Singapore’s largest healthcare hub will undergo major redevelopment to meet growing healthcare needs
43-hectare Campus will have interconnected zones for patient care, research and education
Singapore, 5 February 2016 – Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong unveiled extensive redevelopment and expansion plans for Singapore General Hospital (SGH) Campus which will span the next two decades. The SGH Campus Master Plan was launched at an event held today with PM Lee as Guest of Honour. When completed, the sprawling 43-hectare Campus will transform into a vibrant public ecosystem with interconnected zones for Patient Care, Research and Education.
Home to the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre, SGH Campus offers a full spectrum of healthcare services helmed by flagship hospital SGH, five national specialty centres – cancer, dental, eye, heart and neuroscience – and SingHealth Polyclinic (Outram). Together, the healthcare institutions take in patients from all over Singapore and currently serve about 33 per cent of the nation’s healthcare needs. To meet growing healthcare needs beyond 2030, the Master Plan will expand current capacity by intensifying land use. When completed, patient care and other healthcare-related facilities will take up 60 per cent of the 43-hectare Campus.
Building for the Future
Professor Ivy Ng, Group Chief Executive Officer SingHealth said, “Developed in careful consultation with the Ministry of Health, the Master Plan caters to both current and anticipated healthcare needs. While we need more capacity because patient numbers have been rising steadily, the Master Plan is not just about adding capacity. In conceptualising, it was necessary to look beyond and plan ahead to formulate models of care that are designed around the needs of our patients while ensuring patient safety, accessibility and affordability.”
Progressive steps to transform the SGH Campus started with the completion of Academia in 2013 and the new National Heart Centre Singapore building in 2014. To ensure minimal disruptions to patient care services and operations, the Master Plan will be implemented in two key phases over the next two decades.
Phase 1 will take place over the decade and add short- to medium-term capacity on the Campus. This encompasses new developments such as Outram Community Hospital, SGH Accident & Emergency Block, SGH Elective Care Centre, National Dental Centre Singapore, and a new building for National Cancer Centre Singapore. The new SGH Complex will be developed in Phase 2 of the Master Plan, after the completion of Phase 1.
Key Features of the Master Plan
Outram Community Hospital (OCH)
The new 550-bed community hospital which broke ground in 2015 is slated to open by 2020. It will strengthen SingHealth Regional Health System’s (RHS) efforts to provide integrated and seamless care to patients, as they move from one care setting to another.
Connected to SGH via a link bridge, the community hospital will allow direct and seamless patient transfers in full privacy. By integrating early rehabilitation and continuing care, patients will benefit from a quicker recovery as care teams prepare them to return home. Patients requiring acute and complex care will be transferred back to SGH to receive coordinated and specialist care.
The community hospital will also tap on SingHealth RHS’s network of primary and long-term care partners to connect patients and caregivers with community partners who can offer them the most appropriate level of care in the community and at home, when needed.
National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS)
As a leading comprehensive cancer centre in Southeast Asia, NCCS currently treats about 60 per cent of all cancer patients in Singapore. With a projected threefold increase in cancer cases in Singapore by 2040, the new building will to cater to future cancer-related needs and offer patients new therapies for cancer treatment.
SGH Accident & Emergency (A&E) Block
The current SGH A&E facility was commissioned in 1977. Since then, patient attendance at the A&E has doubled from about 64,000 in 1979 to more than 135,000 in 2015. When completed, the SGH A&E Block with expanded facilities will ease current space constraints and cater to projected A&E attendance. It will also include additional decontamination stations to manage civil and national emergencies.
SGH Elective Care Centre & National Dental Centre Singapore
Developed as the first component of the new SGH complex, the SGH Elective Care Centre will increase capacity for operating theatres, specialist outpatient clinics and acute beds and include white space to accommodate future growth. The building will also house the National Dental Centre Singapore.
New SGH Complex – Phase 2
The key developments under Phase 1 will see the systematic relocation of facilities and expansion of capacity over the decade, which will pave the way for the new SGH complex, under Phase 2.
Beyond building capacity and creating environments that are conducive for healing, the new SGH complex will introduce new models of care such as multidisciplinary centres that bring together experts from multiple disciplines and domains across SingHealth institutions, to provide patients with integrated care under one roof.
For the safety and comfort of inpatients, there will be dedicated link bridges built for them to transfer between care facilities in full privacy. Ambulatory areas such as Specialist Outpatient Clinics will be segregated from inpatient areas for infection control purposes.
Caregivers and members of the public can look forward to better connections between the different buildings in the new SGH complex as well as more retail amenities.
In line with other SingHealth healthcare facilities, the new SGH complex will incorporate age-friendly
design features. From point of entry, drop-off point, waiting areas, consultation rooms and right up to the exit, the design will ensure ease of use, safety and comfort of elderly patients. Some of the features include using different colours to define different service zones and alerts, providing seats at regular intervals, space for wheelchairs, and installing non-slip flooring and handrails to minimise falls.
New Road Network with Traffic and Pedestrian Segregation
Another key highlight of the Master Plan is an extensive and improved network with increased road capacity to provide connectivity between the three zones and main roads. By segregating pedestrian and vehicular traffic, the new road network will allow ambulances and patients who require emergency care to have faster access to the new SGH Accident & Emergency. It will also serve to ease congestion and facilitate traffic flow on the Campus.
To improve accessibility for patients, visitors and staff, facilities such as the new NCCS building and new SGH complex will be relocated closer to main public transport nodes.
Boosting Research and Education Capabilities
The SGH Campus is recognised as the cradle of medical, nursing and allied health education in Singapore. Home to the Duke-NUS Medical School since 2005 and healthcare training institutes such as the SingHealth-Alice Lee Institute of Advanced Nursing, SGH Postgraduate Allied Health Institute and SingHealth Duke-NUS Institute of Medical Simulation, the Campus has been a major training ground for healthcare professionals.
The Campus delivers 40 per cent of the nation’s healthcare education needs, training over 700 students each day across the various professions. When completed, the Education zone anchored by Duke-NUS Medical School, will offer more education facilities and create additional teaching and training spaces.
In the long term, provision has been made for a new Research Park to advance biomedical research and collaborations with industry partners. This will enable the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre to further strengthen linkages with industry to support clinical and community research projects that have direct impact on patients’ lives.
On completion, the Master Plan will not only transform the SGH Campus but Singapore’s healthcare landscape as well. With interlinked zones for Patient Care, Research and Education, it will lead the way to create a vibrant healthcare ecosystem that is future ready and equipped to meet the nation’s changing needs.
