Robert Kho-Seng Lim

Robert was a trailblazing scientist and educator known as the "father of physiology in China." Born in Singapore in 1897, Robert pursued his higher education at the University of Edinburgh, earning a medical MBChB degree in 1919 and then a PhD in 1921. He established a formidable reputation in physiology and played a pioneering role in modernising medical education in China.

After completing his education in Edinburgh, Robert was awarded a Rockefeller Fellowship and moved to the United States, where he worked at the University of Chicago. He returned to China as head of the Department of Physiology at the Peking Union Medical College, becoming the first Chinese person to hold such a post at the institution. In 1926, he founded the Chinese Physiological Society and the Chinese Journal of Physiology, propelling forward both the study and dissemination of physiological sciences in China.

Robert's influence extended beyond the academic realm into practical medical service during the Second World War. He helmed China’s medical relief operations, setting up training programs that prepared over 15,000 medical and technical personnel and organising what was considered the largest wartime medical center in China. For his contributions during the war, he was twice honoured by the United States, receiving the Legion of Honor and the Medal of Freedom.

Robert's research notably advanced the understanding of pain, distinguishing the roles of peripheral and central analgesics in the process. His lifelong passion for science and education left a lasting impact on medical practices and scientific inquiry in China and beyond.