KUALA LUMPUR, August 6 — Prof Emeritus Dr Norella Kong Chiew Tong, Dr Steven Chow Kim Weng, and Dr Jayaram Menon have received the Lifetime Achievement Award 2025 from the College of Physicians Malaysia (COPM).
Dr Kong is a professor emeritus of nephrology at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s (UKM) faculty of medicine, whereas Dr Chow is a senior consultant dermatologist who heads the Department of Dermatology at Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Dr Jayaram is a senior consultant gastroenterologist and physician currently working at Pantai Hospital Ayer Keroh in Melaka.
The awards were presented by Perak ruler Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah, who is also COPM patron, at the opening of COPM’s Annual Scientific Congress 2025 at the Medical Academies Malaysia in Putrajaya last Sunday.
“This recognition is not just a personal milestone but a tribute to all those who have journeyed with me in advancing medicine and dermatology in Malaysia and in Asia,” Dr Chow told CodeBlue.
“The award is a testimony one can enjoy a lifetime in medicine without sacrificing one’s ideals and compromising one’s ethics. I have particularly enjoyed leading the dermatology fraternity beyond the shores of Malaysia and helming the regional alliances over the past 40 years and to be recognised by my peers in other countries as well as globally.”
Dr Chow was among the earliest Malaysian dermatologists to introduce biologic therapy for psoriasis, besides pioneering the use of pulse methylprednisolone therapy in pemphigus vulgaris, a rare autoimmune disease.
He documented the country’s first case of dapsone-resistant leprosy and was the first Malaysian dermatologist to present scientific work in China, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Dr Chow was also the first Malaysian dermatologist to present at the World Congress of Dermatology and the first Malaysian member of the Dowling Club in the United Kingdom.
Dr Chow is the founding editor of the Malaysian Journal of Dermatology and has served on the editorial boards of the Indian Journal of Dermatology and British Journal of Dermatology.
His scholarly contributions span leprosy, psoriasis, alopecia, acne, photoaging, pharmaco-economics, and the molecular biology of skin and hair.
Dr Chow served as the founding secretary-general of both the League of ASEAN Dermatological Societies (LADS) and the Asian Academy of Dermatology & Venereology (AADV). He was also the founding president of the Asian League of Dermatological Societies (ALDS).
“His leadership in the AADV’s Asian Skin Foundation Committee has resulted in authoritative reference documents on psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and lupus erythematosus,” wrote Prof Dr Ahmad Izuanuddin Ismail in a citation for Dr Chow.
“Dr Chow pioneered the use of biologic therapies for psoriasis in Malaysia and has actively championed equitable access to dermatological care, including through outreach initiatives such as DRSFORALL for underserved communities.”
Norella The Reason Why Dialysis Is Now A Household Term
Dr Kong was described as having left an “indelible mark” on the landscape of internal medicine and nephrology over the past four decades of her career. In the 1980s, access to dialysis for the majority of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients.
“Recognising this concern, Dr Norella helped champion the effort to secure funding from the public and government to set up affordable, equitable dialysis services and kidney transplantation for the Malaysian people,” Prof Dr G. R. Letchuman Ramanathan wrote in a citation for Dr Kong.
“She played no small role in the fact that ‘dialysis’ is now a household term in our country.”
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) was relatively unknown among medical practitioners at the time. Dr Kong helped found the Malaysian SLE Association.
“Dr Norella’s early scientific forays delving into kidney disease were at the frontiers of Nephrology. She is distinguished as an authority on SLE and was invited by the International Society of Nephrology to sit on the expert working group for the reclassification of lupus glomerulonephritis. This publication was pivotal and is an oft-cited work in nephrology.”
Dr Kong spearheaded the latest extracorporeal technologies for dealing with critically ill acute kidney injury (AKI) patients in Malaysia and was the first to use plasmapheresis, immunoadsorption and similar modalities for treating severe autoimmune diseases. She was also a contributory member to the International Apheresis Registry.
She further co-established the first National Physician Training Programme, the National Subspecialty Nephrology Training Programme, and the Post Basic Renal Nursing Course.
Dr Kong has published two textbooks, two book chapters, and over 110 scientific articles in local and international journals, besides having presented more than 200 scientific abstracts.
“Dr Norella is a transformative teacher, scientist, leader, clinician and patient advocate. Her erudite ambassadorship and passionate voice will reverberate and inspire for generations to come,” wrote Dr Letchuman.
Jayaram Pioneered Training For MRCP In Sabah
Dr Jayaram was the Sabah state physician and head of the Department of Medicine and Gastroenterology Unit in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah from 1990 until 2017.
The senior consultant gastroenterologist and physician was credited for his contributions to the development of the government hospital’s department of medicine as a centre of excellence for training in medicine and research.
“He pioneered training for the MRCP in Sabah and to this day, Queen Elizabeth Hospital holds an excellent MRCP PACES course which attracts numerous Malaysian and overseas candidates annually,” Dr Hooi Lai Ngoh wrote in a citation for Dr Jayaram.
Dr Jayaram, who previously served as the national head of both gastroenterology and internal medicine at the Ministry of Health (MOH), developed the training programme in gastroenterology for physicians in the ministry.
The Gastroenterology Fellowship Programme has since produced numerous Malaysian gastroenterologists. Dr Jayaram was instrumental in initiating the Post-basic Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Nursing Programme in Malaysia in 2009.
Dr Jayaram was adjunct professor of medicine at the Faculty of Medicine at Universiti Malaysia Sabah and is currently a committee member of the Malaysian Society of Gastroenterology & Hepatology.
“He has published numerous papers in medicine and gastroenterology and continues to lecture actively in gastroenterology,” wrote Dr Hooi.
