Founded in 1858 as a general hospital, KKH converted to a maternity hospital and reopened on 1 October 1924 with 30 beds and 12 children’s cots. Since then, the hospital has delivered over 1.6 million babies and even garnered a place in the Guinness Book of Records for having the largest number of births (39,835) in a single maternity facility in a year (1966), a record it held for a decade.

<<KKH set a second record in the Guinness Book of Records in 2016 for having the largest reunion of people (2,241) born in the same hospital at Bishan Stadium.>>

KKH is also Singapore’s sole dedicated healthcare institution specialising in women’s and children’s health, seamlessly integrating education, translational research, advanced clinical practices, innovation, and community engagement.

“As Singapore progressed over the decades, KKH’s focus evolved in tandem with the nation’s health concerns. Maternity care has evolved over the century, but KKH remains committed to addressing the health needs of women, children and families to give future generations the best inheritance of a healthier tomorrow,” said Professor Alex Sia, Chief Executive Officer, KKH.

In the early 1900s, the hospital’s priority was to tackle the high maternal and infant mortality rates. These days, its focus is on addressing the burgeoning metabolic and mental health issues faced by our population, as well as falling birthrates.

Expertise and resources

KKH is Singapore’s largest tertiary referral centre for obstetrics, gynaecology, paediatrics and neonatology.

The specialised expertise and extensive resources available at KKH is what made bank analyst Ms Kathleen Ng Kai Lin, 40, decide to deliver all six of her babies at KKH. She had heard from friends that it may at times be challenging to book operating theatres at private clinics with limited capacity, and that complicated cases during pregnancy will be referred to KKH.

“The healthcare professionals whom I’ve encountered at KKH during each pregnancy were all very knowledgeable and provided excellent services. This made all my pregnancies wonderful experiences,” said Ms Ng.

One such healthcare professional is Ms Rani Krishnan, a Nurse Clinician at Ward 82, who has been in nursing for 53 years, including 37 years at KKH. She started as a nurse caring for women, before specialising in midwifery, and subsequently focusing on postnatal care for mothers. For her, nursing is a deeply fulfilling and rewarding profession, albeit filled with its share of challenges.

Ms Rani sees every patient and family as an opportunity to empower them with confidence to care for their baby after they are discharged. Particularly for couples facing challenging pregnancies or deliveries, she and her team seek to provide comfort and care to help alleviate the families’ distress. “Witnessing the positive impact of knowledge and skills we impart, and receiving gratitude from mothers who found our parenting tips and advice invaluable, are both rewarding and memorable,” said Ms Rani.

To supplement that personal touch for patients, KKH is increasingly leveraging medical technology and embracing innovative care practices such as telemedicine and virtual wards to provide more accessible, seamless and efficient care to meet rising healthcare needs.

Beyond the hospital and into the community

As part of the hospital’s strategy to champion a life-course approach towards stronger and healthier maternal, child and population health, the best opportunities to prevent and control diseases at key stages in life — from preconception, pregnancy, infancy, early childhood to adolescence and beyond — are identified and addressed beyond the hospital and into the community through a system of integrated services.

“By focusing on a healthy start to life, and addressing the root causes and not just the consequences of poor health, we are aligned with and committed to our national strategy of building a Healthier SG today and for tomorrow,” said Prof Sia.

The SingHealth Duke-NUS Maternal and Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI), launched in 2021, serves as a centre of excellence for research in women’s and children’s health, with the aim of transforming and improving health in Singapore and the region.

Prematurity is a global concern and the leading cause of death for children under five, with one million children dying from preterm complications every year. Premature babies can suffer various long-term health consequences and have an increased risk of disability and developmental delays.

KKH and its partners have pledged to set up a Preterm Pregnancy Prevention Programme to spearhead education, research, advocacy and clinical practices to improve maternal and fetal outcomes, including to reduce the incidence of preterm pregnancies.

Through MCHRI, the future of maternity care is a more personalised and seamless journey, leveraging on technology and innovation in care delivery.

Strategic programmes

There are numerous MCHRI programmes to improve population health, including:

Healthy Early Life Moments in Singapore (HELMS)

Launched on 8 September 2023, eHELMS is a component of the HELMS programme that is accessible through SingHealth’s Health Buddy app. It aims to provide a life-course model of care that highlights preventive health from preconception. The programme seeks to implement a system of integrated maternal and child care that embodies the clinical translation of decades of scientific evidence related to early fetal programming, spanning from preconception through pregnancy to childhood. Currently, eHELMS is only available to participants of the HELMS study.

eHELMS provides information on what to expect at each stage, including management of nutrition, emotion, sleep and recommended physical activities for optimal outcomes for mother and child. Additionally, it features milestone-specific nudges via inapp notifications to prompt participants to take recommended actions.

Integrated Platform for Research in Advancing Maternal and Child Health Outcomes (IPRAMHO)

IPRAMHO is the first cross-cluster ecosystem that seeks to develop a seamless integrated model of care through optimal implementation of effective public health interventions, and diabetes and weight reduction programmes for women and children.

Each year since 2018, IPRAMHO has led the development of a series of guidelines to improve maternal and child health. Tailored for our multi-ethnic Asian population, the seven sets of guidelines are in the areas of gestational diabetes, perinatal nutrition, exercise in pregnancy, perinatal mental health, as well as activities in children up to 18 years old and feeding in early childhood. These recommendations enable best practices in care, and benefit families in Singapore and around the world.

Psychological Resilience in Antenatal Management (PRAM) Programme

On top of the perinatal mental health guidelines launched by IPRAMHO in 2023, PRAM extends support to pregnant women before, during and after childbirth. This approach strengthens the preventive healthcare framework, supports maternal well-being, and optimises the child’s future developmental outcomes.

An initiative under the national Child and Maternal Health and Well-Being Strategy, PRAM provides universal screening to expectant women to detect depression early in pregnancy, enabling timely intervention.

“These highly impactful achievements are made possible by the dedicated teams we have at KKH. Coupled with the strong foundation laid by many inspirational and trailblazing pioneers, KKH is well placed to continue to shape the future of health for generations to come,” said Prof Sia.

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Read more: Click here for the 6 ‘P’s for a healthy pregnancy that all expecting mothers need to know.