Speech by Dr Lam Pin Min, Senior Minister of State for Health, at Life Stories Exhibition opening ceremony, 21 October 2017

Associate Professor Lau Tang Ching, Vice-Dean, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine

Dr Angel Lee, Chairperson, Singapore Hospice Council

Dr Tan Poh Kiang, President, HCA Hospice Care

Ms Angeline Wee, CEO, HCA Hospice Care

Distinguished guests

Ladies and gentlemen 

1.     Good afternoon. I am delighted to join you at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine’s inaugural Project Happy Apples Life Stories Exhibition, held in conjunction with World Hospice and Palliative Care Day.

2.     Palliative care will become increasingly important as our population ages rapidly. It is also important that as a society, we are prepared to discuss end of life issues and that as individuals, we are empowered to plan for ourselves, and to discuss our wishes with our families about our care preferences at the end of life. I am therefore heartened that students from NUS Medicine are taking the initiative to engage the public meaningfully on end-of-life issues through life stories centred around the theme of the exhibition - “Adding Life to Days”.

PALLIATIVE CARE IN SINGAPORE

3.     Initiatives such as this are useful in helping us to promote awareness about advanced care planning and palliative care services. On our part, MOH is working with Singapore Hospice Council and palliative care providers to better develop palliative care services in Singapore in three main areas.

4.     First, the Singapore Hospice Council will be embarking on a 3-year community engagement and public education initiative on end-of-life issues. We hope that these efforts, including other initiatives like Project Happy Apples, will also help our society to be a compassionate community that better supports persons facing end-of-life issues.

5.     MOH will also be investing in promoting awareness of Advance Care Planning or ACP among healthcare professionals and in the community. ACP is a series of on-going conversations for healthcare professionals to engage the patient, family members and caregivers in early discussions about end-of-life care preferences. This not only benefits the patients, but also helps to reduce the stress and anxiety for family members and caregivers if they need to make decisions on their behalf.

6.     Second, MOH is expanding the capacity of palliative care services. We have increased the number of home palliative care places from 3,800 in 2011 to 5,500 in 2016. We target to have 6,000 home palliative care places by 2020. For those with more complex symptoms and cannot be managed at home, we have increased the number of inpatient palliative care beds from 118 in 2011 to about 230 beds today, and target to provide 360 beds by 2020.

7.     Third, we are exploring new ways to deliver services to better care for palliative patients. For instance, the National Healthcare Group is piloting an integrated home palliative care programme to serve patients with non-cancer conditions. Other Regional Health Systems will also come on board in the near future. Through this programme, restructured hospitals will work with community service providers to develop medical and nursing care protocols, build up the skills of the community providers and coordinate social care with home personal care providers.

8.     But palliative care is not just about adding physical capacity or exploring new ways to provide care for patients. It is integral that our healthcare professionals, including medical students, undergo training to appreciate end-of-life issues, learn to manage and hold conversations about end-of-life care, as well as equip themselves with adequate knowledge about palliative care. MOH is already working with NUS Medicine, together with our two other medical schools, to develop a core clinical curriculum that will include palliative care in undergraduate learning. We hope that schools will be able to introduce this as early as next year. This is part of our commitment to prepare future doctors in providing continuing and integrated care.

Adding Life to Days Exhibition
9.     It is heartening to see NUS medicine students taking charge and organising befriending projects with palliative patients and telling their stories in a compelling and meaningful way through interactive exhibits. I hope you will find them interesting and have useful takeaways to share with your friends and family.

10.     I am happy to see some of the patients who contributed their stories here with us today, alongside their families and friends. They have willingly shared their lives and experiences and we are grateful for their generosity.

CONCLUSION

11.     In closing, I would like to commend the students’ efforts and patients’ contributions in engaging the public on this challenging topic. I hope that this initiative will encourage Singaporeans to think ahead and live life to the fullest, as well as contribute to the overall national effort of raising awareness on palliative care.