Organization: Geneva University Hospitals
Country: Switzerland
Born in Switzerland to a Romanian father and a Swiss mother, Alexandra Calmy completed her medical education in Geneva, obtaining her diploma in 1994. She trained in internal medicine and infectious diseases, and in 2009, earned a PhD in clinical research in Sydney, Australia. Appointed Associate Professor in 2014 and Full Professor in 2021, she currently leads the HIV/AIDS Unit (Division of Infectious Diseases) at the University Hospitals of Geneva. Additionally, she holds a leadership role at the Center for Clinical Research at the same institution.
Alexandra’s research is centred on public health and humanitarian responses to HIV and AIDS, focusing particularly on antiretroviral therapy and managing side effects in resource-limited settings. She has collaborated with Médecins Sans Frontières since 1996, supporting its HIV and AIDS initiatives for over a decade as a scientific advisor and member of the MSF access campaign, including the establishment of the first antiretroviral access programme.
Since 2001, Alexandra has been involved with World Health Organization working groups in developing and implementing guidelines for HIV treatment in low- and middle-income countries. Committed to mentoring the next generation of clinicians in meaningful research, she co-leads the CSS13 committee at the “Agence National de Recherche sur le SIDA – maladies émergentes” (ANRS-MIE) and actively participates in the scientific board of the Swiss HIV Study Cohort.
In 2020, she joined the COVID-19 response in Switzerland, co-chairing the clinical group of the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force. More recently, she has been involved in coordinating care and treatment for people with mpox.