Dr. Marissa Alejandria Sworn in as New UP Manila National Institutes of Health Executive Director

August 13, 2025

Text by Charmaine A. Lingdas
Photos by Sarah Hazel Moces S. Pulumbarit

Dr. Marissa M. Alejandria officially took her oath as Executive Director of the University of the Philippines Manila – National Institutes of Health (NIH) during the Chancellor’s Management Team meeting on August 12, 2025, at the UP Manila Board Room.

Her appointment was approved during the 1,401st meeting of the UP Board of Regents on June 26, 2025. She succeeds Dr. Eva Maria Cutiongco-de la Paz, who led the NIH from 2019 to 2025.

A professor of Clinical Epidemiology at the UP College of Medicine and a Clinical Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at the Department of Medicine of the Philippine General Hospital, Dr. Alejandria previously served as Director of the NIH Institute of Clinical Epidemiology. She is widely recognized for her leadership in major national and international health research initiatives.

She has led and contributed to numerous national and international health research projects, including Phil-DIAMOND, the WHO Solidarity Treatment and Vaccine Trials for COVID-19, the COVID-19 Living Clinical Practice Guidelines, genome sequencing-based biosurveillance, TB RePORT, the National Practice Guidelines Program, and the Periodic Health Examination Guidelines (PHEX 3).

As the new NIH Executive Director, Dr. Alejandria is expected to draw on her extensive background in epidemiology, infectious diseases, and public health to support evidence-based healthcare policies and address health challenges in the country.