SESSION DETAILS
Abstract
Singapore’s healthcare system is widely regarded as one of the best among developed nations. As healthcare needs become more complex and the population ages, the role of primary care continues to evolve.
Over the past three years, the introduction of the Healthier SG programme has placed renewed emphasis on preventive care and population health. Within this framework, primary care plays an important role in supporting the broader healthcare system’s shift towards more coordinated, community-based, and population-oriented models of care. As these changes unfold, the expectations placed on both public and private primary care providers are expanding.
It remains early to determine how these reforms will ultimately reshape Singapore’s primary care landscape in the post-Healthier SG era.
This symposium brings together perspectives from public policy, the public healthcare cluster, and private primary care supported by a healthcare co-operative. Together, the speakers will explore the opportunities, challenges, and practical realities shaping the future of primary care in Singapore.
Workshop Objectives
Workshop Learning Outcomes
Session Details
Topic
Speaker
Shaping the Future: Navigating the Next Decade of Primary Care
As Singapore’s healthcare landscape shifts, the next ten years present a critical juncture for primary care. This session briefly examines the mounting pressures of an aging population and why our national outcomes for ambulatory care sensitive conditions still lag behind OECD peers. We will explore the friction between traditional hospital-centric models and the need for a primary-care-first approach, alongside the evolving roles of polyclinics and private GPs.
With increasing competition from telemedicine and cross-border healthcare, the sustainability of the current GP model is under scrutiny. Are private providers being deskilled by high-volume acute cases while sicker patients gravitate toward polyclinics? We will touch upon whether Healthier SG has successfully catalyzed the necessary shifts in provider behaviour and patient ownership.
This presentation outlines the essential policy levers and mindset changes required to ensure primary care remains the foundation of our health system.
Dr Kok Mun Foong
Primary Care: Anchors for Healthy Communities
Primary care is the vital partner for clusters to anchor care of their populations in the community. NUHS aims to strengthen primary care’s role as first port of call for management of chronic disease and preventive health needs by
1. Enhancing capability to managing increasingly complex conditions and patients by timely access to specialist expertise, cost-effective diagnostic and allied health resources, in-depth and practical training
2. Extending care options beyond clinic walls with strong multi-disciplinary health and social service teams to holistically manage social and lifestyle issues, and home-based acute care for non-ambulant patients
3. Easing communication access to community partners and tertiary institutions, to screening services and follow-up,
4. Encouraging co-creation and participation in innovative care approaches, clinical quality improvement, technological advances (e.g. AI).
Dr Richard Hui Jor Yeong
Primary Care Future in Private Sector
Dr Leong Choon Kit
Speakers
More information is coming soon.
Dr Kok Mun Foong
Senior Consultant, Value, Safety & Performance Division,
Ministry of Health
Dr Leong Choon Kit
Dr Richard Hui Jor Yeong
Director, Primary Care Partnerships,
Regional Health System Office, National University Health System