News Archives

New SSHSPH Vice Deanery from 1 July

The School is pleased to welcome its new vice deanery leadership, with effect from 1 July 2020: Vice Dean (Academic Affairs): Associate Professor Jeannette Lee Vice Dean (Education): Dr Liow Chee Hsiang Vice Dean (Global Health) and Programme Leader (Infectious Diseases): Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang Vice Dean (Practice) and Director (Public Health Translation): Associate Professor Jason Yap Vice Dean (Research) and Domain Leader (Biostatistics and Modelling): Associate Professor Alex Cook Appointment of Associate Professor Jeannette Lee as Vice Dean (Academic Affairs) Associate Professor Jeannette Lee has been appointed as the new Vice Dean (Academic Affairs). She will formallyRead more

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COVID-19: Deciding if a country is ready for further easing

A sudden spike in COVID-19 cases in countries that have recently emerged from lockdowns is now sparking concerns of a possible resurgence in coronavirus infections. Globally, many are fixated on the number of daily reported cases as they are often regarded as indicators of second waves of infection, which may potentially lead to lockdowns. “However, the measure of a country’s ability to manage the COVID-19 outbreak goes beyond a simplistic focus on daily case numbers – an indicator which dangerously ignores the impact of the outbreak on the economy and

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Record dengue cases complicates Singapore’s fight against COVID-19

1,375 dengue cases were reported last week, making it the highest number of weekly cases ever recorded in Singapore since 2014. The record-breaking figure suggests that Singapore might be heading for a big year, wrote Assistant Professor Hannah Clapham in a commentary zooming in on our battle against two outbreaks: COVID-19 and Dengue. While the ‘circuit breaker’ has managed to reduce person-to-person contact thereby stabilising the COVID-19 outbreak, it seems to be doing the opposite for dengue, which spreads from human-to-mosquito-to-human. Dr Clapham noted that a combination of factors may

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COVID-19: Higher risk of infection when mingling in crowds

Crowds return to the streets as Singapore enters phase two of re-opening last Friday. However, experts urge members of the public to remain cautious as the virus still lurks in the community. Dean, Professor Teo Yik Ying said, “While it is understandable that people want to return to some degree of normalcy in their lives, the reality is there is a much higher risk of being infected when people mingle in crowds.” Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, Programme Leader (Infectious Diseases), commented that such crowding “could potentially lead to a

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A/Prof Helena Legido-Quigley and Asst Prof Mary Chong are recipients of the SSHSPH Faculty Awards AY1819

SSHSPH Faculty Awards AY2018/19

The School is pleased to announce that Associate Professor Legido-Quigley and Assistant Professor Mary Chong are recipients of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health Faculty Awards for the Academic Year 2018/19. Assoc Prof Legido-Quigley is the recipient of the SSHSPH Outstanding Researcher Award AY2018/2019. This award recognises top deserving researchers who have achieved a consistent track record of research excellence and impact in their area of expertise. Dr Chong has been awarded the SSHSPH Teaching Excellence Award AY2018/2019, which recognises faculty members who have excelled in teaching, and have

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Spotlight on trust in science of COVID-19

Recently, two of the world’s most prestigious medical journals each retracted an article about treatment of patients with COVID-19. In a ScienceTalk contribution to The Straits Times, Associate Professor Mikael Hartman and Professor Lee Chuen Neng elaborated on the process of the publication and dissemination of scientific work, and discussed how critical errors can be missed when journals publish hastily generated reports. The peer review process is a lengthy one that ensures high-quality work is published in the best, most transparent and fairest way. Papers usually go through several iterations

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Pictured is a technician's hand filling wells with a liquid for a research test. This test involves preparation of cultures in which hybrids are grown in large quantities to produce desired antibody. This is effected by fusing myeloma cell and mouse lymphocyte to form hybrid cell (hybridoma).

Monoclonal antibodies as potential treatment for COVID-19

Tychan, a biotechnology firm based in Singapore, has developed a monoclonal antibody, TY027, as a potential treatment for COVID-19. It will embark on phase one of its human clinical trials next week. Monoclonal antibodies are immune system proteins that are created in the laboratory, and can be specially engineered to target and inactivate a virus before it causes an infection. “Cells are engineered to produce this single antibody in large numbers to be delivered as a therapeutic,” said Assistant Professor October Sessions. “This makes it different from other antibody treatments,

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Spike in dengue infections due to change in dominant strains and low immunity

Dengue infections this year surged past the 10,000 mark this week. The National Environment Agency (NEA) said on its website: “This is the highest number of cases for the same period of the year since 2013, the largest outbreak year recorded in Singapore’s recent history.” As we enter the traditional dengue peak season (typically from May to October), NEA warned that weekly dengue case numbers are likely to continue to rise, with the warmer weather facilitating growth of the Aedes mosquito population and transmission of the dengue virus. A combination

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Computer modelling predicts where vaccines are needed most

Researchers have developed a model that can estimate regional disease burden and the impact of vaccination, even in the absence of robust surveillance data, a study in eLife reveals. The report highlights areas that would have the greatest benefit from initiating a vaccination programme against the virus, Japanese encephalitis (JE). This will in turn guide rational assessment of the cost and benefit of vaccinations, and support policymaker decisions on allocating vaccines. JE is a viral infection of the brain transmitted by mosquitoes. It is endemic in Asia-Pacific countries, with three

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COVID-19: Spreads like the flu but severe enough to kill

More than 370,000 people worldwide have succumbed to COVID-19 and the toll continues to rise as the virus spreads globally. While many have compared the current pandemic to SARS, experts now believe that the disease will be around for some time, unlike the latter. “If it (COVID-19) were as severe as SARS, it would be much more controllable, and far fewer people (in absolute numbers) would have died and be yet to die. COVID-19 is possibly at the worst point on the severity spectrum – mild enough that it can

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