SPEECH BY DR KOH POH KOON, SENIOR MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF HEALTH, AT THE PUBLIC FREE CLINIC SOCIETY 46TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION, 20 DECEMBER 2020, 2PM AT PUBLIC FREE CLINIC SOCIETY

大众医院院长 罗桂清医师

全体理事会

各位嘉宾

女士们、先生们

       大家下午好！今天正值大众医院欢庆46周年生日，我很荣幸能受邀出席盛会。首先，我衷心希望大众医院可以继续发扬慈善的崇高精神，秉承一贯的“取之于民、用之于民”的原则，不分种族和宗教，尽心尽力地为较贫困的病黎提供有素质且廉宜的传统中医中药服务！

2.    新型冠状病毒今年影响了全球许多国家的经济和生计，新加坡也不例外。为确保中医师们的安危，在今年2月和3月份，卫生部安排了符合条件的中医诊所免费领取手术口罩和分发了洗手液给中医慈善机构。在4月份，政府的多部门工作小组实施了阻断措施，并在那期间暂停了所有非必要的社交及商业活动。然而，为了协助年长者在阻断期间能够继续获得必要的服务，卫生部依然允许注册中医师继续提供必要的看诊和中药治疗。如今，通过全国人民一心集体的合作，包括中医界的持续配合和支持，我们在防止疫情这方面已经取得一定的成效，并将在12月28日步入开放的第3阶段。虽然这是个重要的里程碑，也是可能大家期待已久的里程碑，但我们前方要走的道路还非常漫长，未来要应付的挑战还有很多未知数，我们必须继续保持警惕和团结互助的精神，这样子才有望战胜这个疫情。

3.    传统中医药在新加坡已有超过100年的发展史，在我们的医疗保健体系中占有特殊的地位。尤其是当新加坡面对人口迅速老龄化、慢性病逐渐攀升的趋势之下，中医药在防治老年病方面可扮演重要的辅助角色。以大众医院为例，我了解近80%的病人是年龄在51岁以上的年长者，由此可见一斑。

4.    为了让中医药能更有力地辅助现代医疗，我们必须重视中医药的发展和现代化，搭起中医与现代医学的沟通桥梁。卫生部在去年与中医界展开了多次意见收集和讨论，希望通过大家的合作集思广益，为中医界的未来发展做出更好的规划。其中一个重要的共识是, 中医药的发展需要通过医学教育、临床实践与科研三方面的互相融合来积极推动，把中医界推到另一个高峰。

5.    尽管经验的传承在中医的发展是必不可少的，我们也应该重视中医的科研，以让中医可以由仅靠经验为主的一门医学，逐渐的提升以循证医学为依据的更高境界，为中医药治疗提供科学依据。我鼓励各中医机构利用卫生部设立的中医药研究补助基金，积极开展中医药临床科研。我欣闻大众医院通过其新的电子诊病系统，已为开拓中医药的调研工作踏出了很重要一步，让其科研小组收集相关科研资料，为传统中医学的疗效提供依据。刚才在上来这之前，在楼下简单了参观一下设备，地方虽小，就好像麻雀虽小，五脏俱全。现在加上了电子系统，特别是在云端可以上载数据库，就有如虎添翼。希望大众医院在46年周庆之后，可以迈向更好的46年。

6.    在临床实践方面，中医非常讲究辨证论治及个性化的治疗，这跟现代医学中靶向治疗的理念是相同的。随着我们逐渐把科研结果建立起来，我想促请各中医机构一起紧密的合作，结合本地中医师的临床经验和科研结果，为本地中医设立一些基本的临床实践标准和准则。这将有助于中医的现代化，让西方医学更容易接受中医药疗法，也让中西医双方面能够更好的去对接，互相鼓励，互相配合，把新加坡医疗系统提上一个新的平台。

7.    在教育方面，卫生部在今年4月份实施了中医师的强制性继续教育。虽然受疫情影响而许多课堂、会议式的课程无法进行，我很欣慰知道各个中医继续教育主办机构奋起应对困难，纷纷改为线上授课，并取得不错的回响。我想借此机会鼓励中医师们利用卫生部设立的中医药发展补助金。补助金可为中医师提供高达80%，每年顶限为$200的补助，帮助中医师抵消上继续教育课程的费用。网上申请的截止日期是每年的12月31日。

8.    最后，我也想借此机会感谢社会各阶层的善心人士以及团体，四十多年来对大众医院的鼎力支持。他们的慷慨解囊、乐善好施的伟大精神，使得大众医院可以不断的发展与提升，让更多国人以及病患们都受惠。

9.    我恭祝大众医院46周年院庆取得圆满成功，并再接再厉，为本地中医药的发展做出更好的成绩！也希望在未来的46年你们能杰出更丰硕的成果。谢谢！

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Mr Loh Kooi Cheng, President of Public Free Clinic Society

Board of Committee Members of Public Free Clinic Society

Distinguished guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

       Good afternoon. Today marks the 46th anniversary of Public Free Clinic Society’s (PFCS) and I am honoured to join you in celebrating this milestone. I hope that PFCS will continue its charitable spirit and remain steadfast in its philosophy of offering affordable and good quality Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) services to low-income families, regardless of race or religion.  

2.     COVID-19 has affected economies and lives around the whole world this year, and Singapore is no exception. To keep our TCM practitioners safe, in February and March, MOH had arranged for eligible TCM clinics to collect free surgical masks, and distributed hand sanitisers to TCM charity organisations. In April, the Multi-Ministry Task Force implemented the Circuit Breaker, and all non-essential social and business services had to be suspended. As part of our efforts to support seniors in accessing essential services during the circuit break period, MOH had allowed registered TCM practitioners to continue seeing patients and dispensing herbal medicine. Today, with the continued cooperation and support of Singaporeans and organisations, including the TCM community, we have managed to keep COVID-19 infections under control and are now moving towards Phase Three of re-opening on 28 December. While this is a significant milestone, the journey ahead is still long and we will need to stay vigilant and united, in order to overcome COVID-19.

3.    TCM has been in Singapore for more than 100 years and it holds a special place in our healthcare system. Faced with a rapidly ageing population and increasing chronic disease prevalence, TCM can play an important complementary role in addressing these challenges. For example, at PFCS, I understand that 80% of their patients are aged 51 and above. 

4.    To strengthen the complementary role of TCM in our healthcare system, it is important to continuously develop and modernise TCM practice and build a bridge between TCM and modern medicine.  Last year, MOH organised multiple engagement sessions with the TCM community to gather feedback and suggestions on how to further the development of TCM in Singapore. One key takeaway was that the integration of TCM research, clinical practice and education is essential for the sustained development of TCM. 

5.    While a key part of the development of TCM includes learning from the experience of senior TCM practitioners, it is just as important to engage in TCM research, so that we can ascertain the efficacy of TCM treatments and advance TCM practice, moving from an experience-based to evidence-based medicine. I encourage TCM organisations to tap on the MOH TCM Research Grant to initiate more TCM research projects. I am happy to learn that PFCS had recently upgraded their electronic clinical record system and leveraged it to start their research initiative, allowing their research workgroup to  use the information captured to evaluate the efficacies of TCM treatments rendered to their patients.

6.    In the area of clinical practice, TCM emphasises “syndrome differentiation” and individualised treatments. As we slowly build up TCM research evidence, I urge TCM organisations to come together to discuss how we can combine research evidence with the clinical experience of local TCM practitioners to establish basic clinical practice standards and guidelines for TCM treatments. This will help TCM to speak a modern language, uplift standards and allow the western medical practitioners to better understand and accept TCM. 

7.    In the area of education, MOH has implemented mandatory continuing professional education (CPE) for TCM practitioners since April 2020. Although COVID-19 has disrupted the conventional methods of learning in classroom or conference settings, I am glad to know that TCM CPE training providers have adapted quickly and moved CPE learning to online platforms, which were well-received by the TCM community. I would like to take this chance to encourage TCM practitioners to utilise the MOH TCM Development Grant which provides funding support for up to 80% of CPE course fees, capped at $200 per calendar year. The deadline for online application is 31 December every year. 

8.    Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all individuals and organisations that have been supporting PFCS. Your generosity has enabled PFCS to make continuous improvements and benefit more Singaporeans. 

9.    I hope PFCS will continue to keep up the good work in the development of TCM in Singapore. I wish PFCS success for your 46th anniversary celebration. Thank you.