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Speech at Nurses’ Day 2009

Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister , Singapore General Hospital

Mr Peter Seah, Chairman, SingHealth

Professor Tan Ser Kiat, Group Chief Executive Officer, SingHealth

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

1.   I am glad to be here today to celebrate Nurses' Day with our nurses. Our nurses are the Fabulous Inspiring Talent, or FIT in short. They are a key part of the Singapore's workforce. FIT is also the theme for this year's Nurses' Day at SingHealth. Indeed, it is important that our nurses are physically, mentally and emotionally fit.

THE CHANGING ROLE OF NURSES

2.   The SARS outbreak in 2003 and the current H1N1 global pandemic have emphasised the importance of the nursing profession. Our nurses have risen to the occasion and have demonstrated their professionalism in providing care, comfort and assurance to those who fell ill.

3.   The role of nurses has evolved and expanded over the years. Nurses today work closely alongside doctors and other healthcare professionals to deliver integrated quality care to patients. This includes educating and training patients and caregivers, promoting self-management of health conditions and disease prevention. For example, experienced and highly qualified Nurse Clinicians manage patients from admission to discharge. They also take on some of the tasks which are traditionally carried out by doctors such as profiling a patient's medical history and performing basic physical examinations.

4.   As nurses take on greater responsibilities, career development tracks have also evolved, providing opportunities for them to excel in various areas. SingHealth, for example, offers three different career progression tracks to cater to the differing aspirations, inclinations and strengths of individual nurses. Specifically, nurses in SingHealth can choose either the clinical, management or education career progression tracks.

BUILDING A LOCAL SKILLS BASE

5.   The Ministry of Health, or MOH, has announced that the Government will be building two new hospitals – Jurong General Hospital and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. Both hospitals are expected to be completed in the next two years to meet the increasing demand for healthcare services in Singapore. It is hence crucial that our workforce continues to have the necessary talent with the right skills in this growing sector so that they can tap on these job opportunities and that our patients will continue to enjoy high quality healthcare services.

6.   To build up a base of core skills in this sector, we have provided training for our young students through the academic as well as structured training pathways for mid-career professionals who are keen to switch to the healthcare sector.

7.   The Singapore Workforce Development Agency, or WDA, has been working closely with MOH to expand opportunities for mid-career conversion and in-employment upgrading for Registered Nurses and Enrolled Nurses. The course fees are fully funded by the Government and sponsoring hospitals which are participating in the programmes. For the conversion programmes, trainees also receive a monthly training stipend. I am pleased to learn that the response from our local workers has been encouraging. To date, more than 700 Singaporeans had been enrolled for the programmes for Registered Nurses and Enrolled Nurses since they were introduced in 2003 and 2006, respectively. Today, we have about 160 Singaporeans who are undergoing training to join the nursing profession in the near future. The overall number of Singaporean registered nurses and enrolled nurses has also increased by 25% in the last four years.

UPSKILLING OPPORTUNITIES

8.   Nurses can and should continue to improve their skills by participating in the various training and upgrading opportunities. For instance, nurses can take part in specialised programmes and practice-based training such as nursing management, emergency nursing and surgical nursing courses through SingHealth's Alice Lee Institute of Advanced Nursing.

9.   One example is Ms Farzeeda. She was working as a Clinical Instructor before she was awarded the Alice Lee IAN Scholarship in 2008 to pursue her Master of Training and Development at the University of Melbourne, Australia. After the two-year stint, she has become a better educator and can understand the learning needs of the different types of adult learners. These capabilities have benefited Farzeeda's trainees and helped SGH develop its people resources. I am glad to learn that Farzeeda was recently promoted to Nurse Educator. Congratulations on your promotion, Farzeeda.

10.   In addition, MOH and the National University of Singapore have also rolled out the Master of Nursing course in 2009 which prepares Registered Nurses to assume clinical roles. This programme will train students to undertake research to improve patient outcomes. Upon completion of the academic programme, students will graduate as Advance Practice Nurses, or APN in short, and will work alongside medical practitioners in four specialties: acute-care, medical/surgery care, community care, and mental health.

11.   Nurse Clinician Julia Eng, from KK Women's and Children's Hospital, has been working in KKH since her graduation from Nanyang Polytechnic in 1995. She completed further studies with the NUS Masters in Nursing programme to prepare herself to become an APN in gynae-oncology specialty in 2008. As an APN in the gynae-oncology ward setting, Julia works closely with the medical and nursing team to provide care to patients, including those with complex problems. Her expanded responsibilities include direct care provision, risk identification and clinical coordination. I wish her all the best in her new role.

12.   There are many training and upgrading opportunities for nurses. I therefore urge nurses to continually upgrade your skills to remain relevant to the sector. I also urge more Singaporeans to consider joining the nursing profession for a challenging and rewarding career.

CONCLUSION

13.   To all our nurses who are gathered here today to celebrate Nurses' Day, I commend you for your high professional standards and thank you for your dedication to the health and well-being of our people. You are an inspiration to everyone and I wish all of you a very happy and enjoyable Nurses' Day!

14.   Thank you.