Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director WHO South-East Asia, has been awarded Bhutan’s prestigious National Order of Merit Gold Medal for her distinguished services to the country.
Key points
- The King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk honored Dr Khetrapal Singh, an Indian national, at Bhutan’s 116th National Day celebration.
- Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh is the first woman Regional Director of WHO South-East Asia Region.
- She played a pivotal role in supporting transformative healthcare leadership in Bhutan from 2014 to 2024.
- Her tenure witnessed remarkable strides, including Bhutan becoming one of the first countries to eliminate measles and rubella ahead of schedule.
- She made significant contributions to help Bhutan excel in COVID-19 vaccination.
- Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh became the first Indian to be elected as the Regional Director of WHO South-East Asia.
- During her decade long term, the Region has witnessed unprecedented advances in public health, specially around her flagship programmes.
- Bhutan and four other countries eliminated measles and rubella. The Region eradicated polio and eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus. Bhutan and four other countries eliminated measles and rubella.
Elimination and Eradication
- Elimination means to make the disease not transmissible to other communities where the disease prevalence is almost zero.
- Eradication means reduction of the disease to zero globally with no more risk of the disease coming back, thanks to consistent interventions.
- Smallpox is and example that many disease efforts look to as proof that it can be done. Due to a concerted vaccination campaign between the 1960s and 1980s people stopped getting and dying from smallpox. Now, there are zero cases around the world.
