Professor David Koh

David Koh qualified in medicine in Singapore, and completed his postgraduate training in the United Kingdom. He worked in the National University of Singapore (NUS) from 1985, and served in various appointments such as Department Chair of Community, Occupational and Family Medicine; Director of the Centre for Environmental and Occupational Health Research, and founding program director of Singapore’s National Preventive Medicine Residency. From 2012-2022, he joined the PAPRSB Institute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD). He was UBD’s Distinguished Professor of Occupational Health and Medicine; and was Assistant Vice Chancellor in UBD from 2014-2018. Professor Koh has since re-joined NUS in 2022, and is currently based at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, and jointly appointed at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.

His research and teaching interests are in occupational and environmental health - with particular interests in salivary biomarkers, occupational dermatology, occupational infections and education and training in occupational health. He has >300 peer reviewed publications and edited several books, including the internationally acclaimed Textbook of Occupational Medicine Practice, now in its 5th edition. He has been listed in the list of top 2% of scientists of their main subfield discipline globally in terms of current and lifetime research impact. Professor Koh is currently appointed on advisory and editorial boards of major international occupational and environmental health journals, and has served as a WHO consultant in occupational health in several countries in the Asia-Pacific such as Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia and the Solomon Islands.

In recognition of his work, Professor Koh has received research awards from professional societies (such as the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Royal College of Physicians London, and the Academy of Medicine Singapore) as well as the School of Medicine of the National University of Singapore. In addition, he is a highly regarded educator who has received University level Teaching excellence awards from both the National University of Singapore and Universiti Brunei Darussalam. For his international work in occupational and environmental health, he has been conferred the Smiley Medal from the Faculty of Occupational Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians Ireland; and the Outstanding Volunteer Award from the Singapore International Foundation (which was presented by the President of the Republic of Singapore). Professor Koh was also bestowed the Lifetime Achievement Award from the College of Public Health and Occupational Physicians of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore.