Speech by Mdm Rahayu Mahzam, Minister of State, MDDI & MOH at the 9th International Nurse Education Conference on Monday, 28 October 2024, 7.45 am

Dr Catherine Koh,
Group Chief Nurse, National University Health System

Professor Liaw Sok Ying
Head, Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, National University of Singapore

Professor Amanda Kenny, and Professor Mary Sidebotham,
Co-Chairs of The Conference Committee for NETNEP 2024

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning. It is my pleasure to be here today for the opening ceremony of the 9th International Nursing Education Conference, widely known as NETNEP. This conference, organised by Elsevier in collaboration with the renowned international journals: Nurse Education Today and Nurse Education in Practice, represents a pinnacle in nursing education.

2.             Congratulations to the National University of Singapore (NUS) Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies for being a major partner of this event and for their successful endeavour in bringing this conference to Singapore – its first Asian venue. This milestone underscores our commitment to advancing nursing education.

Evolution of Nursing Care Model 

3.             The nursing care model is evolving globally to prepare in-practice nurses for current and future roles. In Singapore, we are integrating more technologies across various care settings to reduce the load for our nurses, to allow them to perform higher-value-add roles, and to accommodate an ageing workforce. We recognise that assistive and robotic technologies are equally crucial in transforming care delivery. Moreover, the use of IT and data analytics improve our awareness of patient needs and enhances care coordination across various settings.

4.             To boost productivity and achieve manpower efficiency, the Ministry of Health has been funding initiatives under the Healthcare Productivity Fund since 2012. The Smart Nursing Wards is one such initiative – it exemplifies efficiency in healthcare. This ground-up effort by public acute hospitals streamlines processes, adopts mechanisation to enable healthcare professionals to focus more on less routine work where they can add value, and leverages IT to support skills and training to enhance efficiency in the healthcare workforce. Besides redesigning nursing workflows, these Smart Nursing Wards incorporate robotic and wireless monitoring technologies to enable more seamless care delivery from the prescription of clinical pathway to the delivery of care and supplies to patients.

5.             These innovations are expanding care delivery beyond traditional clinical settings and enhancing productivity. However, to fully leverage these advancements, nursing education must evolve in tandem. As the profession adapts to these changes, it is crucial to equip nurses with advanced skills and knowledge to lead in this new era of healthcare delivery. This necessity for higher-level expertise and leadership in nursing has paved the way for significant developments in nursing education to ensure that the nurses in active practice today are fit for their present and future roles.

Evolution of Nursing Education in Singapore

6.             Singapore’s nursing education system has continuously evolved since the establishment of the first School of Nursing in 1956. In the 1990s, our polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education took on the role of preparing Registered Nurses and Enrolled Nurses respectively.

7.             A significant milestone came in 2005 with the establishment of the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies also known as NUS Nursing, offering Singapore’s first Bachelor of Science (Nursing) programme. This marked the transition from diploma to degree-level education, advancing the profession academically. In 2009, NUS Nursing took over the Master of Nursing programme (the training of Advanced Practice Nurses), from NUS Medicine's division of graduate medical studies.

8.             Post-registration nursing education has been significantly enhanced to provide diverse advancement opportunities. Our initiatives include introducing diploma-to-degree upgrading programmes, advanced and graduate diploma programmes, additional master’s programmes, and the Doctor of Philosophy programme for nurses. These efforts have helped to professionalise nursing in Singapore. Furthermore, we have also developed alternative entry pathways to nursing, catering to mid-career entrants and embracing new work-study models. We are also exploring ways to develop higher competencies for Enrolled Nurses to progress to Registered Nurses, and to prepare Registered Nurses to upskill to become specialty trained nurses and Advanced Practice Nurses. This comprehensive approach ensures a more flexible and responsive nursing workforce, ready to meet the evolving healthcare needs of our community.

Transforming Nursing Education for Future Healthcare Needs

9.             As care is shifting from institutional to community-based settings, the challenges for nursing differ across settings. However, there remains a need to identify core competencies that do not change but instead be reinforced to establish a more resilient nursing workforce that can be deployed across settings. Competencies in preventive health, team-based care, and leadership skills will be essential. Nurses need to acquire inter-disciplinary competencies to collaborate and integrate care, setting the stage eventually for trans-disciplinary shared care models to be developed. NUS’ new Common Curriculum for Healthcare Professional Education exemplifies this approach. Introduced last year, it educates healthcare students on the practical, social and emotional needs that affect individuals’ health and well-being in communities; uses data and digital literacy to enable population healthcare planning, delivery and evaluation; and strengthens interdisciplinary engagement as well as experiential learning. Through this cross-disciplinary curriculum, undergraduate students studying Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, and Pharmacy will gain deeper and broader knowledge of healthcare issues and challenges, and work effectively in team-based care models.

10.          NUS is also embracing innovative teaching methods by integrating cutting-edge technology into its curriculum. At the forefront of this innovation are Simulation and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies. These tools provide students with safe, controlled experiential learning opportunities. For instance, VR in agitation management programme and peri-operative nursing immerse students in realistic scenarios, helping them develop critical clinical skills before working in the actual operational healthcare settings. This incorporation of technologies into nursing education not only enhances learning but also challenges students to adapt these tools for patient care. Furthermore, it expands nursing competencies to include essential technology management skills, preparing students for the increasingly digital healthcare environment.

11.          Beyond curriculum innovation, there is a growing need for education institutions to continuously review and adapt their programmes as we expand nurses' roles beyond direct patient care into areas such as education, research, innovation, and administration. This ongoing review process is essential to develop the diverse competencies required in modern nursing. Simultaneously, regulatory bodies and policymakers must provide clear directions while encouraging bottom-up initiatives from both educational and healthcare institutions. This balanced approach ensures that nursing education remains responsive to the rapidly changing healthcare environment while maintaining high standards of care.

12.          The future of nursing is bright, illuminated by the twin beacons of technology and education. As we embrace technological advancements, we must remain steadfast in our commitment to core values: compassion, empathy, and patient-centred care. In the words of Florence Nightingale, "Let us never consider ourselves finished nurses. We must be learning all of our lives." This wisdom reminds that nursing is a journey of lifelong learning and continuous improvement.

Closing

13.          To the nursing community, your dedication is the bedrock of our healthcare system. Your commitment to lifelong learning and adaption is commendable.

14.          With continued innovation in nursing education, I am confident that we will nurture the next generation of nurses equipped to lead with excellence and compassion, ultimately improving the health and well-being of patients and communities.

15.          Thank you and wishing all of you a fruitful time at the 9^th International Nursing Conference, as you exchange knowledge and experiences toward “celebrating and driving outcomes through education”.