India, May 13 -- In her memoir, Bridging Boundaries: Memoirs of a Public Health Journey, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, the first woman regional director of the World Health Organization's (WHO) South-East Asia region (SEARO), offered a glimpse into how she managed one of the world's most complex and populous public health regions.

She served two terms as the regional director and chronicled the journey of public health leadership in Asia.

The memoir connects personal experiences with broader structural changes in public health. The book begins with her childhood in Kanpur, taking readers through her family, education and the social expectations that shaped her. Very early in her memoir, she establishes the theme of gender expectation in po...