News

Congratulations to Associate Professor Fong Ngan Phoon on receiving the Wong Hock Boon Society–SMA Charity Fund (WHBS-SMACF) Outstanding Mentor Award 2019. The award recognises A/Prof Fong for his effort and dedication in guiding his students through their research work. Medical student Joshua Chia Chin Howe, who was the student group leader for the Community Health Project titled ‘Chronic Disease Self-Management in Queenstown’, had nominated A/Prof Fong as the project’s supervisor in appreciation for his effort, dedication and impact on the group’s research. A/Prof Fong received his award at the WongRead more

Globally, around 700,000 people die each year from infections resistant to the standard drugs used to treat them, and this number is projected to rise to 10 million deaths per year unless urgent, concerted action is taken to address antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In this piece, Assistant Professor Clarence Tam and PhD student Ms Jane Lim illustrate the impact of AMR and the loss of effective antimicrobial drugs to treat infections. For example, without effective antibiotics, it will be difficult to perform advanced medical procedures that rely on antibiotics to preventRead more

Congratulations to Dr Andre Matthias Müller on winning the Young Investigator Traveller Award at the 51st Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Conference. The Award encourages aspiring investigators to conduct quality research in public health.

The School congratulates Professor Saw Seang Mei, Dr Pavan Kumar Verkicharla and Professor Kyoko Ohno-Matsui on receiving the Bernard Gilmartin OPO Award. Presented by the College of Optometrists, the Bernard Gilmartin OPO Award honours the most highly regarded paper from those published in Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics in the last five years. It is one of the College’s prestigious Research Excellence Awards that recognise achievement and celebrate outstanding contributions to research in the fields of optometry, optics and vision science. Prof Saw, Dr Verkicharla and Prof Ohno-Matsui’s award-winning review paper,Read more

Primary care doctors play an important role at the front line in chronic disease management. Yet their relationships with patients have not evolved much over the decades, even as technology, payment systems and delivery models continue to evolve dramatically. Most patients still view the relationship as one where they list static updates on their condition to their doctors, then passively receive instructions on how to manage the condition until the next visit. “Doctors continuing to give generic instructions without a deeper level of behavioural context and insights into a patient’sRead more

Dr Leung recently retired from his role as the longest-serving Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Hospital Authority (HK HA). He studied Medicine at the University of New South Wales, Australia and took the Master of Science (Occupational Medicine) programme here in NUS. The fundamentals of public health and occupational medicine that he learnt during this time led to a lifelong appreciation that medicine is more than just treating patients. More importantly, it is about taking care of communities and the whole of society. This inspired Dr Leung’s career, settingRead more

Since their discovery, antibiotics have served as the cornerstone of modern medicine. But the persistent overuse and misuse of antibiotics in human and animal health have encouraged the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance. Organised by the Singapore Social, Lifestyle and Infection Networks Group (Singapore SLING), the annual World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) library outreach is part of the School’s efforts in to educate the public about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and promote the correct use of antibiotics.A/Prof Hsu, Sonny and Prof Tambyah answered some tough questions asked by adults andRead more

Recently, the Ministry of Health announced new measures to reduce sugar consumption in Singapore: mandatory display of graded nutrition labels for high-sugar beverages, and a total advertising ban on drinks that receive the worst grade. These measures aim to curb demand, promote healthy lifestyles and push manufacturers to offer healthier options. Dean, Professor Teo Yik Ying said rising consumption in Asia of food and drinks high in sugar is a “reflection of rapidly modernised societies”. Most people now work in offices, take no or little physical exercise, do not cook,Read more

Antibiotics are medicines that fight bacterial infections. Used properly, they can save lives. But there is a growing problem of antibiotic resistance, which happens when bacteria change and become able to resist the effects of an antibiotic. To raise awareness about antibiotic resistance while engaging students in Singapore, the School jointly organised the Antibiotic Resistance Competition 2019 with Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore General Hospital and Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering. Students could choose to write in any format or approach (fiction, scientific communication with references, etc.). The two themesRead more

As a rapidly developing country, Vietnam is increasingly confronting challenges such as an ageing population and a rising chronic disease burden that impact on national healthcare. Worker health and safety are also coming to the fore as critical public health issues that need to be addressed. To this end, the School, in its capacity as a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Occupational Health, embarked on public health programme in partnership with the Health Environment Management Agency (HEMA) under the auspices of the Ministry of Health, Vietnam and Temasek Foundation. StartedRead more

Singapore may be the first country to impose a total advertising ban on beverages that are considered high in sugar. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Health introduced two strategies as part of the War on Diabetes. The first is a mandatory display of front-of-pack nutrition summary labels for pre-packed beverages that are high in sugar. The second is a total advertising ban on those drinks that receive the lowest label grades. These measures aim to help consumers identify less healthy beverages and make more informed choices. “The World HealthRead more

Assistant Professor Mary Chong was conferred the 2019 Nutrition Society Silver Medal Award for her research on ‘Influences of the perinatal diet on maternal and child health in an obese world’. Using data from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study, Dr Chong illustrated the importance and urgency of maternal and child nutrition and health in a modern, industrialised setting. At her award lecture, she presented insights from the GUSTO study, evidence of the relationships of critical nutrients in combination with dietary patterns for optimal maternal andRead more