Nokuthula ‘Nikki’ Kitikiti
Vaccines Policy Lead for Growth and Emerging Markets
Takeda
Nikki’s Corridor
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South Africa – Zimbabwe – US – Iran – England – Kenya – Singapore
About
Nikki heads the vaccine policy program for a Japanese multinational pharmaceutical company Takeda. A medical doctor specialising in Public Health Medicine, Nikki is based in Singapore where she has resided since 2008. She was born in the US, raised, and educated in Zimbabwe with stints around the world as the daughter of a diplomat.
Raised by a veteran of the war for the liberation of Zimbabwe from the apartheid rule of the then-minority Rhodesian government, Nikki was raised with a strong sense of justice and equality. Her calling to medicine and public health stemmed from her own experience of watching the HIV/AIDS pandemic unfold in her community in Zimbabwe. She also saw how patient communities successfully lobbied for governments to make HIV treatment accessible and affordable to those in poor countries. This experience as a caregiver and community advocate galvanised her resolve and awareness that communities are often the most important catalyst for truly transformative change in global health. Her current work focus in Singapore is in developing a culture in health systems in Asia that values the expertise of the lived experience of patients and caregivers and systematically integrates their perspectives in decision-making for health services and policy-making for access to healthcare and essential health products. Nikki believes that health is a human right and advocates for the rights of migrant workers in Singapore as a volunteer at Healthserve, which provides medical and social services for migrant workers who are underserved in the Singaporean health system.
Education
Nikki holds a BA in Anthropology and Chemistry from Macalester College, a small liberal arts college in Minnesota, US. Her medical degree is from Duke-NUS Medical School (on scholarship from the Ministry of Health Singapore (MOH)).
Highlights
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nikki volunteered to be redeployed to the Accident & Emergency Department which was overwhelmed with patients. She was also a medical volunteer for mobile COVID-19 testing teams performing swabs and serology in foreign worker dormitories and community care facilities. For her contributions to Singapore’s fight against COVID-19, Nikki received the “Hero Award” during the Singapore Health Quality Service Awards 2021.
Nikki has since specialised in Public Health Medicine focusing on health regulation, policy, and epidemiology, and is the first black doctor to complete their specialist medical training entirely in Singapore, qualifying as a Fellow of the Academy of Medicine Singapore. She was also the first black student at the newly established graduate medical school in Singapore, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, modelled on the US curriculum at Duke University.
Nikki conceptualised and created the Coalition to Accelerate Patient Engagement (CAPE) which works with patient organisations, ministries of health, healthcare professionals, and industry across Asia-Pacific.
Fun Fact
When she is not working Nikki thrives wherever there is sunshine, good vibes and good music. She has loved exploring the small soul, funk, reggae, and retro-disco music scene in Singapore. She is thankful for all the misfits and beautiful souls she has met in Singapore who dance to the beat of their own drum. Nikki is currently working towards self-acceptance of her mish-mash of an accent that is a mix of everywhere she has spent a significant amount of time-huge chunk of Singlish and Zimglish and some American flavour.
“Every “wrong turn” from my original plan has led me to a higher purpose and new experience I would never have otherwise had. So I do not believe in plans or a one track destiny anymore. I trust that I am always exactly where I am meant to be, and right on God’s time and will fulfil the purpose he has for me”.
Nikki on Career Journeys
Resources
A docu-series during the 2019-2020+ pandemic, looking at the integration of health, economy, and society. We feature “generational champions” who are helping to define the new world.
Journeying Into Global Health with Nikki K