Singapore, 29 April 2022 – The SingHealth Centre for Population Health Research and Implementation (CPHRI) was launched at the inaugural Singapore Population Health Symposium 2022 today. Senior Minister of State for Health, Dr Janil Puthucheary, officiated the launch of the new Centre, which aims to bridge research and care delivery in the community.
As the population in Singapore ages, there is a need to deliver good healthcare outcomes in a sustainable manner, and to improve population health at both the systemic and individual level.
Population health and implementation science is one of the strategic research themes at the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre (AMC). Significant progress in this area have been made in the past years by the Population Health Research community in the AMC.
"Academic medicine is a key enabler for population health. As the nexus for population health research, innovation and implementation in SingHealth, CPHRI will bridge science, service design and delivery in the community, and support the development of the national population health ecosystem. CPHRI will also leverage big data and technology to support our key population health initiatives. In addition, we will evaluate the effectiveness of these initiatives to guide the scaling of programmes that enable the population to keep well, get well, and live well," said Professor Lee Chien Earn, Deputy Group CEO (Regional Health System), SingHealth.
CPHRI's Research Themes
CPHRI will focus on four research themes that are underpinned by strategic partnerships with community and industry partners, as well as research agencies.
The Vulnerable Adolescents theme aims to understand and address the needs of adolescents with psychosomatic symptoms, or illnesses connected to both mind and body. It will look into harnessing AI chatbot technology to facilitate the self-management of psychosomatic symptoms in concert with clinical interventions.
The Diabetes theme aims to address the gaps in diabetes self-management among high-risk individuals who continue to have poorly controlled diabetes, who are preparing to fast, and who do not have their yearly influenza vaccinations.
The Complex Needs theme aims to understand the wider determinants of health in Singapore, and how complex integrated care programmes function. It will also devise innovative approaches to improve self-management and the social connectedness of persons with complex care needs.
The Pre-frailty and Frailty theme aims to develop early interventions targeted at seniors who are pre-frail, to keep them healthy for as long as possible. It will leverage technology to measure frailty and aid the early detection of frailty.
"There are many likeminded community-based organisations with strong roots in the community, sharing our goal of improving the well-being of the population. We are excited to work closely with them and our industry and research partners to accelerate the translation of research findings to interventions that can improve the health of Singaporeans," said Professor Julian Thumboo, Director, SingHealth Centre for Population Health Research and Implementation.
The inaugural Singapore Population Health Symposium is a platform which brings together healthcare professionals, social care practitioners, researchers, and policymakers to learn and exchange best practices on population health. Themed "Life Space in Seniors – Integration of Health, Social and Environmental Dimensions", the virtual event covers topics on improving the Life Space of seniors, which is a key measure of community mobility and a contributor to population health.
For more information on CPHRI and its ongoing studies, please visit www.singhealth.com.sg/rhs/cphri.
