Dr. Lydia is a Pharmacist with more than two decades of experience in pharmaceutical sales, market access, and regulatory affairs across the Middle East, Africa, Turkey, India, and the UK. Her career began in Egypt with Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Cilag Pharma division, where she gained a deep understanding of commercial strategy in various roles for gastro, derma, neurology, and psychiatry products. She then joined Merck Sharp & Dohme in Kuwait, where she led the launch of Gardasil, followed by a position with MSD in the UAE, where she expanded her portfolio to include HIV and oncology products. In this capacity, she began working closely with health authorities, gaining insight into strategic market penetration, product classification, and distribution channel optimization.

Recognizing the critical role of regulatory affairs in shaping healthcare access and influencing outcomes beyond sales, she pursued her regulatory certification and was promoted to MSD’s Regulatory Department for specialty products across the Gulf region. She further expanded her regulatory expertise by joining the fast-growing FMCG company RB, where she collaborated with a team to build a regulatory framework for a diverse healthcare portfolio—including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, pesticides, and hygiene products—across the Middle East.

In her current role, Lydia is the Regulatory Affairs Regional Manager for Abbott-APOC, overseeing regulatory affairs for IVDs across METAP (Middle East, Turkey, Africa, and Pakistan), with extended responsibilities in the UK. This regional role is pivotal in navigating the evolving regulatory landscape shaped by MDR and IVDR, while aligning compliance with business growth strategies. She has also served as lead for the IVDR Tracker Working Group at Mecomed.