SingHealth
 | |
.jpg) Bowyer Block of Singapore General Hospital, the oldest and largest hospital in the SingHealth group | |
| Formation | 1 April 2000 |
|---|---|
| Owner | Ministry of Health |
Group CEO | Ivy Lim Swee Lian |
Parent organization | MOH Holdings Pte. Ltd. |
| Website | www |
Singapore Health Services (commonly abbreviated as SingHealth) is Singapore's largest cluster of healthcare institutions. The cluster was formed in 2000 and consists of four public hospitals (including Singapore General Hospital, the oldest and largest hospital in the country), three community hospitals, five national specialty centres and a network of eight polyclinics.
History
In November 1999, then-Minister for Health Lim Hng Kiang announced that Singapore's public healthcare institutions would be reorganised into two delivery networks, or clusters.[1] In October 2000, the formation of the two clusters - National Healthcare Group and SingHealth - were officially completed.[2]
On 3 November 2009, Singapore General Hospital and SingHealth Group launched the inaugural issue of Singapore Health – a newspaper reporting on health-related matters affecting Singaporeans.[3][4]
On 18 November 2011, Changi General Hospital left SingHealth and formed the Eastern Health Alliance along with St. Andrew's Community Hospital, SingHealth Polyclinics and The Salvation Army Peacehaven Nursing Home.[5]
On 20 January 2017, SingHealth announced that it would be merging with the Eastern Health Alliance, bringing Changi General Hospital back into the SingHealth cluster.[6]
Organisation
Polyclinics
SingHealth operates SingHealth Polyclinics, a network of primary care polyclinics largely situated in the southeast, east, and northeast Singapore. They provide primary care services to the population in those areas, and also provide training for family medicine physicians.
General hospitals
Singapore General Hospital
Singapore General Hospital is a 1,785-bed tertiary hospital (as of 2017) in Outram. It was founded in 1821, and is the largest and oldest hospital in Singapore. Its sprawling campus also includes several other specialty centres as well as Outram Polyclinic.
KK Women's and Children's Hospital
KK Women's and Children's Hospital is an 830-bed women and children-only hospital in Kampong Java. It was founded 1858 as a small general hospital, but then specialised as a maternity hospital, and later added paediatric services well. It is the largest hospital in Singapore dedicated to women's and children's healthcare.
Changi General Hospital
Changi General Hospital is a 1,000-bed regional hospital in Simei. It was founded in 1998 to serve patients in the east and northeast of Singapore. In 2011, it left SingHealth to form the Eastern Health Alliance with other healthcare institutions in the area, but in 2017 merged back with SingHealth.
Sengkang General Hospital
Sengkang General Hospital is a 1,000-bed regional hospital in Sengkang. It was founded in 2012 to serve patients in northeast of Singapore and to alleviate the patient load of Changi General Hospital. It initially trialled operations in Alexandra Hospital and later moved to its current campus in 2018. It is co-located with Sengkang Community Hospital, with which it forms the Sengkang General Hospital campus.
National specialty centres
The national specialty centres of SingHealth are located in the Singapore General Hospital Outram campus, with the exception of the National Neuroscience Institute which is also co-located in the Tan Tock Seng Hospital Novena campus.
Singapore National Eye Centre
Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) is a specialty centre for ophthalmological services. It was founded in 1990 to lead and organise specialised ophthalmological services with special emphasis on research and education. Since its inauguration, SNEC has averaged an annual workload of 14,000 major eye surgeries and 13,000 laser procedures. The SNEC also actively participates in clinical trials and researches the causes to find treatments to eye conditions such as myopia and glaucoma. It is the largest ophthalmology specialist centre in Singapore.[citation needed]
The eye centre has clinics with 50 consultation suites, 9 operating theatres,[7] research facilities, and offices in the 2 adjoining buildings. It also has a pharmacy near the entrance. The buildings do not have retail space or restaurants. However, there is food available nearby, including at the Singapore General Hospital. The eye centre also has a library.
National Cancer Centre Singapore
The National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) is the country's national specialty centre for the diagnosis, research and treatment of cancer. The centre has Singapore's largest concentration of "internationally qualified oncologists".[8] It was originally established in 1993 as a unit of Singapore General Hospital.[9] but is now an autonomous institution belonging to Singapore Health Services.
The centre's founding director is Professor Soo Khee Chee. It is currently headed by Professor William Hwang, the NCCS provides a range of medical, educational and research activities within a single institution; and practices a multi-disciplinary approach to diagnosis and treatment. The Centre, which is located in the Outram Medical Campus, is Southeast Asia's only full multi-disciplinary sub-specialist centre for cancer.
In addition, the Centre is a teaching institution for post-graduate cancer education that trains and offers fellowships for many local and overseas doctors, nurses, para-medical professionals and researchers.
National Heart Centre Singapore
The National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS) is a specialist medical centre in Singapore for cardiac problems as well as a regional referral centre for cardiovascular diseases. Established in 1994 as the Singapore Heart Centre in the Singapore General Hospital,[10] it was renamed in 1998. The heart centre took over the hospital's cardiac services and set up a cardiology laboratory in 1995. In 2014, the NHCS completed its move to its new purpose built building within the Singapore General Hospital Outram Campus at 5 Hospital Drive, Singapore 169609. The new building not only includes facilities for outpatient clinics and non-invasive testing, but also has operating theatres and an invasive cardiac catheterisation laboratory.
With over 9,000 inpatient admissions every year, the 186-bed specialty centre for cardiovascular disease in Singapore offers treatments from preventive to rehabilitative cardiac services.
National Dental Centre Singapore
The National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS) is a facility in Singapore for specialist oral healthcare services. It commenced operations on 1 March 1997 and claims to offer the largest concentration of specialist expertise in a single facility. The Centre's specialist teams attend to over 700 patients daily, including walk-in patients and those being referred to the centre. The Centre is equipped with 92-chair facility and a day surgery suite.[citation needed]
The Centre has three specialist clinical departments, being the Departments of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Orthodontics and Restorative Dentistry, which attend to a wide range of oral conditions. In addition, the Endodontics, Paediatric Dentistry, Periodontics and Prosthodontics are sub-units which may be found within the Department of Restorative Dentistry. Sub-speciality multidisciplinary services are available through NDC's Centres for Corrective Jaw Surgery, Maxillofacial Rehabilitation and Facial Pain.
The Centre is active in research as well as training activities, especially focusing on the professional education of dentists. NDCS has been under the management of Singapore Health Services Pte Ltd since 2002 and is located within the Singapore General Hospital Outram campus.[citation needed]
National Neuroscience Institute
The National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) is the national and regional specialty centre for the management and care of neurological diseases in Singapore, providing treatment for a broad range of illnesses that affect the brain, spine, nerve and muscle. As the national and international centre of excellence in the neurosciences, its mission and goals rest upon three strengths – patient care, research and education.[11] Offering a comprehensive range of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Neuroradiology services, the NNI provides neuroscience care not only in Singapore but in the region.
The establishment of NNI in 1999 resulted in the transfers of the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery from Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) to form the foundations of clinical service. A new department of Neuroradiology was also initiated to provide the specialised diagnostic imaging and interventional services for neurological diseases. Today, NNI has a campus co-located with SGH in Outram, but — unlike other SingHealth specialty centres — also has a campus located with Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Novena, Singapore,[12] and provides specialty services to most other hospitals in Singapore as well.
Community hospitals
Bright Vision Hospital
Bright Vision Hospital (BVH) is a 318-bed community hospital in Hougang. It was founded by Singapore Buddhist Welfare services in 2001, who then transferred ownership of the hospital to SingHealth in 2011 due to management challenges.
Outram Community Hospital
Outram Community Hospital is a community hospital in Outram. It is located adjacent to the Singapore General Hospital, being part of the Singapore General Hospital Campus.
Sengkang Community Hospital
Sengkang Community Hospital is a community hospital in Sengkang. It is co-located with Sengkang General Hospital and together they form the Sengkang General Hospital campus.
Incidents
2018 data breach
Personal particulars of 1.5 million SingHealth patients and records of outpatient dispensed medicines for 160,000 of those patients were stolen in a cyberattack between 27 June and 4 July 2018 with the names, National Registration Identity Card numbers, addresses, dates of birth, race, and gender of patients who visited specialist outpatient clinics and polyclinics between 1 May 2015 and 4 July 2018 maliciously accessed and copied. Information relating to patient diagnosis, test results and doctors' notes were unaffected.[13] Information on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was specifically targeted.[14]
See also
References
- ^ Putting Our Patients First: Our Inaugural Report (PDF). National Healthcare Group. 2000. p. 36.
- ^ Caring for our People: 50 Years of Healthcare in Singapore (PDF). MOH Holdings Pte Ltd. 2015. p. 144. ISBN 978-981-09-6201-2.
- ^ "SGH and SingHealth launch Singapore's first bilingual health newspaper, Singapore Health - Singapore General Hospital". www.sgh.com.sg. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
- ^ Khalik, Salma. "New alliance boosts quality of health care in the east". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
- ^ Gan, Kim Yong (18 November 2011). "Speech by Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister for Health, at the Official Launch of the Eastern Health Alliance, Friday, 18 November 2011, 10.30am". MOH. Archived from the original on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 October 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Singapore National Eye Centre (brochure), April 2006 edition, p. 2
- ^ "National Cancer Centre Singapore". Singapore Medicine. 16 July 2013. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013.
- ^ "National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS)". Hospitals.SG. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
- ^ "10 facts you should know about Singapore's 200-year healthcare history". Retrieved 17 July 2019.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 31 July 2007. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 July 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2007.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Personal info of 1.5m SingHealth patients, including PM Lee, stolen in Singapore's worst cyber attack". 20 July 2018. Archived from the original on 22 August 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
- ^ Kwang, Kevin (20 July 2018). "Singapore health system hit by 'most serious breach of personal data' in cyberattack; PM Lee's data targeted". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 26 July 2018.
