Issue 34 - NUS Medicine

NUS YONG LOO LIN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

Issue 34 / May 2020

DEAN'S MESSAGE

Dear Reader,

We live in interesting times. When I began jotting down thoughts for a draft of this message earlier this year, I had no inkling of the coming virus threat that would work its way around the world, sickening hundreds of thousands, locking down entire cities and communities, upending businesses and slowing global economies. The rapidity of the COVID-19 outbreak has caught many governments unprepared, prompting the WHO to declare a pandemic on 11th March. It is one that the world is still grappling with at the time of this newsletter going to print.

The suddenness and speed with which the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) crossed international borders brought home in dramatic fashion the extreme interconnectedness of our modern lives. It is a vivid demonstration of how the world as we know it is changing. It is being re-shaped by a confluence of forces, from the digital and technological revolutions that are dramatically transforming the way we live, work and play, to the realignment and fragmentation of international political and economic partnerships, and the reconsideration of personal, civic and societal norms and institutions.

COVID-19 Special

Ways In Which COVID-19 Pandemic Could Unfold

As the COVID-19 rages on globally, Asst Prof Jyoti Somani and Professor Paul Ananth Tambyah look at how the pandemic could play out.

Ask The Expert: Key COVID-19 Concerns

As the COVID-19 epidemic continues to move world headlines and restrict global travel, trained virologist Dr Khor Ing Wei, Dean’s Office, takes stock with Professor Paul Tambyah, Infectious Diseases Division at NUS Medicine, Senior Consultant in Infectious Disease at NUH and Head of the Infectious Disease Research Coordinating Office, on what we do and do not know about the novel coronavirus and a few common concerns and fears.

Dispatch From The Front

Alumnus Dr Chua Ying Xian, who graduated in 2010, and Dr Lawrence Lam are family physicians at the National University Polyclinics. They share a glimpse into their work day in what—at least for the immediate future—is the new normal.

Unity In The Face Of COVID-19

Since the onset of COVID-19, the National University Health System (NUHS) has turned around all three campuses—Kent Ridge, JurongHealth and Alexandra—as well as the polyclinics, to care for patients with heightened vigilance and infection control measures. Catch a glimpse of what goes on at the frontline and behind the scenes, as healthcare heroes tirelessly lead the fight against COVID-19.

Thoroughly Infectious: The COVID-19 Chronicles

COVID-19 has been dominating world headlines since the start of 2020. With a deluge of information (and misinformation) about the disease contributing to mounting global fear, public health education about the novel coronavirus is crucial. It prompted the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine to team up with the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network at the World Health Organisation (WHO) to calm feverish minds and help sort out fact from fiction. The treatment plan? A strong, sustained dose of comic strip humour.

Dossier

We’re Getting BISI!

Medicine, as taught and practised in medical schools, has long focused on addressing the biological causes and treatments for disease and bodily injury. Yet in many instances, even when medical science has the cure or solutions to a better quality of life through preventive care, translation into actual population health and well-being could fail.

Asia Pacific Medical Education Conference 2020: Where Best Ideas And Practices Come Together

Following the success of the past 16 runs of the Asia Pacific Medical Education Conference (APMEC), the 17th APMEC returned on 8 to 12 January 2020, gathering close to 1,300 medical and healthcare professionals from over 39 countries.

In Vivo

Project Lokun: Medical Students With A Heart For Cambodia

Established in 2006, Project Lokun is a biannual medical humanitarian project to Pursat Province, Cambodia, jointly organised by students from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and University of Puthisastra (Phnom Penh).

Dementia And Palliative Care Take Centre Stage

Yap Shi Jed directed two plays put up at the NUS University Cultural Centre as part of a hall-of-residence production on 17 and 18 January 2020. Written by local playwright Haresh Sharma, “Don’t Know, Don’t Care” and “Don’t Forget to Remember Me”, reflect social attitudes toward the elderly and loved ones with dementia. The plays drew an audience of more than 600.

Beyond Immunity: Researches Uncover How Microglia Affect Learning And Memory

A decade ago, scientists showed that microglia, the immune cells of the nervous system, contribute to inflammation in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Now, researchers from the Departments of Anatomy and Physiology at NUS Medicine have discovered another role for microglia in neurodegenerative diseases, this time in the cognitive impairment aspect of these devastating conditions.

Ethically Speaking

Healthcare Improvement And Healthcare Ethics: Time For The Twain To Meet

Good healthcare is, by definition, of at least some positive value. But there are many things we could consider before judging any particular examples of healthcare to be good, and not all practical efforts to improve healthcare are entirely positive: they can, for example, cause harm, waste resources and treat some people unfairly.

Insights

Holding Up Half the Sky – Women in Singapore Medicine

Mao Tse-tung’s famous saying reflected his appreciation of the critical role that women played, and continue to play, in China’s national growth, progress and development.

Before The Light Fades: Terminal Lucidity And Other End-of-Life Experiences

My friend’s grandmother recently died at the venerable age of 94, after years of dementia that had relentlessly and gradually robbed her of her lucidity and personality, until she was barely able to communicate any more. Finally, she was admitted to hospital with a pneumonia that was so serious, the doctors warned her family to be prepared for the worst.

Agony And Ecstasy

Long hours on the feet. Uncertain mealtimes and toilet breaks. Harried staff at breaking point and abusive patients who think nothing of assaulting those trying to care for them. It’s all in a long day’s work - pre-Covid-19 days, that is. So spare a thought for A/Prof Peter Manning, Emeritus Consultant, Department of Emergency Medicine and Vice-Chairman, Medical Board, National University Hospital. He explains why this is not a job for the faint of heart.

Nursing

Arming Nurses With Skills And Knowledge, Flowing Patients From Hospital To Community

Through her 45 years in the nursing profession, Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Tan Soh Chin has never said “no” to new experiences. That included taking on the challenges of her current position as Singapore’s CNO at the Ministry of Health (MOH).

Accelerating Higher Education In Nursing

Professor John Wong, Isabel Chan Professor in Medical Sciences, Senior Vice President (Health Innovation & Translation) at the National University of Singapore (NUS), and former Chief Executive of the National University Health System, played an instrumental role in advancing higher education for nurses, when he championed the setting up of a degree programme at NUS in 2003.

Precision Medicine

Banking On Big Data For Biomedical Insights – Precision Medicine In The Era of Big Data And Biobanks

Fifteen years ago, researchers observed that French families with very high LDL cholesterol levels carried a mutation in the gene coding for the proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) enzyme, making PCSK9 more active.