Singapore’s healthcare landscape is evolving rapidly. With an ageing population, rising chronic diseases, and the need for sustainable healthcare solutions, there is an urgent demand for innovation. At the same time, cutting-edge technology like artificial intelligence, data science, and biomedical advancement are changing how we approach healthcare. To keep up with these changes, NHG and NTU Singapore’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) are launching the NHG-LKCMedicine-NTU Singapore Academic Health System (AHS)—a transformative collaboration that integrates healthcare, research, and education to drive medical excellence and improve population health.
A Bold Step Towards Better Health
The AHS is not just an academic initiative; it is a bold step towards ensuring better patient care and healthcare delivery through three key thrusts:
- Making a Difference for Population Health – By translating research into real-world applications, the AHS will enhance patient care, optimise health services, and improve population health outcomes.
- A Unique Partnership with a University – Unlike traditional healthcare systems, the AHS extends beyond medicine to tap into NTU Singapore’s strengths in engineering, data science, social sciences, and business, creating a holistic and interdisciplinary approach to research and education.
- Shaping the Future of Healthcare – The AHS features a unified governance framework that fosters joint investments in research, education, and talent development to drive impactful change in healthcare.
Launching our 1st 2 Academic Clinical Programmes
At the core of the AHS is the introduction of Academic Clinical Programmes (ACPs) comprising multidisciplinary teams of clinicians, researchers, and engineers working together to translate research and innovation into clinical practice.
NHG and LKCMedicine/NTU Singapore are excited to announce the launch of the first two ACPs in Rehabilitation Medicine and Skin Health, starting in January 2024. This milestone also marks the appointment of the Chairs and Vice-Chairs of these ACPs, who will lead efforts in integrating research, innovation, and education with clinical care. The first ACPs will focus on two key areas:
Rehabilitation Medicine ACP will expand the Rehabilitation Research Institute of Singapore (RRIS), strengthening local and global partnerships to turn rehabilitation research into practical solutions. By leveraging NTU Singapore’s expertise in engineering, AI, and data analytics, this ACP aims to enhance patient recovery, reduce hospital stays, and improve rehabilitation outcomes.
Skin Health ACP will build upon the foundations established by the National Skin Centre (NSC) and the Skin Research Institute of Singapore (SRIS). This ACP will focus on collaborative research and medical education to enhance skin care and improve treatment for skin conditions in both hospitals and community settings.
Transforming Healthcare for the Next Generation
By combining world-class research, innovation, and education, the NHG-LKCMedicine-NTU Singapore AHS will accelerate breakthroughs in medicine, enhance healthcare delivery, and train future healthcare leaders to navigate the rapidly evolving medical landscape.
This initiative marks a new era in Singapore’s healthcare transformation, reinforcing NHG’s vision of “adding years of healthy life” and LKCMedicine’s mission of “redefining medicine, transforming healthcare.” Through this deepened collaboration, Singapore is poised to lead the way in integrating research-driven innovations into everyday medical practice, ensuring a healthier future for all.
“Traditionally, medical education and practice have revolved around the biomedical and clinical sciences. This is no longer adequate today. In the Academic Health System we are setting up, the medical school serves as bridge into the rest of NTU Singapore – we will need to leverage on biological sciences, data sciences, engineering, social sciences and business, to keep up with technology and to train clinicians for tomorrow”
– Prof Benjamin Seet, Group CMB (Research)
