• Building comprises an SGH Elective Care Centre housing new operating theatres, specialist outpatient clinics and inpatient beds, and the new NDCS equipped with digital dentistry capabilities and research & education facilities

• Located next to Outram Park MRT Station and closer to main public transport nodes for better accessibility

• SGH Elective Care Centre is the first component of the new SGH Complex

Singapore, 21 January 2020 – Senior Minister of State for Health Dr Amy Khor officiated at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Singapore General Hospital Elective Care Centre (SGH ECC) and National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS) building at SGH Campus today. Slated to be ready in 2026, the SGH ECC and NDCS building will feature new facilities in elective surgical and dental care to meet growing healthcare needs. It will be located right next to Outram Park MRT station to allow easy access for patients and visitors.

Professor Ivy Ng, Group CEO, SingHealth, said, “The new SGH Elective Care Centre and National Dental Centre Singapore will house dedicated facilities and consolidate clinical services for elective surgical and dental care. This is part of our strategic plans to co-locate institutions and services for better coordination and integration of patient care, and to deliver value-driven models of care for improved clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness. When completed in 2026, the building will bring us a step closer to achieving our vision of ‘One Campus, One System’ to deliver seamless, quality care for our patients.”

SGH Elective Care Centre

Every year, more than 97,000 surgeries and procedures are performed at SGH. To increase capacity and free up space in the main SGH for acute, complex and emergency surgeries, the new SGH ECC will be a dedicated facility for scheduled surgeries and procedures for disciplines such as Orthopaedic, Ear, Nose & Throat, Head & Neck, and Breast surgeries. This will alleviate resources for more than 40 per cent of surgeries in the main SGH and improve access to surgery for patients.

The SGH ECC is the first component of the new SGH Complex that is being developed in two phases. It will be well-connected to SingHealth’s five national specialty centres as well as the Outram Community Hospital on SGH Campus to provide seamless, integrated care for patients. The enhanced connectivity ensures that patients, especially those with multiple co-morbidities, can conveniently receive all the care they need within the Campus.

With a focus on Value-Driven Care, SGH and SingHealth are continuously looking at innovative ways to improve care delivery. The SGH ECC will offer new opportunities for SGH and SingHealth to pilot new models of care and push for innovations that bring better care outcomes while ensuring cost efficiency for patients undergoing scheduled surgeries.

New National Dental Centre Singapore

Designed with the “Future Dental Journey” in mind, the new NDCS will integrate digital dentistry and technology into its services to improve care delivery and clinical outcomes, and enhance the patient experience. It will feature the use of digital imaging tools such as intra-oral scanning for more accurate dental images and enable greater convenience for patients when retrieving their dental images. There will be an increased use of 3D surgical planning to enable dental surgeons to work with greater precision for complex restorative procedures, as well as 3D printing of dental applications such as metal-based dentures for greater cost-effectiveness, faster turnaround time and better fit for patients.

To meet the needs of an ageing population, the new NDCS will see an expansion for facilities such as its Geriatric Special Care Dentistry Clinic which is expected to see a 60 per cent increase in patients by 2025. It will also leverage telemedicine capabilities to allow oral health professionals to assess and monitor the oral health status of elderly patients living in the community or nursing homes.

NDCS’ co-location with the SGH ECC will improve access for patients with complex conditions. These include head and neck cancer patients requiring maxillofacial prosthetic rehabilitation following surgery and patients undergoing corrective jaw surgery to correct facial disproportions and asymmetry, or to enlarge the airway.

As a national specialty centre for dentistry, NDCS plays a pivotal role in training and grooming current and future generations of dental specialists, radiographers, oral hygiene therapists, dental technicians and dental surgery assistants, and in advancing research into new dental devices and treatments. The new building will house training and educational facilities that facilitate team-based training to hone the clinical skills of oral health professionals. There will also be a dedicated laboratory space for the National Dental Research Institute Singapore.

SGH Campus Master Plan

Since the announcement of the SGH Campus Master Plan by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2016, the SGH Campus has been undergoing major development to enhance facilities and increase capacity for growing healthcare needs. The Outram Community Hospital was opened in late 2019, and the construction of the new Emergency Medicine and National Cancer Centre Singapore buildings is making good progress. Both buildings are slated to open within the next three years. Following the completion of new SGH ECC and NDCS, Phase 2 development for the new SGH Complex will commence as part of the Master Plan.