We are augmenting efforts to harness the potential of innovation across the whole spectrum of our work to position the AMC as a world-class hub for innovation.
Igniting healthcare transformation through innovation
The SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre (AMC) was founded on the shared vision to drive the transformation of healthcare and improve the lives of our patients. With our strong commitment to advance Academic Medicine (AM) through clinical care, education, research and innovation, SingHealth and the Duke-NUS Medical School have forged an enduring symbiotic relationship that spans 17 years to date.
The synergy of this symbiotic relationship has continued to be fruitful. The SingHealth Duke-NUS Spine Centre was established in July 2022, enriching our current suite of SingHealth Duke-NUS Disease Centres (SDDCs) providing holistic care to patients across multiple disciplines in the AMC, bringing the total number of SDDCs to 14.
We launched two new Joint Research Institutes – the Regenerative Medicine Institute of Singapore (REMEDIS) and Institute of Biodiversity Medicine (BD-MED). REMEDIS, launched in conjunction with the new SingHealth Duke-NUS Cell Therapy Centre, harnesses the potential of regenerating diseased cells, tissue and organs to develop research, regenerative therapies and tools to tackle age-related diseases and chronic conditions.
BD-MED studies the genetic make-up, nutritional and medicinal benefits of local and regional plants to treat and prevent diseases, while contributing to Singapore’s environmental and food sustainability. Prof Teh Bin Tean, who leads the Institute, shares about advancing health and wellness through biodiversity medicine, and how its various research programmes leverage on the concept of ‘Food as Medicine’ to improve patient and population health.
The adoption of technology as a key enabler for healthcare transformation has also accelerated tremendously, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic. From enhancing healthcare delivery and patient experience, training current and aspiring healthcare professionals, enabling sophisticated and impactful research to streamlining processes to conserve precious resources, we are augmenting efforts to harness the potential of innovation across the whole spectrum of our work to position the AMC as a world-class hub for innovation.
One example is the use of the latest immersive technologies in serious games by the SingHealth Duke-NUS Institute of Medical Simulation to hone the clinical skills and competencies of healthcare professionals through simulated scenarios to sharpen critical thinking and decision-making skills. Healthcare professionals perform real-life procedures that can be complex under challenging circumstances through an interactive learning experience and in a safe environment, engendering confidence in patient safety and patient care.
To foster an ecosystem of innovation across the AMC, The Innovation Centre (TIC), slated to open in January 2023, will serve as a one-stop resource centre for clinicians, industry partners and collaborators involved in different aspects of the innovation enterprise to convene, co-develop and pilot highly impactful healthcare innovations. Led by Associate Professor Henry Ho, Director, TIC, healthcare innovators will be able to take advantage of the dedicated spaces and digital sandboxes in TIC to experiment with systems, devices, dedicated software, and bring innovative ideas from trial to implementation.
What we have accomplished and the many plans we have ahead are only possible with the tremendous support and dedication from our staff. We are deeply heartened and inspired by their steadfast sense of mission to stay the course, even when the going got tough. We are also thankful for the strong support of our partners and donors in the work that we do, and who continue to commit their time, expertise and resources to journey with us as we strive towards our vision. Most importantly, we are humbled by the trust that our patients and their caregivers place in us in giving us the privilege to serve and heal them and for grounding us in our mission....
As we stand at the cusp of even more transformative advancements in healthcare, we are excited to welcome the next chapter of our AM partnership. We look forward to an exhilarating journey ahead as we leverage innovation and research to advance evidence-based care for our patients, enhance population health outcomes to build a healthier Singapore, and nurture future healthcare professionals and leaders by pursuing excellence in education so as to reach new heights as one SingHealth Duke-NUS AMC family.