Dr Nittaya Phanuphak

Dr Nittaya Phanuphak is currently the Executive Director at the Institute of HIV Research and Innovation (IHRI) in Bangkok, Thailand. 

She has deep interest in the establishment and sustainability of the Key Population-Led Health Services (KPLHS) which empower key population lay providers who are members of key population communities to design and co-deliver sexual and reproductive health, mental health, rights, and harm reduction services to their peers.  

In 2015, she supported the establishment of the Tangerine Clinic using integrated gender-affirming care and sexual health service approach to effectively bring almost 10 000 transgender women and transgender men into services over a 10-year period. Evidence generated has led to the successful inclusion of gender-affirming care as part of Thailand’s Universal Health Coverage in 2025. The model has been expanded to community-led organizations, as well as public and private clinics, working with transgender people in the region. 

Dr Phanuphak started her career in the HIV field in 2002, leading a country-wide prevention of mother-to-child transmission operational study which led Thai guidelines to allow the use of three-drug antiretroviral regimens for pregnant women in 2010. 

She was the International AIDS Society (IAS) Governing Council Representative of Asia and the Pacific Islands during 2018-2026, and previously served as Chief of the SEARCH and PREVENTION units of the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre. 

Dr Phanuphak has published over 350 peer-reviewed articles. She serves as the Deputy Editor for the Journal of the International AIDS Society and the Associate Editor for the Sexual Health.