Ms. Shirley Phua first graduated with a Diploma in Biotechnology (Medical) from Singapore Polytechnic in 1993. In 1996, she obtained a BSc in Medical Laboratory Science from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia. After graduation, she worked as a Medical Technologist in the Histopathology Laboratory in Gleneagles Hospital (now known as Parkway Laboratory, Gleneagles), Singapore. In 2003, she moved to Forensic Medicine Division (FMD) in Health Sciences Authority, Singapore. In FMD, she held various positions including Laboratory Officer, Manager (Special Investigations), Manager (Operations) and now Senior Manager (Quality Assurance/Technical Capabilities/Infrastructure).

Since 2003, Shirley gained experiences from setting up a Histopathology Laboratory, management of operations, quality assurance, infrastructure projects and other administrative works. In 2007, her roles extended to biosafety in the mortuary and was tasked to develop operational protocols and training programs for the Mobile BSL-4 Containerised Autopsy Suite in FMD. Without prior knowledge and experiences, the tasks were challenging in the initial phases as the facility is unique, one of its kind in the world and there were no direct references. In order to fulfil her tasks, she first obtained a Specialist Diploma in Microbiology from the Singapore Polytechnic and did intensive learning on biosafety by reading relevant materials, attending overseas conferences/workshops and seeking advises from overseas biosafety professionals. In 2015, she obtained her Master of Health Administration, though not relevant to biosafety, the knowledge learned helps her manage the entire program and the team working with her. She now continues to oversee the operations of the BSL-4 facility and continues her learning journey as he believes biosafety requires life-long learning. This include her obtaining the Professional Certifications in Biorisk Management and Biological Waste Management in 2015 and 2017 respectively. During her free time, Shirley loves watching movies with the hubby, travelling and spending time with her furry pet dog and hamster at home.