Aston University appoints UK’s only Regius Professor of Pharmacy

• Professor Ian Wong has been appointed as Regius Professor of Pharmacy at Aston University
• A Regius Professorship is a rare award bestowed on a university by the monarch – a mark of exceptionally high standards of research and teaching
• Aston University’s Pharmacy School can trace its roots back to 1847.

Under embargo until 00:01 hrs BST 3 July 2023| Birmingham, UK

Aston University has appointed Professor Ian Wong as its new Regius Professor of Pharmacy.

Professor Wong is a pharmacoepidemiologist. His research focuses on the application of international healthcare big data to evaluate the use of medicines so that patients will benefit from safer medications. He has led several government-funded large research programmes in Europe, UK and Hong Kong to evaluate the safety of ADHD treatment, psychotropic medications in children and COVID-19 vaccine.

As Regius Chair, Professor Wong will be leading an international big data and pharmacy research collaboration between Aston University and the University of Hong Kong.

Professor Wong qualified as a pharmacist in 1992 and received his PhD from the University of Manchester in 1998 for his work at the David Lewis Centre for Epilepsy. In 2002, he was appointed as the Founding Director of the Centre for Paediatric Pharmacy Research at the School of Pharmacy, University of London, and the UCL Institute of Child Health and Great Ormond Street Hospital, which was recognised as a leading research centre in medicines for children.

After joining Hong Kong University in 2011 as Head of the Department of Pharmacology & Pharmacy, Professor Wong led the accreditation of the BPharm programme by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong. In 2015, in addition to his work at HKU, Professor Wong took up his dual role at UCL.

Professor Wong has also advised the Departments of Health in England and Hong Kong, the World Health Organization, the European Medicines Agency, and the pharmaceutical industry. He has over 500 peer-reviewed papers published in prominent journals including Nature portfolio journals, JAMA Network Journals, The Lancet family journals, BMJ journals.

In recognition of his research, Professor Wong has received numerous awards for his work as an academic pharmacist. He was awarded the Chemist and Druggist Pharmacy Practice Research Conference Medal from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain in 2004, an Honorary Fellowship from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in the UK in 2011, an Honorary Fellowship from the College of Pharmacy Practice in Hong Kong in 2013, and a Fellowship from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in 2013, a Fellowship from British Pharmacological Society and International Society of Pharmacovigilance in 2020.

Aston Pharmacy School at Aston University was one of just 12 institutions awarded a prestigious Regius Professorship by HM The Queen to mark her 90th birthday in 2016 and is the only university to hold a Regius Professorship in pharmacy.

A Regius Professorship is a rare and privileged award with only fourteen created since the reign of Queen Victoria.  Historically they were limited to a handful of ancient universities in the United Kingdom and Ireland such as Oxford, Cambridge and Trinity College, Dublin.  The title of Regius Professor has been held by notable academics such as Sir Hugh Trevor-Roper and Sir Joseph Lister.  A Regius Professorship is a mark of exceptionally high standards of research and teaching.

Aston University’s Pharmacy School is recognised as one of the outstanding pharmacy schools in the UK and has been at the forefront of scientific advances since 1847. Its researchers developed the $2 billion blockbuster drug Temozolomide, the leading treatment for brain tumours and it created the UK’s first masters programme for hospital pharmacists.

Professor Anthony Hilton, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the College of Health and Life Sciences at Aston University, said:

“The appointment of Professor Ian Wong as the new Regius Professor of Pharmacy at Aston University further solidifies our commitment to excellence in pharmacy research and education.

“The award of a Regius Chair for Aston University in 2016 recognised the outstanding work by our Pharmacy School, its current and former members of staff, students and alumni. So, it is a tremendous honour to have Professor Ian Wong join Aston Pharmacy School.

“His extensive leadership and research expertise will bring new opportunities and advancements to our Pharmacy School. We are honoured to have Professor Wong join our team and I have no doubt that he will continue to inspire our colleagues and students to reach even greater heights in the field of healthcare research.”

Commenting on his appointment, Professor Wong said: “I am honoured to be appointed the Regis Chair in the College of Health and Life Sciences at Aston University.

“I am proud to be joining a fast-growing and ambitious College, which is gaining major investments to match its ambitious research programmes in big data research as well as strong relationships with industry in the life sciences sector.

“It is an exciting time to lead an international collaboration with the University of Hong Kong. Together, we will strive to achieve even greater success in the field of healthcare research.”

Professor Aleks Subic, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Aston University, added: “Professor Ian Wong’s appointment as the new Regius Professor of Pharmacy is a testament to his exceptional international standing in pharmacoepidemiology and bioinformatics, specifically in the evaluation of medication safety for patients using global healthcare big data.

“His international leadership in big data and bioinformatics research will undoubtedly elevate the already outstanding Pharmacy School at Aston University. We look forward to his Regius Professorial Inaugural Lecture.”