News

To commemorate World Tuberculosis (TB) Day on 24 March, Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, Infectious Diseases Programme Leader, and historian Dr Loh Kah Seng recount Singapore’s history of TB in the post-war pre-independence period. Reminding us that “TB is not simply a medical disease, left solely to healthcare practitioners and public health officials”, they outline the lessons learnt in dealing with the disease then, and how we can apply them to tackle TB – in particular, multidrug-resistant TB – now. Read on: The disease that divides, and unites, TODAYonline, 24 MarchRead more

Counting your steps daily may not be necessary to reach your health goals. Health benefits are not dependent on achieving exactly 10,000 steps daily but are related to increasing one’s level of physical activity, said Assistant Professor Falk Mueller-Riemenschneider, Programme Leader (Physical Activity and Nutrition Determinants in Asia). “Official recommendations emphasise that any amount of physical activity is good for health and that more activity is better… Achieving 10,000 steps daily is only one way of increasing physical activity beyond current levels, which tend to be insufficient for many individuals,” addedRead more

The ‘Breast Cancer Meanings’ fundraising gala dinner was held on Friday, 16 March 2018 in support of the NUS Asian Breast Cancer Research Fund. All funds raised go towards the research project led by Associate Professor Mikael Hartman, Programme Leader (Breast Cancer Prevention) that seeks to better understand Asian women’s health-seeking behaviours towards breast cancer and to encourage uptake of breast cancer screening and early treatment. The book titled ‘Breast Cancer Meanings: Journeys Across Asia’ features findings from the pilot study conducted by researchers from SSHSPH and NUS Yong Loo Lin SchoolRead more

When it comes to stopping a deadly infectious disease outbreak, like in the case of SARS, Singaporeans prefer government interventions such as quarantine, cancellation of mass events and closure of schools. Led by Associate Professor Alex Cook, Vice Dean (Research), this study recently published in BMJ Open examined Singaporeans’ perceptions towards public health interventions during an outbreak. Study on public acceptance of steps to curb outbreaks, Straits Times, 22 February 2018

Following the Eldershield review committee’s recommendations, Associate Professor Joanne Yoong, Director of the Centre for Health Services and Policy Research, shares why it’s important that we start saving for our long-term healthcare needs from a young age. Media coverage: ‘Singapore Tonight’, Channel NewsAsia, 18 February 2018

Tackling each disease in isolation may lead to the prescription of unnecessary medicines, resulting in expenses that are disproportionate to the number of conditions a patient has. These out-of-pocket expenditures (OOPE), which are costs not covered by insurance, increase dramatically with the number of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) a patient has, according to a study led by SSHSPH and the University of Melbourne that was recently published in BMJ Global Health. The team systematically reviewed 14 studies across Australia, Canada, India, South Korea and USA, and found that when compared to patientsRead more

Recently, a man in the United States discovered a 1.6m tapeworm hanging from his rear end. The patient had eaten sushi and sashimi almost daily and his doctor shared that is most likely how he came to host the parasite. How common are such gut parasites in Singapore? Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, Programme Leader (Antimicrobial Resistance), shared that such infestations are quite rare here, saying that he had heard of at least two such cases in Singapore last year. However, he added that this number may not be accurate asRead more

In the most recent episode of Talking Point, Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang and Assistant Professor Mark Chen I-Cheng speak about the misuse and abuse of antibiotics and the deadly consequences that come with it. “We’re concerned that … people with the simplest types of infections, like (from) a prick on a rose thorn or cuts, can die,” said A/Prof Hsu, who leads the School’s Antimicrobial Resistance Programme. Learn more about the consequences of antibiotics abuse and what we can do to stop the rise of superbugs: Are You Abusing Antibiotics?, Talking Point, ChannelRead more

Making germs on your hand glow, looking at bacteria cells through the lens of a microscope, listening to stories about germs… These are some of the things children did to peek into the world of bacteria and antibiotics at the ‘WAAW! It’s World Antibiotics Awareness Week’ library workshop. Organised by the School’s Singapore Social, Lifestyle and Infection Networks Group (Singapore SLING) led by Assistant Professor Clarence Tam, the WAAW outreach event was held at Jurong Regional Library on 11-12 Nov and at Marine Parade Public Library on 25-26 Nov. The workshop featured differentRead more

In the latest episode of Why It Matters, Assistant Professor Mary Chong helps Joshua, the show’s host, in his quest to find out how much sugar children in Singapore are eating, and whether they fall within the daily limits recommended by the Health Promotion Board (10 teaspoons) and World Health Organization (six teaspoons). Watch the episode to discover hidden sugars in the unlikeliest of foods, and learn what we can do to reduce our daily sugar intake, and more importantly our children’s. The Hidden Sugar, Why It Matters, Channel NewsAsia, 27 NovemberRead more

“Why is Singapore opting to progressively roll out the minimum legal 21-year age limit for smoking over the next three years instead of immediate implementation?” “Should we consider offering electronic nicotine delivery systems options, such as e-cigarettes, as cessation aids to current smokers?” Professor Teo Yik Ying, Vice Dean (Research) and Dean Designate, addresses these two issues that were raised during the recent parliamentary debate regarding Singapore’s smoking bill. Read more: Singapore’s calibrated approach to e-cigarettes and raising legal age for smoking, TODAY Opinion, 21 November 2017

The School is pleased to welcome its new vice deanery leadership, with effect from 01 January 2018. Appointment of Associate Professor Rob van Dam as Vice Dean (Academic Affairs) and re-appointment as Domain Leader (Epidemiology Domain) Associate Professor Rob van Dam has been appointed as the new Vice Dean (Academic Affairs). He will formally assume his new role with effect from 01 January 2018. Prior to joining NUS in 2010, Rob was a faculty member at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the VU University Amsterdam. He currentlyRead more