150 NURSES RECOGNISED WITH NURSES’ MERIT AWARD 2024

150 nurses were presented with the Nurses’ Merit Award (NMA) by Minister for Health, Mr Ong Ye Kung, on 12 July 2024. These nurses come from various care settings, spanning the community care sector, private hospitals and public healthcare institutions.

 2.     Started in 1976, the NMA is awarded to nurses who have displayed noteworthy and exceptional performance, participated in professional development, and contributed to raising the nursing profession. Nurses are nominated for the award by their healthcare institutions and selected by a panel set up by the Ministry of Health (MOH).

 3.     The Award comes with a medal to be worn as part of the nurse’s uniform and a cash prize of $1,000. Please refer to the Annex for the list of award recipients.

 Strengthening Nursing Education

 4.     MOH remains committed to developing the nursing profession by working with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) to strengthen nursing education, and creating opportunities for nurses to upskill and enhance their professional development throughout their nursing careers.

New Post-graduate Nursing Programmes

5.     To provide new pathways for nurses to upskill in specialised areas, the National University of Singapore will launch two new postgraduate programmes, the Graduate Certificates in Integrated Health and Critical Care Nursing, in August 2024. These work-study programmes, give nurses the opportunity to develop their professional competencies through on-the-job training at their workplace, while concurrently advancing their professional development.

Integrated Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Nursing Programmes

6.      To nurture a practice-ready nursing workforce, the Singapore Institute of Technology will launch a new five-year integrated Bachelor of Science in Nursing – Master of Science in Nursing programme in September 2024. Candidates who graduate from the three-year Bachelor programme will be qualified to start work as Registered Nurses, or choose to pursue the two-year work-study Master programme for further training in one of four specialisations – Medical/Surgical, High Acuity Care, Peri-Operative, or Intermediate and Long-Term Care Nursing. Developed in collaboration with SingHealth, the programme allows for a seamless transition to a master's degree, recognising nursing students’ aspirations for more advanced knowledge and skills.

Enhancing Capabilities of Enrolled Nurses

7.     The Institute of Technical Education (ITE) will launch a three-year Work-Study Diploma in Nursing in October 2024, which provides in-service Enrolled Nurses the opportunity to obtain a nationally recognised diploma and take on more complex nursing tasks as Registered Nurses. ITE has also replaced the two-year Nitec in Nursing programme with a three-year Higher Nitec certification, which is a significant step in enhancing the capabilities of Enrolled Nurses by equipping them with greater knowledge and skills, enabling them to undertake an expanded scope of practice.

Continued Support for Nurses

8.     MOH is committed to supporting all nurses, including those already in service. We are introducing the long-term retention scheme for nurses working in the public healthcare system in September 2024. Under the Award for Nurses' Grace, Excellence and Loyalty (ANGEL) scheme, all new and in-service nurses working in the public healthcare institutions can receive a total payout of up to $100,000 over the next 20 years of their career. Overall, these efforts are meant to retain a pool of nursing manpower critical to Singapore.

Annex

Nurses’ Merit Award Recipients 2024