In conjunction with its 25th Anniversary, the IMU is recognising the noteworthy achievements of its alumni by awarding them with the Young Alumnus Award at the IMU Alumni Homecoming 2017! The IMU Young Alumnus Award started exactly 10 years ago in 2007. Only 1 award is given out every 5 years. However, one single award is not enough to cover all the different areas that our alumni are in. Therefore, it was decided that there will be an increase in the number of awards to recognise the efforts of our alumni in different categories. There are 4 categories of this award and they are Academic Achievements, Contributions to the Community, Professional Leadership and a Special Jury Award for those who excelled in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. In total, we have received more than 40 nominations from all over the world, and it has been a stiff competition as every nomination received has its own strength and the judges have had to make very tough decisions. Nevertheless, they unanimously decided that the winners deserved the award for their outstanding performances in the respective categories. The winners received a trophy, a certificate and RM5,000 cash prize. Out of the RM5,000, four thousand Ringgit Malaysia will be donated to the NGO of their choice, with the exception for the Special Jury Award. Young Alumnus Award – Academic Achievements: Dr Janet Ngu 
Dr Janet Ngu is currently the Chief Resident in Cardiac Surgery at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute and the second Canadian Resident that made it into finals in the North American top-gun suturing competition. Despite having born with moderate-to-severe sensorineural hearing loss and having to wear bilateral hearing aids, Dr Janet Ngu had always strived to overcome all overwhelming odds by daring to be different. Ottawa CTV News Video on Dr Janet Ngu. Dr Janet Ngu nominated World Vision Malaysia Berhad as the NGO of her choice to receive the donation. More on Dr Janet Ngu – A Recipe to Success: Transforming Obstacles into Opportunities Young Alumnus Award – Professional Leadership: Georgen Thye 
Georgen Thye from the Dietetics and Nutrition Programme demonstrated leadership and also contributed towards his professional body as well as community by being the council member for Malaysian Dietitians’ Association (MDA) for two terms and leading the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) that looks into planning and implementing CPDs for all member dietitians in Malaysia. He has produced videos on advocating healthy eating to the public out of his own initiative. He has also made numerous appearances on local TV programmes to advocate healthy eating. He has also conducted public talks, trainings for other healthcare profession, culinary & cooking demonstrations for patients, school children, and the wider community. He is currently working in Holmusk on a digital chronic disease management programme, particularly on nutrition. Mr Georgen Thye has nominated PT Foundation, a Foundation committed to creating a Malaysia that is free of HIV and AIDS as the NGO to receive the donation. More on Georgen Thye at An Advocator of the Dietetics Profession Young Alumnus Award – Contributions to the Community : Dr Sharminithevi Paramalingam 
Dr Sharminithevi Paramalingam was working as a general surgeon and lecturer at Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC). In 2016, Dr Sharmini made the difficult decision to leave her job at the hospital. She knew it was the right thing to do especially after volunteering at a medical camp in Laos where a team of them went to 30 villages in Laos, treated about 3,000 villagers and performed minor surgeries in make shift surgical theatres. Today, Dr Sharmini is a medical doctor who serves to provide medical care in an oil refinery construction site in the outskirts of Pengerang, Johor. Dr Sharmini has nominated Kumpulan ACTS Berhad to receive the donation from the prize. Kumpulan ACTS Berhad was established on 17 July 2003, for the purpose of providing organised assistance to refugees and asylum seekers as well as to detainees in immigration detention centres in Peninsula Malaysia. More on Dr Sharminithevi Paramalingam on IMU Alumna’s Passion in Contributing to the Community Young Alumnus Award – Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Dr Chan Jan Bond 
Dr Chan Jan Bond is an ophthalmologist who loves experimenting with various features… not of the eye, but on his smartphone. The specialist has been creating ripples with his numerous innovations in telemedicine, using smartphone technology. His innovations include a slit lamp camera adaptor that will plug in directly over the eyepiece of a slit lamp. His second innovation is smartphone videography, a further modification of his first effort. Next, Dr Chan created free phone apps. Instead of using the traditional Snellen chart to test visual acuity, he designed the Rapid Eye Screening Test (REST) app, which is freely available for download. Today, the self-confessed techie continues to modify and innovate existing gadgets for the betterment of the medical industry. More on Dr Chan Jan Bond – An Innovative Ophthalmologist
The IMU would like to congratulate the winners once again as they are indeed some of the most brilliant bunch of people who are making impactful contributions to the society on a daily basis.
