Allied Health:
.-Q The eight • contenders.-for the thifd.Aiiied Health innovative Practice Awards have come up with highly creative initiatives in their fields of work. Sher Maine Wong speaks to two of the teams.
SPEEDING UP GOOD NEWS The simple act of delivering mammogram and pap smear results via SMS instead of letters through the post saves KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH) an estimated $5,400 and 828 man-hours a year. Previously, as many as 40,000 patients out of the 49,000 women who take such tests to detect breast and cervical cancer at KKH every year had to wait seven to 10 days for their test results. Those who have traces of cancer cells would be personally informed Many anxious women, unsure
The bringers of good news at KKH led by Charles Chan (extreme right)
of whether they had the dreaded
care by reducing their anxiety and stress
disease, would call the Specialist Clinic
levels. For the staff, it saves time as there
departments who endorsed the team's
assistants, who would then spend time
is better utilisation of manpower. There
report - Dr Nancy Tee, Pathology and
tracing their results.
is better teamwork, collaboration and
Laboratory Medicine Department,
productivity."
and Professor David Stringer,
With the SMS notification, the patients can now receive their results
The system was implemented in June.
According to KKH's heads of
Diagnostic and Interventional Imaging
- "No evidence of cancer" - within four
It was found, from a survey of 43 patients,
Department: "This is an innovative
working days.
that 80 per cent of them thought the SMS
practice as existing technologies and
service was "very good".
SMS were harnessed, utilised and
Said Charles Chan Ban Kee, Senior
configured in such a way as to allow
Manager, Diagnostic and Interventional
What is more remarkable is that
Imaging Department, KKH, who led a
the entire effort was done in-house. If
"automatic" generation of SMS reports
team of eight members to put the SMS
outsourced, it could have cost
without additional "hands-on" or
initiative in place: "We improve patient
about $7,500.
manual processing by the staff."
EXPERIENCING DEAFNESS For all the technology in the world there is to help the hearing-impaired make sense of their surroundings, these individuals still face difficulties in communication and integration into mainstream society because people around them fail to understand what being deaf is really like. That is why it is so crucial to educate the schoolmates, colleagues or family members of a hearing-impaired person, and that is why a team of 10 led by S G H Auditory-Verbal Therapist Stephanie Lim, started a Hearing The hearing team at S G H led by Stephanie Lim (extreme right)
Education Arcade precisely for that purpose. Said Ms Lim, who is from the Centre
famous hearing-impaired individuals, and interactive games and quizzes.
educational institutions such as medical students, polytechnic
Prevention of noise-induced hearing
students or walk-ins, have visited the
Otolaryngoloy Department: "Through
loss is also emphasised in this Arcade,
Arcade. A survey of 66 visitors found
Reverse Education Therapy, the
with visitors experiencing what might be
that seven in 10 rated the experience "excellent".
for Hearing and Ear Implants at the S G H
normal hearing person experiences the
too loud for their ears. More importantly,
world of the hearing-impaired through
visitors can learn how to communicate
various interactive and educational
better with a hearing-impaired person.
Christopher Goh, who heads S G H
tools, specifically designed to help
For instance, stay within the visual field
Otolaryngology Department: "This
them understand what being hearing-
or rephrase if you are not understood
effort has helped S G H become
impaired means."
instead of just repeating what was said
a Centre of Excellence for the
loudly.
management of hearing-impaired
Started four years ago, the HEAR Arcade, located at the basement of S G H Block 3, uses technology such
To date, more than 300 people, consisting of students from various
Said Associate Professor
patients and is well-known not only in Singapore but also in the region." •
that visitors can actually hear what speech would sound like to a hearingimpaired person. So if an elderly patient had highfrequency hearing loss, for instance, his family members can actually hear that the sentence "She sells seashells on the
SingHealth Allied Health Innovative Practice Awards The awards cast the spotlight on about 2,500 aiiied health staff who pfay a crucial role in the delivery of healthcare at SingHealth.
\ ALLIED HEALTH INNOVATM PRACTICE > ?oo-<
seashore" would emerge as a series of indistinct vowels with all the "s" sounds missing. Or, the parents of a baby diagnosed
Innovation is the pre-requisite for these awards, which were w*~ started in 2007. But more than just creativity for its own sake, the projects and initiatives which are up for the awards must strengthen the three piiiars of SingHealth: service, education or research.
with profound hearing loss, would be able to hear the static which is all the baby can make out of speech if he/ she is not prescribed the appropriate hearing device. The Arcade also has a giant model of the human ear which shows how sound
"The applications that the committee reviewed this year were all really innovative and had improved patient care at each centre. Several projects show real promise for both cost savings as well as improving patient care and satisfaction.! have served on many review panels and can say that the quality of the appiications and the thought and work that went into these were first class," commented chief judge, Prof Roger Beuerman, Senior Director, Singapore Eye Research institute.
is transmitted through the ear canal;
room with a ceiling fan versus an air-
The other six projects include research on fighting "superbugs", reducing waiting time at a hospital outpatient pharmacy, a portable sitting lumbar traction unit to help patients with back pain, a special mask to better secure cancer patients undergoing brain radiation, and more effective ways of addressing the nutritional issues of malnourished elderly adults.
conditioned room; success stories of
The winners had not been announced at the time of printing.
various simulated environments that are more conducive to the hearing-impaired child in a classroom, for example, a
1
I BRANT C A M PUS
Dietitian Peggy Tan makes sure diabetics eat right as a proper diet is crucial for these patients. By Sher Maine Wong
T
he four melamine bowls on dietitian Peggy Tan's desk are not for decoration. Rather, she
uses them to help her understand the
actual amount of rice that patients eat, "They tell me they are eating small bowls of rice, but then they point to my big bowl," explains Ms Tan, who looks after the dietary needs of patients at nine SingHealth Polyclinics. Most of her patients suffer from diabetes, but
"In the past, I had patients who would tell me 'die also never mind, must eat first!' Now they are generally less resistant to advice and less argumentative. They are more ready to accept what I tell them to do."
she also advises those suffering from hypertension, high cholesterol and other chronic diseases. Ms Tan noted that she's been
She then makes recommendations such as the number of bowls of rice
seeing younger patients with diabetes
or slices of bread the patient should
over the years, with some in their late
eat a day, and how to read food
30s. Diabetes usually develops in
labels. "Through these sessions, I
adults aged 40 years and above.
empower the patients to take control
"The younger ones are mostly overweight, probably as a result of consuming too many calories, coupled
of their own diet, and learn how to live with diabetes." One common misconception her
with a sedentary lifestyle," adds
patients have about diabetes is that
Ms Tan.
they should stay away from rice,
On a positive note, however, these
fruits, and anything with sugar. "In
younger patients are better informed
fact, they can eat all these things as
about their health condition and are
long as they stay within their daily
more willing to change their lifestyle.
dietary allowance," states Ms Tan.
"In the past, I had patients who
Ms Tan doesn't just see patients
would tell me 'die also never mind,
- about eight a day. She also helps
must eat first!' Now they are generally
to educate nurses as they "counsel
less resistant to advice and less
quite a fair number of patients" as
argumentative. They are more ready to
well as give talks on diabetic diets
accept what I tell them to do."
for nurses twice a year, as part of
During a session of about 45
the skills enhancement programme
minutes, Ms Tan reviews the patient's
offered by the Department of
lifestyle, exercise patterns and diet.
Nursing. â&#x20AC;˘
CELEBRATING OUR AWARD WINNERS
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; I
Singapore's Firsi Physiotherapist-OfThe Year Dr Wong Wai Pong from SGH was recently crowned Singapore's Physiotherapist of the Year for his leadership in the profession, and as a pioneering educator and fervent researcher. e Wong Maine
O
bserving a group of elderly women
respiratory infections and trauma. He has published several papers on the
dancing jauntily in sync to a popular
subject in peer-reviewed journals and textbooks.
tune in the void deck of an H D B
A s an educator, he was the driving force behind the first National
flat, Dr Wong Wai Pong concluded: "If you
Physiotherapy Congress in 1995 and he continues to mentor younger
are weak, the dancing might predispose
colleagues. He speaks proudly of how the field of physiotherapy has
you to falls, and then we have to look at fall
developed to the point where it can now address lymphedema, which can
prevention. But it's also a very fun activity
occur in post-chemotherapy cancer patients, and vertigo which causes
where the women make friends, and that's
dizziness.
about the quality of life."
It is no surprise that Dr Wong is known to colleagues as the "walking ting physiotherapy historian", and to young researchers as the "walking clinical dictionary".
That happened some years ago when Dr Wong, Senior Principal Physiotherapist, S G H , and recent winner of the Singapore Physiotherapy Association's inaugural Physiotherapist of the Year Award, was
Dr Celia Tan, Deputy Director for
conducting a study on the physiological,
Allied Health Division, S G H ; Director
functional and psychological effects of country
for S G H - P G A H I , and current President
line dancing on older women.
of the Singapore Physiotherapy
Dr Wong has since done more research
Association proudly quips: "I can't think
on the elderly and fall prevention. He has also
of a more deserving physiotherapist for
helped start a fall prevention clinic at S G H
this award than Dr Wong. Even as his
and is collecting data looking into the risks of
ex-manager and senior, I have long admired
falling by the elderly. "Singapore has an ageing
and respected his astute observations and
population and there is a need for us to put in
comments on professional trends and visions.
place some preventive measures," he said. His research work shows how relevant
If you need to know what is happening in the physiotherapy profession
and pervasive a role physiotherapy plays in
internationally, you only have
our daily lives, and that the discipline isn't just
to ask him! Truly an
about massage and exercise. "Physiotherapy is a non-invasive approach to healthcare," said Dr Wong, "and the
2^
inspiration, leader
I
and mentor for all physiotherapists." â&#x20AC;˘
approach is always on maintaining health rather than disease management. If you have fallen, physio helps you to prevent the next
ft
fall." Dr Wong is also 1
passionate about cardiovascular and pulmonary physiotherapy, where physical therapy is used to treat problems like asthma, acute upper
CELEBRATING OUR AWARD WINNERS
T*
Singapore's Highest Research Award Having saved the sight of thousands of people locally and globally, it is no wonder that a high-powered trio from the Singapore National Eye Centre have been bestowed the inaugural President's Science Award. By Sher Maine Wong
T
to alert millions of contact lens
award in Singapore recognising
wearers globally to a contact lens
outstanding research scientists and
cleaning solution, which could cause
engineers for their excellent achievements
eye infections; thus saving the sight of
in science and technology. It was
hey were the first in the world
thousands worldwide. .. .the first to grow human conjunctival stem cells from a person's good eye, to transplant into the other eye to restore vision. .. .and the first to develop and
previously known as the National Science and Technology Awards. Said Prof Tan, the team leader: "My team accepts the award on behalf of all the clinicians and scientists working together with us. We stopped thousands
commercialise a new surgical device
from being blinded by corneal fungal
to perform sutureless, small-incision,
infections and have developed new forms
keyhole corneal transplantation, which
of corneal transplantation, which are
is now used in more than 10 countries
helping more to see. These are the most
around the world.
rewarding aspects of our work."
For all these firsts and more, Professor Donald Tan, who chairs the
t
The award is the highest research
Professors Tan, Beuerman and Aung Tin's work was also outstanding as
Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI),
a result of their wide-ranging output,
Professor Roger Beuerman, SERI's
which included laboratory breakthroughs
senior scientific director, and Associate
(bench), clinical innovations that directly
Professor Aung Tin, SERI's deputy
benefitted patients (bedside), and public
director, have been awarded the first
health interventions which affected whole
President's Science Award.
communities (population).
premature degeneration of corneas among older folk in Singapore's rapidly ageing population.
BEDSIDE The team introduced new surgical innovations in keyhole corneal transplantation surgery (known as Endothelial Keratoplasty) to replace the damaged layer of a cornea through a fourmillimetre incision. During the surgery, a surgical device invented and patented by Prof Tan, called the Tan EndoGlide, enables coiling of the donor's cornea through a keyhole incision for transplantation into the eye. The loss of healthy cells is reduced because surgeons do not use the conventional manual technique. According to Prof Tan: "Without the device, the surgeon must hold the layer, fold it into two parts, push it through the incision and unfold the layer when it is in the eye. You lose 30 to 40 per cent of the healthy cells. The easy-to-use device cuts the loss to 19 per cent." The SERI team is also the pioneer of a complex two-stage operation using the tooth of a completely blind patient to make and transplant an artificial cornea,
BENCH
The Singapore National Eye Centre
The trio are the first in the world to grow
(SNEC) is one of the few places around the
human stem cells in a laboratory to produce
globe performing the operation.
conjunctival tissue. The tissue is grown from a patient's stem
All SNEC "tooth-in-eye" patients regained their maximal potential vision.
cells in the unaffected eye. It is transplanted
Prof Tan, who is also Medical Director at
in the patient's other eye to restore vision.
SNEC, stated that 60 per cent now have
"We don't use animal cells or serum to grow our stem cells because we want to
perfect vision. "We are working on a project to
eliminate the risk of disease transmission,
make a completely artificial cornea using
such as Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
bioengineered artificial polymers so that the
(BSE), more popularly known as mad cow
patient's own tooth may not be used, or for
disease", said Prof Tan.
patients without healthy teeth."
Other research highlights include identifying a gene that blinds babies born
POPULATION
with a severe form of congenital corneal
They were the first to prove that
blindness, known as Congenital Hereditary
contaminated ReNu contact lens cleaning
Endothelial Dystrophy (CHED).
solution, the world's most popular contact
The team also discovered mutations of the
lens cleaning solution at that time, created
same gene in adults with the most common
a rash of infections in several countries
form of premature ageing of their corneas,
in 2006.
known as Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy. This discovery provides research opportunities to develop gene therapy for
Worldwide withdrawal of ReNu saved the eyesight of thousands of users of the popular solution. â&#x20AC;˘
15
o.