UoC Establishes Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai Lifestyle Medicine Visiting Professorship

CYBERJAYA, Jan 7 (Bernama) -- The University of Cyberjaya (UoC) today formalised the establishment of the Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai Visiting Professorship in Lifestyle Medicine, supported by a RM2 million endowed fund in perpetuity aimed at advancing preventive and lifestyle-based healthcare in Malaysia.

The fund, which carries Lim’s name, the founder and executive chairman of Top Glove Corporation Bhd, is intended to advance lifestyle medicine through teaching, research and community engagement at UoC.

The endowment consists of a RM1 million contribution from Lim, matched by RM1 million from the UoC, creating a permanent corpus to support long-term academic, research, and societal impact in lifestyle medicine.

UoC Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive Professor Dr David Whitford said the newly established initiative is expected to strengthen the university’s role in promoting preventive healthcare and behaviour change.

“What this will do is two things, one is to strengthen the teaching within the university in this area (lifestyle medicine) and the other is to strengthen the research within the university as to how we help people to change their behaviours even more,” he said in a press conference after the launching ceremony here today.

He said the endowment would allow the university to bring in international expertise to complement its existing academic strengths.

“The initiative will support multidisciplinary collaboration across medical, nursing, pharmacy and allied health programmes, while reinforcing the university’s partnership with the Malaysian Society of Lifestyle Medicine Association,” he added.

According to Whitford, these visiting professors will work with the UoC’s academics and students, deliver lectures and flagship talks, support joint research, contribute to curriculum development and participate in outreach programmes to strengthen understanding of how people can be helped to get better by changing how they live, rather than just prescribing medicines.

Lifestyle medicine uses proven lifestyle changes, such as healthy eating, regular exercise, good sleep, stress control, avoiding harmful substances and strong social connections to prevent, treat and sometimes reverse long-term diseases, such as diabetes.

Meanwhile, UoC Pro‑Chancellor Tan Sri Dr R Palan said the endowed fund will be managed to support both the university and its students by ensuring that no student is hindered from learning because of financial constraints.

“One of the key things is we believe in holistic education. As Tan Sri (Lim) always says, it is no good talking about something if you do not practise it, so our goal is to help students practice healthy living,” he said, adding that the university will continue to advocate good lifestyle habits to help address rising healthcare costs in Malaysia.

The endowed fund will be placed in an income-generating account by the university, with returns used to support the visiting professorship and related activities continuously.

A dedicated Endowment Oversight Committee, comprising UoC leaders and representatives of Lim, will guide the use of the fund in line with the shared objectives of the programme and to ensure strong governance and sustained outcomes.

Lim said lifestyle diseases are placing an increasing burden on society and investing in education, research and leadership in lifestyle medicine helps build healthier communities and reduces long-term healthcare costs.

“Lifestyle and preventive medicine demonstrate how consistent, practical changes in daily habits can significantly improve health.

“I hope this Visiting Professorship inspires students, healthcare professionals, and the public to take personal responsibility for their health and become positive contributors to society,” he added.

-- BERNAMA