Speeches
SPEECH BY MR ONG YE KUNG, MINISTER FOR HEALTH, AT THE FORUM ON THE USE OF EVIDENCE-BASED TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE IN WESTERN MEDICINE PRACTICE
6 July 2025
Dr Koh Poh Koon, Senior Minister of State
Mr Cheng Wai Keung, Chairman, SingHealth
Professor Fong Kok Yong, Deputy Group CEO, SingHealth
Dr Goh Kia Seng, President, Academy of Chinese Medicine, Singapore
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen
1. I am delighted to join you today at this rather rare forum, where Western medicine clinicians and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners gather to learn from one another.
Co-existence of Western Medicine and TCM
2. Our healthcare system is centred on western medicine. Regulatory approach, our treatment methods in all our public health institutions, clinical protocols and governance – they are all based on western medicine. Our three medical schools deliver curricula based on up-to-date western medicine knowledge and techniques. Upon graduation, most undergo residency training to train as specialists and sub-specialists, also based on the western medical approach.
3. This strong institutional tradition has served us well and made Singapore one of the best and most reputable healthcare systems in the world.
4. TCM is also an integral part of Singapore’s healthcare landscape. For generations, many Singaporeans complement conventional western medical treatments with TCM therapies. The 2022 National Population Health Survey revealed that one in five adult Singaporeans used TCM services every year. Notably, nearly 40% of these individuals chose to combine the usage of both TCM and Western medicine for the same condition. I am one of them. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I took the MOH-recommended mRNA vaccine, and also Lianhua Qingwen, which is widely believed to work. And it is my belief that they both worked and complemented each other. I survived two bouts of COVID infection. There may be more which I did not detect.
5. These findings reflect the public's recognition of how both medical approaches can fulfil their healthcare needs. Recognising this, the Ministry of Health (MOH) has consciously placed TCM services under a system of self-regulation. Some people may mistake that MOH takes a hands-off approach, but I believe it is actually a very wise and conscious approach to put it under self-regulation. Today, we have actually also former TCM Practitioners Board Chairperson as well as the current Chairperson – Mdm Yu Foo Yee Soon and Dr Teo Ho Pin – with us, and they have done important work and great work in promoting TCM. Because if we have not done so and we impose regulations and clinical governance of western medicine on TCM, we would have killed and smothered the practice. So it was a conscious decision for self-regulation.
6. Our approach has enabled TCM to thrive and co-exist with western medicine. The trade-off is that TCM does not benefit from healthcare financing, and patients bear the full cost of their TCM treatment. From time to time, we will get requests to use MediSave for TCM, and for TCM practitioners to issue medical certificates. But this is part of the trade-off. Because of self-regulation, all these regulatory approaches for medicine do not apply to TCM, but neither do S+3M.
From Co-Existence to Integration
7. The two medical systems – they are parallel river flows. They are historically and philosophically very different.
8. Western medicine emerged after the Renaissance. It is grounded on research, scientific data, evidence, and discovery. Today, precision medicine, genomics and AI in healthcare are pushing scientific frontiers and they promise science fiction-like possibilities and outcomes.
9. On the other hand, TCM evolved through centuries and millennia of empirical practice. It focuses on major systems, as opposed to organs, that govern the functioning of the human body. It seeks to maintain balance and equilibrium between these bodily systems as well as the external environment. And this will restore health and maintain vitality of the human.
10. While philosophically different, it is not a case of never the twain shall meet. Efforts have been made to standardise TCM practices to ensure quality and safety. More scientific research has been conducted on TCM to establish its treatment mechanism and efficacy. On the other hand, preventive care is becoming more important in western medicine. And western medicine talks a lot now about the wellness of mind and body, going beyond treating specific organ failures to achieving holistic health.
11. Hence, all around the world, I would say there has been a gradual convergence, with some overlap between the two systems. Hence, efforts have been made to integrate and complement western medicine and TCM, with the broad acknowledgement that the systems can learn from each other.
12. For example, China, where TCM originated, is making a huge effort. Entire departments of acute hospitals are devoted to the practice of TCM. By the way, they have western medicine hospitals with entire departments devoted to TCM. They have incorporated both TCM and western medicine in undergraduate and postgraduate training. Particularly noteworthy is their implementation of case-based learning which combines both TCM and western perspectives. So students attend to these patient cases and they are mentored by both western doctors and TCM practitioners. This is a conscious effort to enhance multidisciplinary collaborations for better patient outcomes. When I walked along the corridors of hospitals, medical schools and the National Health Commission in China, the language they use is evidence, data, research for TCM.
13. Other countries such as the US and UK have become increasingly receptive to integrating TCM as complementary therapy alongside mainstream healthcare treatments. Acupuncture, in particular is used to manage chronic pain, nausea and migraines, and as a supportive therapy for post-cancer recovery.
14. Singapore has made some effort in integrating evidence-based TCM practices, namely acupuncture treatment for neck and lower back pain, into our healthcare system. So these two acupuncture treatments are available in our public health institutions today and they are the only two TCM treatments that are eligible for subsidy. And I think you can use MediSave.
15. Last October, at the Public Free Clinic Society’s 50th anniversary celebration, I shared that MOH intends to go beyond these two treatments and evaluate the efficacy of other TCM therapeutic applications, with a view to enhance the integration of western medicine and TCM.
16. Let me emphasise that this is not about wholesale adoption – but about adopting international best practices and thoughtfully selecting evidence-based TCM treatments that can complement western medical practices to ensure optimal care and patient safety. Our vision is not simply adding more TCM services to hospital settings, but to create a really integrated model where the strengths of both systems can be leveraged for optimal patient care.
17. In January this year, MOH therefore took the first practical step, and we launched the TCM Integrative Sandbox initiative to test and evaluate evidence-based TCM treatments. And the proposals will come from our public healthcare institutions – our three clusters. The response has been encouraging, with 18 proposals received from the institutions of all our healthcare clusters.
18. Several proposals involved acupuncture interventions, exploring its application for medical conditions beyond neck and lower back pain. And these include migraine, post-stroke rehabilitation, and cancer-related care – particularly for chemotherapy-induced side effects and also palliative care.
19. The proposals also explored integration of Chinese Proprietary Medicines and conventional treatments for conditions like gastrointestinal disorders and chronic pain. The goal is to study how TCM, when used alongside western medicine, may improve patient outcomes, or where patients may not be responding well to conventional treatments alone.
20. We will be taking a measured approach to their implementation, in a controlled environment in our public healthcare institutions for one to two years. So you will see some of these 18 proposals implemented in our hospitals, but in a controlled manner. The sandbox has the selection committee commissioned by MOH. They will evaluate the scientific robustness of each submitted proposal. During the sandbox phase, our foremost priority is to ensure patient safety and maintain high standards of care. The evaluation will also enable us to assess the cost-effectiveness of each of these treatments.
National Exemplary TCM Practitioner Award
21. Another important initiative is to better recognise the role that the TCM practitioners play in our healthcare landscape.
22. MOH will launch the National Exemplary TCM Practitioner Award in 2026, recognising TCM practitioners who have demonstrated excellence in clinical practice and made outstanding contributions to TCM development and education. This new award underscores our commitment to developing TCM as an integral part of Singapore's healthcare system. I hope the award will also encourage the TCM community in its pursuit of excellence and continuous professional development.
Closing
23. In closing, let me say something about this forum. The timing of this forum is particularly significant, as we are witnessing an expanding body of scientific evidence on TCM. The format of this forum is also important. We have got SingHealth and the Academy of Chinese Medicine co-convening it. It is conducted in English as a nod to western medicine. It is held on a Sunday as a nod to TCM. Through this conference, I hope we get to learn best practices around the world, and the significant research findings on integrating western medicine and TCM.
24. We sit all here, regardless of which philosophy you are more inclined to, sharing a commitment to constantly improve healthcare in Singapore for better patient outcomes. To do so, we will also stay mission-focused, we will stay curious and we will stay open-minded. Thank you, and I look forward to the meaningful discussions ahead.