associated MRSA, and outbreak management. She has extensive experience predominantly on the multimodal infection control interventions well as the role infection control training. Currently she is the head of Committee of Design and Construction Standards of Health care Facilities. She is a member of Kuwait National Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Action Plan, Infection Control Committee for the Inspection of the Private Healthcare Sector as well as the National Sterilization Committee. Alfadhalah is affiliated with Kuwait Association of Infection Control Professionals and Kuwait Medical Association..

Dr. Abdullah Alkandari is a Research Scientist in the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research. His research in public health focuses on epidemiology of diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.

• Professor of medicine in Arabian Gulf University
• Chairperson of strategic advisory group for Antimicrobial Resistance in WHO (STAG AMR WHO)
• Chairperson of Bahrain medical association for infectious disease and medical microbiology
• Senior Consultant in Infectious diseases and Consultant in geriatric medicine
• Chairperson of Internal medicine department and Chairperson of infectious disease / quality department and infections control in King Hamad American mission hospital
• Head of the infection control In King Abdulla University Hospital
• American Board in internal Medicine, American Board in geriatric Medicine, American Board In Infectious Diseases Board in infection control and the American board in medical quality.
• Awarded by His majesty the king for her achievements in improving the clinical services and for the achievement in the antibiotic stewardship program and received the medal of competency from his majesty in the national day of the kingdom December 2016
• Awarded for the program of antibiotic stewardship for the best governmental practices for 2016 by HE the prime Minister in kingdom of Bahrain in 2016

Dr. Areej is an epidemiologist working at the infection control directorate at the ministry of health in Kuwait. She completed her medical undergraduate studies from Kuwait university faculty of medicine. She received both her Master and PhD in epidemiology and public health from University College London (UCL). She is currently the head of the surveillance department in the infection control directorate and also responsible for directing outbreak investigations in all ministries of health hospitals. In addition, she is a lecturer teaching the biostatistics and research modules in the department of community medicine at the faculty of medicine, Kuwait university. Her interests include hospital acquired infections, Candida auris spread, outbreak investigation and automation surveillance analysis.

• Director of Health Emergency, Ministry of Public Health, Qatar (2023–Present)
• Senior public health leader with extensive experience in emergency preparedness, vaccination programs, and national health policy
• Former Head of Vaccination Unit, Ministry of Public Health, Qatar (2016–2023)
• National Lead for COVID-19 Track & Trace and Rapid Response Team during FIFA World Cup 2022
• Former Head of Medical Services, Qatar Airways Medical Services (2008–2016)
• Medical Officer at Alba Health Care Center and Gulf Air Medical Center, Bahrain
• Doctor of Medicine (MD), Arabian Gulf University
• MSc in Healthcare Management, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland – Bahrain
• Arab Board Certified in Community Medicine
• Diploma & Membership in Travel Medicine, RCPSG Glasgow
• Published researcher in public health, vaccination, COVID-19, and aviation medicine
• Member of Qatar Doctors Association and international aviation & travel medicine bodies

Dr. Mariam Abdolmoneim Mansouri is a public health physician and health systems researcher currently serving as Head of the Public Health Department in the Hawalli Health Region, Ministry of Health, Kuwait.

She holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Systems Science for Infectious Disease Policy from Queen’s University Belfast, in addition to a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of Glasgow. Her academic work focuses on the application of systems dynamics, ecological methods, and policy analysis to the prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases, integrating epidemiological evidence with behavioral and policy-level determinants.

Dr. Mansouri has extensive experience in public health surveillance, outbreak preparedness, immunization programs, and intersectoral coordination, and has led multiple initiatives aimed at strengthening public health services and translating evidence into operational public health practice.

She is recognized for her leadership in advancing evidence-based, systems-oriented public health policy and for bridging research with implementation within national health systems.

At the 3rd Kuwait Public Health Conference, Dr. Mansouri serves as a member of the Preparatory Committee and contributes to the scientific program through her work on epidemiological modeling and public health systems strengthening.

Dr. Eman Zubaid is a Clinical Virology Specialist and the Head of Virology Unit in Mubarak AlKabeer Hospital. She is a member of the Virology Technical Committee in the Medical Lab Council in MOH, member of the Public Health Lab Orders Committee in MOH and a member of the Premarital Testing Technical Committee in MOH

Prof Lee is a public health physician with extensive global health experience in pandemic preparedness and response, infectious disease epidemiology and health policy and management. He completed his medical education at the National University of Singapore, and also holds Master of Public Health and Master of Business Administration degrees from the Johns Hopkins University, USA, as well as a PhD in infectious diseases epidemiology from the Australian National University.

Formerly an Advisor to the Assistant Director General for Health, Security and Environment at the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters; Medical Epidemiologist in the WHO Office in Indonesia; and the Head of the Biodefence Centre in the Singapore Armed Forces, Prof Lee has been involved in major global health security collaborations, and has developed pandemic preparedness plans, risk assessment and disease management programmes at the global and national levels. He continues to serve on expert committees at the international level.

Prof Lee is also Senior Director, Communicable Diseases Division at MOH, Adjunct Professor at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, and a council member of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore. He is an avid educator and researcher and has published about 200 scientific papers, many in top journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and The Lancet journals.

Head of the Kuwait National IHR Center. She works in strengthening preparedness and response to public health emergencies. She acts as the Rapporteur of the Permanent National Supreme Committee for the International Health Regulations (IHR), Rapporteur of the Advisory Committee for the WHO (Pandemic Prevention) agreement.

She is the National IHR Focal Point of the State of Kuwait, liaising with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations, including the International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN).

Dr. Al-Qabandi also acts as an International Assessor and Expert, contributing to the assessment of health systems and the strengthening of national capacities in accordance with internationally recognized standards. She led the preparation and implementation of the Joint External Evaluation (JEE) of Kuwait’s IHR capacities and the development of the National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS).

She is a member of the Gulf IHR Committee at the GCC Secretariat and the Gulf Network for Public Health Emergency at the Gulf CDC She has actively participated in numerous Gulf and regional initiatives, including the development of the Unified Gulf Guideline Framework for Points of Entry and the assessment of Gulf border points. She has also contributed to the establishment of working groups and national capacity-building initiatives.

Dr. Al-Qabandi has participated in many regional and international conferences and forums, providing professional contributions in epidemiological surveillance, food safety, substandard and falsified medical products, and health risk management, including chemical and radiological events. She also works to support coordination and collaboration among sectors involved in public health emergencies, contributing to the enhancement of health security.

• Bachelor of Petroleum Engineering – Australian University of Kuwait.
• Senior Petroleum Engineer – Chemical Materials Licensing Department.
• Chemical Safety Administration – Environment Public Authority.

Head of training and statistic department in social health department in ministry of health

Dr. Ghazi Almutairi is a public health specialist with expertise in health policy and tobacco control. He holds an MD, MPH, and PhD from Queen’s University Belfast, UK, and currently serves as Head of the Expatriate Medical Examination Unit within the Public Health Administration at the Ministry of Health.

• Senior Specialist in Clinical Microbiology.
• Chief of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Unit at Kuwait Center For Disease Prevention & Control (Kuwait CDC).
• Chief of National Technical Committee For AMR ( NTCAMR ), and memeber of the National High Committee For AMR ( NCAMR ).
• Chief of Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee at Sabah Al-Ahmad Urology Center ( SAUC ).

Dr. Hessa currently serves as the Director of Health Studies and Research at Ministry of Health and Head of the Department of Population Health at Dasman Diabetes Institute. She also the Vice President of the Kuwait Diabetes Society.

She leads national projects: Kuwait National Population Health Survey and National Diabetes Registry.

Professor of Medicine and Medical director pf Epidemiology and infection prevention at the University of California, Irvine. A nationally recognized leader in healthcare-associated infection prevention. She hs led groundbreaking clinical trials and regional initiatives to reduce antimicrobial-resistance pathogens across hospitals and nursing homes. Her work has shaped national policy and practice, earning numerous honors including election to the Americal Society for Clinical Incestigation. Dr. huang’s research focuses on the prevention of mutidrug-resistant organism transmission and improving patient safety across the continuum of care.

Consultant medical microbiology graduated from king Saud university medical school, and hold KSU fellowship in microbiology, continued training in microbiology at University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Texas Currently the Director of National Antimicrobial resistance at Public Health Authority of Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Osama Al-Baqsami is a prominent medical professional in Kuwait, known for his work in infectious diseases, particularly HIV and STDs.

• Head of the Infectious Diseases Department at Jahra Hospital (Communicable Diseases).
• Chairman of the organizing committee for the Kuwait Annual Conference on AIDS and Venereal Diseases.
• Organizer of medical conferences: In November 2023, he led a conference focused on the latest developments in diagnosing and treating HIV and STDs. He emphasized the need for collective action to combat these diseases, going beyond just medical intervention
• HIV/AIDS program supervision: In 2022, he was involved in supervising a program at the Communicable Diseases Hospital that saw the successful delivery of 100 babies to mothers with HIV, without transmitting the virus to the infants.
• Publication of research: He is also a research contributor, with work appearing on platforms like ResearchGate, where he published on the prevalence of HIV drug resistance in Kuwaiti patients.

Professor Dr. L. Suzanne Suggs, PhD, MSc, BBA, CHES is a Full Professor of Social Marketing at the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) in Lugano Switzerland where she leads the BeCHANGE research group in the Institute of Communication and Public Policy (ICPP). She is Vice-President of the Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), Chair of the SSPH+ Lugano Summer School in Public Health Policy, Economics and Management, and a Visiting Reader at Imperial College London, Institute of Global Health Innovation, Faculty of Medicine. She is co-speaker of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences Expert Group on Science Communication and a Certified Health Education Specialist. In 2020, she was acknowledged for both her scientific and teaching excellence. In March 2020, she joined the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force as a member of the Public Health expert group and soon became co-chair of this group. She remained a member of the Science Task Force for the duration of its two-year mandate and continues to lead the Science Exchange meetings among scientists in Switzerland. In April 2020, she was awarded the Award for Best Teaching at USI, becoming the first woman to receive this honor.

Previously, she served as an Assistant Professor of Health Communication at Emerson College and Adjunct Assistant Clinical Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine, Department of Public Health and Family Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts.

She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration, major in Marketing, at University of North Texas, a Master of Science and Ph.D. in Health Studies from Texas Woman´s University. She was a post-doctoral research fellow at McMaster University, Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Faculty of Health Sciences, in Ontario, Canada and held positions in several for-profit health companies.

Executive Director of Health Information, Gulf Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Gulf Health Council

Sarah Al-Qabandi is a specialist in clinical virology and currently working as head of public health labs Kuwait.

Sarah has 10 years’ experience in diagnosis and treatment of viral infections and validating viral tests in her current positive also she has experience in food analysis and a member in food safety committee in Kuwait also a member in rapid response team and Aids committees and in hepatitis c eradication plan in Kuwait also as public health labs is a national influenza center with the WHO she has an experience in testing influenza and participating in vaccine compositions . As a director of polio lab in KUWAIT she has several inputs in environmental polio surveillance and testing. She is also an acting program director of clinical virology program in Kuwait and has experience in teaching medical students , allied health students, public health students and residents in virology board. Moreover she participates in many conferences as a lecturer .

Infectious disease pharmacist and public health researcher specializing in antimicrobial sterwardship and antimicrobial resistance. He serves as a Pharmacit Specialist at Public Health Ontario and holds academic appoitments at McMaster University and the University of Toronto. With over 100 peer-reviewed publications and global recongnition for his leadership in sterwardship research. He contributes actively to national and international guidline panels and collaborative AMR initiatives.

Public Health Researcher and physician with specialized experties in enviromental and occupational health. He earned his PH.D. from the University of Illionios Chicago in 2025, following an M.P.H. from Brown University and an M.D. from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. His research Spans exposure science, risk assessments, respiratory protection and the health impact of enviromental toxins

Assistanr professor of Epidemiology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Joseph J. Zilber college of Public Health. He earned his PhD in Epidemiology from the universitu of iilinois Chicago where he completed a post graduate training focosed on enviromental and occupational health. Dr. Abasilim’s research invitegates how enviromental toxicants, occupational exposures and social determinants contributes to cardiometabolic and chronic diseases disparties

Lubna Mohamed Al Ariqi is the Director of Public Health Emergencies at the Gulf CDC, and a recognized leader in multi-country emergency management. Since 2022, she has co-led the design and operationalization of the Gulf CDC’s public health emergency strategies, shaping its epidemic intelligence systems, risk assessment functions, and coordination frameworks for preparedness and response across the region.

Prior to her current role, Lubna served as a Technical Officer at WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office, where she supported 22 countries in strengthening their capacities to prepare for, detect, and respond to high-threat pathogens such as MERS-CoV and influenza. During the pandemic, she was an active member of the regional COVID-19 task force, where she initiated and led the development of public health and social measures modeling, coordinated multi-country seroprevalence studies, and engaged in intra-action reviews of national responses.

Trained in the United Kingdom, Lubna holds a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Warwick, a Master of Public Health from Imperial College London, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, with a research focus on strengthening emergency preparedness in the Gulf region.

She has authored over 20 peer-reviewed publications and serves on multiple expert advisory groups in the region. Her areas of interest include global health security, One Health, epidemic intelligence, surveillance systems, operational research, acute respiratory infections, innovation and youth leadership.

Lubna Mohamed Al Ariqi is the Director of Public Health Emergencies at the Gulf CDC, and a recognized leader in multi-country emergency management. Since 2022, she has co-led the design and operationalization of the Gulf CDC’s public health emergency strategies, shaping its epidemic intelligence systems, risk assessment functions, and coordination frameworks for preparedness and response across the region.

Prior to her current role, Lubna served as a Technical Officer at WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office, where she supported 22 countries in strengthening their capacities to prepare for, detect, and respond to high-threat pathogens such as MERS-CoV and influenza. During the pandemic, she was an active member of the regional COVID-19 task force, where she initiated and led the development of public health and social measures modeling, coordinated multi-country seroprevalence studies, and engaged in intra-action reviews of national responses.

Trained in the United Kingdom, Lubna holds a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Warwick, a Master of Public Health from Imperial College London, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, with a research focus on strengthening emergency preparedness in the Gulf region.

She has authored over 20 peer-reviewed publications and serves on multiple expert advisory groups in the region. Her areas of interest include global health security, One Health, epidemic intelligence, surveillance systems, operational research, acute respiratory infections, innovation and youth leadership.