Dr. Rachael Almond is the Head of the Pan Human Biobank at Abu Dhabi Biobank, bringing nearly 20 years of experience in scientific and operational leadership across both private and public laboratories in the UK. With a specialized focus on biobanking, Dr. Almond has over a decade of experience in biobank operations, advising on best practices, set up and protocols. She is a Technical Expert Auditor for ISO 20387, contributing to the development and implementation of international biobanking standards through her work with the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS).

Prior to her current role, Dr. Almond was the Laboratory Scientific Director at UK Biobank, where she oversaw all laboratory operations and cohort-wide projects, transforming biological samples into valuable data for health research, many a first for analyses at this scale globally. She also served as the Laboratory Scientific Director at UK Biocentre, a commercial biobank focused on supporting smaller cohort studies and biobank commercialization in the UK.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Almond played a key role as Laboratory Director across several UK laboratories, supporting the UK’s national testing regime. Earlier in her career, Dr. Almond worked with Public Health England (now UKHSA), leading multiplex vaccine evaluation clinical trials and seroprevalence studies that directly informed the UK vaccination policy.

Her career reflects a unique blend of scientific expertise, regulatory insight, and operational leadership, positioning her as a leading voice in shaping global biobanking practices, standards, and regulations.