KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 (Bernama) -- The Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM)-led National Mission-Oriented Initiative (MOI) on Empowerment of Digital Healthcare will mobilise key stakeholders to transform Malaysia’s healthcare ecosystem towards better outcomes for the people.
Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Datuk Chang Lih Kang said the initiative, one of seven national MOIs approved by the National Science Council, would move beyond fragmented digital projects by bringing together the government, healthcare providers, researchers, industry and communities around measurable national outcomes.
He said these include improved continuity of care, earlier disease detection, more equitable access and a more resilient health system.
“It also strengthens the Research, Development, Innovation, Commercialisation and Economy (RDICE) continuum by connecting health needs with research priorities, enabling innovations to be validated in real-world settings, supporting their adoption and commercialisation, and scaling solutions that can contribute to national growth,” he said.
He was speaking at the 2026 Dr Ranjeet Bhagwan Singh (RBS) Annual Memorial Forum and the announcement of the RBS Medical Research Grant here today.
Chang said the Malaysia Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) Chapter, pursued by ASM in collaboration with the Ministry of Health Malaysia, particularly the National Institutes of Health, and linked with the Malaysia Open Science Platform, marks an important step towards creating a national platform for collaboration.
He said this initiative supports the efforts of the National MOI on the Empowerment of Digital Healthcare.
“OHDSI promotes the use of common data standards to enable more consistent, responsible and meaningful analysis of health data across different institutions and systems to advance research, innovation and better healthcare outcomes,” he added.
At the event, Dr Low Liang Ee of Monash University Malaysia was announced as the recipient of the 2026 RBS Medical Research Grant for his project, titled “Development of pH-sensitive Morphological Transformable Nanoparticles for Tumour-specific Accumulation, Prolonged Retention and Magnetic Hyperthermia Therapy”.
ASM president Datuk Dr Tengku Mohd Azzman Shariffadeen, who is also the Science, Technology and Innovation Advisor to the Prime Minister and the Nation, said the programme received 125 applications this year, of which seven were shortlisted.
He said each proposal underwent rigorous and transparent evaluation based on scientific excellence, innovative approaches and potential to deliver health and socioeconomic benefits to the nation.
Tengku Mohd Azzman said this year’s theme “Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled Healthcare for Smarter Solutions and Well-Being,” focuses on the role of emerging and disruptive technologies in improving healthcare outcomes.
“AI offers important possibilities. It can support early detection, more precise medical-image analysis, hasten drug discovery, enhance population-health planning, and systematise routine administrative work to be more efficient and productive,” he said.
Meanwhile, forum panellist Academician Datuk Dr Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud said AI could be highly effective in identifying patterns in medical images, but its findings should not be treated as definitive diagnoses without further clinical confirmation.
However, he said AI could make a significant difference when it was able to connect different sources of health data, including medical findings and genetic information, to identify cases that warranted a second opinion.
“These are where AI really makes a difference because it can connect all these disparate data sources together and say you really should be going for a second opinion,” he said.
He said these include improved continuity of care, earlier disease detection, more equitable access and a more resilient health system.
“It also strengthens the Research, Development, Innovation, Commercialisation and Economy (RDICE) continuum by connecting health needs with research priorities, enabling innovations to be validated in real-world settings, supporting their adoption and commercialisation, and scaling solutions that can contribute to national growth,” he said.
He was speaking at the 2026 Dr Ranjeet Bhagwan Singh (RBS) Annual Memorial Forum and the announcement of the RBS Medical Research Grant here today.
Chang said the Malaysia Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) Chapter, pursued by ASM in collaboration with the Ministry of Health Malaysia, particularly the National Institutes of Health, and linked with the Malaysia Open Science Platform, marks an important step towards creating a national platform for collaboration.
He said this initiative supports the efforts of the National MOI on the Empowerment of Digital Healthcare.
“OHDSI promotes the use of common data standards to enable more consistent, responsible and meaningful analysis of health data across different institutions and systems to advance research, innovation and better healthcare outcomes,” he added.
At the event, Dr Low Liang Ee of Monash University Malaysia was announced as the recipient of the 2026 RBS Medical Research Grant for his project, titled “Development of pH-sensitive Morphological Transformable Nanoparticles for Tumour-specific Accumulation, Prolonged Retention and Magnetic Hyperthermia Therapy”.
ASM president Datuk Dr Tengku Mohd Azzman Shariffadeen, who is also the Science, Technology and Innovation Advisor to the Prime Minister and the Nation, said the programme received 125 applications this year, of which seven were shortlisted.
He said each proposal underwent rigorous and transparent evaluation based on scientific excellence, innovative approaches and potential to deliver health and socioeconomic benefits to the nation.
Tengku Mohd Azzman said this year’s theme “Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled Healthcare for Smarter Solutions and Well-Being,” focuses on the role of emerging and disruptive technologies in improving healthcare outcomes.
“AI offers important possibilities. It can support early detection, more precise medical-image analysis, hasten drug discovery, enhance population-health planning, and systematise routine administrative work to be more efficient and productive,” he said.
Meanwhile, forum panellist Academician Datuk Dr Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud said AI could be highly effective in identifying patterns in medical images, but its findings should not be treated as definitive diagnoses without further clinical confirmation.
However, he said AI could make a significant difference when it was able to connect different sources of health data, including medical findings and genetic information, to identify cases that warranted a second opinion.
“These are where AI really makes a difference because it can connect all these disparate data sources together and say you really should be going for a second opinion,” he said.