Teaching Hearts, Shaping Futures

By Valissa Yap

The Residency in SingHealth Excels Award (RiSE) 2025 celebrates the brilliant minds shaping the future of medicine in Singapore. This prestigious recognition honours both the exceptional educators who guide tomorrow’s doctors and the outstanding residents who are making their mark in clinical practice and medical research.

NHCS is proud to celebrate multiple recipients of this distinguished award across our Cardiology Residency Programme and Singapore Integrated Programme for Cardiothoracic Surgery. These recipients represent the top 5% in their respective categories, recognised for their exceptional commitment to medical education and outstanding contributions across clinical and academic excellence.

CardioConnect spotlights two outstanding recipients from the Cardiology Residency Programme: Clinical Assistant Professor Kamalesh Anbalakan, Consultant, who received the Outstanding Faculty Award, and Dr Paul Tern, Senior Resident who earned the Outstanding Resident Award. We discover what fuels their dedication to cardiac care and excellence in medical education.

Faculty Spotlight: Clinical Assistant Professor Kamalesh Anbalakan, Consultant, Cardiology

What drew you to cardiovascular medicine, and what keeps you passionate about it today?
Cardiology appealed to me early on because it brings together physiology, acute decision-making, and long-term patient care. The heart is unforgiving of imprecision, yet incredibly responsive to thoughtful intervention. What keeps me motivated is how the field continues to advance with new devices, new therapies, and new ways to support patients who once had very few treatment options. At the same time, the fundamentals remain unchanged: careful clinical assessment, understanding haemodynamics, and applying physiology at the bedside. That balance between innovation and first principles is what continues to inspire me.

What is a typical day like for you as a Cardiology faculty?
Most days begin with morning rounds in the cardiothoracic intensive care unit (CTICU) and high-dependency unit. These sessions are more than clinical reviews; they are teaching moments. We discuss each patient’s trajectory, look at the data together including clinical signs, imaging and invasive haemodynamics. We also make care management decisions in real time. Topics can range from general medicine to complex cardiogenic shock, mechanical circulatory support, or post-procedural complications.

Beyond rounds, the day often involves procedures, multidisciplinary discussions, and follow-up teaching - sometimes formal, but more often spontaneous, driven by questions that arise from patient care. Teaching, for me, is embedded within clinical work rather than separate from it.

What has been your most memorable moment as an educator, and how has it influenced your journey?
What stands for me is not a single moment, but the times when a trainee revisits a patient, days or weeks later and explains their reasoning with clarity and confidence. This is especially meaningful in high-stakes situations. Seeing that shift from uncertainty to structured thinking reinforces the value of bedside, problem-based teaching. It has influenced my journey by showing that good education is not about giving information but is about guiding clinical judgment and helping it grow over time.

What inspires you to continue nurturing residents in Cardiology?
Residents are at a formative stage where habits, thinking patterns, and professional identity are being shaped, and it is a privilege to be a part of the process. What inspires me is watching residents learn to slow down, synthesise information, and make decisions that are grounded in physiology rather than relying on algorithms.  In an era of rapid diagnostics and protocols, supporting trainees in keeping strong clinical reasoning skills feels more important than ever.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering joining the Cardiology Residency Programme?
Cardiology is demanding but also deeply rewarding. My advice is to approach it with curiosity, humility, and resilience. Focus on mastering the fundamentals such as clinical assessment and physiology, because these skills will serve you across every subspecialty. Seek out mentors, ask questions at the bedside, and remember that progress often happens in small steps.  Most importantly, stay connected to the patient behind the numbers. That perspective will sustain you through the intensity of training and beyond.

Resident Spotlight: Dr Paul Tern, Senior Resident, Cardiology

Why did you choose the Cardiology Residency Programme?
There are many reasons to love Cardiology. Our specialty deals with some of the most fundamental concepts in general medicine such as managing hypertension, lipids, diabetes and obesity. At the same time, we continue to contribute landmark trials that push the boundaries of modern medicine. There is also a procedural side to cardiology that tests skills honed through many hours of careful practice. The work demands strong communication skills because we guide patients and family members through complex and often sensitive decisions. Clinical situations can change very quickly, sometimes with much at stake, and there is never a dull moment. It is a challenging specialty that brings out the best in every physician. I enjoy it because it pushes me to grow every day.

What is a typical day like for you as a Cardiology resident?
A typical day starts before 6.30am when I arrive at the office, often with only the Senior Residents (SRs) around. I review the patients’ telemetry readings and begin ward rounds with the rest of the team, aiming to finish around 9am. There is usually a short break for coffee and some teaching, which is very important for the Medical Officers (MOs), before I head off to practising angiograms, echocardiograms or reporting other scans. Sometimes we have teaching sessions over lunch. The afternoon is spent on subspecialty training, seeing patients in clinic or replying to blue letters. These are referral letters from other doctors seeking cardiology expertise for their patients. By 4pm, it is time to start exits and see any new admissions.  After the MOs leave at around 5 to 6pm, there is finally some quiet time to catch up on typing, updating notes and answering more blue letters. I then work on research, presentations and detailed medical reports. A successful day is one where I leave before 7pm so I can have dinner with my family and play with my son!

What has been your most memorable moment in the Cardiology Residency Programme, and how has it influenced your journey?
There are too many memorable moments in Cardiology but one stands out from my first month as a new Cardiology SR in Changi General Hospital. Within the first week, I had several Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) activations. Thankfully, my seniors at that time, Dr Jack Choo, Dr Kevin Quah and Dr Hong Rilong came by to guide me and my peer, Dr Samuel Koh a few times over the first month. I was very grateful for their support! Now that I’m a senior resident, I try my best to help my juniors whenever possible. There’s no way you can get through being a Cardiology SR without support!

What has been your biggest learning curve during the programme, and how did you overcome it?
I would say that the biggest learning curve is mental, more than anything. It’s learning how to ruthlessly prioritise when there are multiple fires burning simultaneously. There’s no other way to learn this skill apart from going through a few hairy calls and feeling very acutely what it means to be stretched!

What advice would you give to excel in the Cardiology Residency Programme?
Always stay curious and hungry to learn. Take things with a positive attitude – having a difficult call means that you emerge a stronger clinician and in a better position to help patients next time.

Our heartiest congratulations to recipients of the RiSE award!

View the full list of RiSE 2025 winners here.

Find out more about the SingHealth Residency Programmes for Cardiology Residency Programme and Singapore Integrated Programme (SGIP) for Cardiothoracic Surgery.