After seeing her father suffer a massive haemorrhage from a bleeding stomach ulcer when she was just ten years old, Professor Ivy Ng was moved by the dedication and competence of the nurses and doctors at Singapore General Hospital (SGH), where her father was warded for over a month then. This cemented Prof Ivy's decision to pursue a career in healthcare, so she could have the opportunity to help others.
Fast forward to 2024, after an illustrious 12-year tenure as the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of SingHealth, Prof Ivy will pass the torch to Professor Ng Wai Hoe. Her stalwart leadership has set the cornerstone for SingHealth to trailblaze healthcare transformation for the future.
For many SingHealth staff, Prof Ivy's personal touch and exceptional leadership leave an indelible mark.
Her compassionate leadership has also steered SingHealth towards the common purpose of always putting patients at the heart of all we do, while setting new standards for excellence and innovation. As Prof Ivy relinquishes her role as GCEO, she will continue to lend her wisdom and leadership through her appointment as Senior Advisor, SingHealth Board.
Championing research since her early career
Prof Ivy was determined to improve the lives of her patients who suffer from thalassaemia, an inherited blood disorder. As a young doctor, she headed a team of researchers to study the condition and to develop better patient care and prenatal diagnosis techniques. She founded and became the Director of the National Thalassaemia Registry in 1992. In 2021, Prof Ivy’s stellar efforts in advancing science, research and innovation earned her the President’s Science and Technology Medal.
Propelling enhanced services through infrastructure rejuvenation
One of the major areas of Prof Ivy's contributions was to oversee the ambitious 20-year SGH Campus Masterplan that will transform Singapore's largest medical campus into an integrated, vibrant healthcare eco-system.
A respected and inspiring leader
Beyond her many accomplishments, Prof Ivy's leadership is distinguished by her personal touch and unwavering care for staff across all levels and professional domain groups. Her strong belief in talent management, staff engagement and well-being has been the driving force behind synergies created across SingHealth's spectrum of healthcare services for greater efficiencies. These have significantly enhanced staff wellness and workforce resilience at all levels.
Driving transformation through academic medicine
Prof Ivy is a tireless champion and driver for the pursuit of academic medicine. An advocate of harnessing the synergies in medical research, innovation and education to positively impact patient care, her vision and strategic prowess have raised the bar on clinical care, education, research and innovation, fostering collaborations that transcend domain, institutional and even geographical boundaries. This almost two-decade-long journey has propelled SingHealth onto the global stage as part of a world-class Academic Medical Centre.
Embracing change through good and tough times
Prof Ivy's hands-on and decisive leadership steered SingHealth through the peaks and troughs of the COVID-19 pandemic, transforming to adopt new technologies and innovating to reimagine new ways to deliver care. She never failed to demonstrate exemplary compassion for staff, even enlisting senior leaders to donate to the Resilience in Crisis Fund. Today, this initiative has evolved to become the Joy@Work programme, focusing on various aspects to better organisational culture and staff welfare.
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