The National Healthcare Group (NHG), Singapore recognised 190 healthcare educators at its annual Teachers’ Day Awards ceremony on 6 Sep 2019. Healthcare professionals from various disciplines medical, nursing, allied health and pharmacy - were lauded across 12 award categories for nurturing and mentoring colleagues and students. This year’s winners have made significant contributions, and inspired and equipped fellow healthcare professionals to serve the community and our population.  

NHG EDUCATION LEADERS AWARDS 

The NHG Education Leaders Award recognises NHG staff who demonstrate excellence in strategic leadership and education across multidisciplinary professions in healthcare. 

Adjunct Associate Professor Clare Yeo Kwang Ngee, Senior Principal Clinical Psychologist at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), received the NHG Education Leaders Award.  An advocate of continuing education for healthcare professionals, Adj A/Prof Yeo also lends her expertise to humanitarian causes in the region. The Ministry of Health (MOH) appointed her as Head of the Caring Action in Response to Emergencies (CARE) Management System in 2003.  Since then, CARE has equipped officers from public and private organisations with relevant skills to provide psychological and emotional support to people affected by crises. They include victims, relatives and rescue workers. Adj A/Prof Yeo has wide ground experience counselling survivors and their families, and was instrumental in crafting CARE’s curriculum. She has trained teams to help individuals involved in incidents such as the Sabah quake (2015), the Asian Tsunami (2004), Singapore Airlines SQ006 accident in Taiwan (2000), and SilkAir MI185 crash in Indonesia (1997).

Adjunct Associate Professor Yip Chee Chew, Senior Consultant and Head of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) was honoured with the NHG Education Leaders Award. Adj A/Prof Yip is the principal designer of the Community Home and Eye Screening Service (CHESS) programme, which improves access to eye care in the community. He also developed the Torchlight Eye-Screening Test (TEST), a new technique to detect asymptomatic eye conditions early and optimises treatment outcomes. Since 2018, CHESS has worked with community partners under Project Silver Screen (PSS) to screen persons above age 60 for eye, dental and hearing problems. PSS is a nationwide functional screening programme initiated by MOH and Temasek Foundation Cares. To date, CHESS has served 8,654 seniors through PSS. To train community nurses more effectively in eye care, Adj A/Prof Yip also established the online Training Enhancement and Accreditation for Community and Home Eye Screening (TEACHES) module. Adj A/Prof Yip is also Education Director at the Education Development Office, KTPH.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTED AWARD WINNERS

Mr Benjamin Tay Ching Poh, Principal Case Manager at IMH clinched the NHG Allied Health Senior Educators Award. Mr Tay specialises in supporting individuals undergoing a Mandatory Treatment Order (MTO) to develop better coping skills to prevent repeat incidents.  MTO is a community sentencing option extended to offenders with mental health conditions. Mr Tay supervises a team of eight case managers, and conducts educational talks on Forensic Case Management for international visitors and students from tertiary institutions. He leads quality improvement projects in IMH such as “The Hut”, a day drop-in centre and a place of respite for patients. He is also a Peer Support Specialist (PSS) mentor for individuals with mental conditions who are employed in the workforce.  

Ms Patmavathy D/O Chellaiyya, Senior Nurse Clinician, Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), was presented the NHG Inter-Professional Teaching Award. Ms Patmavathy was one of the pioneers of the TTSH Breast Care Clinic. She helped lay the groundwork for patient education for nurses, doctors and medical officers, managing patients’ socio-emotional needs and empowering them to stay well in the community.  She supports breast cancer patients and their families through the Breast Support Group, and is active in communitybased public education programmes. 

Representing Senior Management in NHG, Professor Lim Tock Han, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (Education and Research), NHG, thanked the teachers and mentors for their passion and commitment. “We need to continually foster a culture that encourages curiosity, eagerness to learn, an openness to change, and most importantly, a heart for the patient.”