Speech by PS (Health) at Awards Ceremony for STaR and CSA Award Winners

28 May 2008

By Yong Ying-I

Friends and colleagues,

Ladies and gentlemen

1. A very good afternoon to everyone, and thank you for joining me and Chairman A*STAR today at this inaugural award ceremony for our biomedical sciences talent. This ceremony marks an important phase in our efforts to nurture a core group of clinician-scientists who will take our biomedical sciences initiative to the next level and raise our standards of medical excellence.

2. This event is unique in having both senior investigators, who are well established in their fields, and young clinician investigators, embarking on their research career, together in the same location.  This was deliberately arranged in the hope that we can begin the process of networking and mentoring between the two groups.  All of you are part of the vital human talent component in our pursuit of clinical research excellence, without which the success of our research initiative would not be possible.

Government’s investment in TCR

3. 8 years ago, the Government had a dream. We saw in our universities and research institutes the foundation for a vibrant biomedical sciences hub. We recognised the potential in our scientific talent, and the strategic benefits of developing our economic and intellectual capital.  And so Phase 1 of our biomedical sciences initiative was launched.  Helming it was a remarkable talent called Philip Yeo, whose audacity and sheer gall enabled Phase 1 to attain, in a short period of time, a scale and a level beyond what most ordinary people would have thought possible.

4. By most measures, Phase 1 was a remarkable success. The Biopolis has become an international icon for biomedical research.  Just like the cellular organisms that scientists study, Biopolis itself has now grown organically into a network of research institutes, industry partnerships and complementary services at one-north, including the newly built Fusionopolis. International talent, including Singaporeans, chose to relocate to Singapore, to participate in this exciting initiative. Our own talent has been systematically developed, ensuring a pipeline of scientists and researchers to sustain the effort for years to come. 

5. The success of Phase 1 laid an excellent foundation for basic biomedical research in Singapore. It gave us the confidence to go even further. Moving into translational and clinical research was a logical next step. Our hospitals are already very good, indeed world-class in some areas.  We have dedicated professionals and clinician-scientists working hard to deliver good and affordable healthcare, while squeezing out time to do some clinical research as well. It was logical to integrate this high quality of healthcare delivery with our basic sciences achievements in Phase 1, and bridge the gap between the bench and the bedside.

6. The Government recognises the importance of developing clinical research capabilities in our hospitals.  A strong clinical research environment will support our philosophy of emphasising knowledge and promoting an evidence-based approach to healthcare. Through research excellence, we hope to translate research knowledge into better standards of healthcare delivery for our patients.

Developing Talent

7. We have developed a comprehensive grant framework to ensure that research is directed at areas that are of strategic importance to Singapore that will eventually benefit our patients.  There are now multiple awards to recognise excellence at various levels of seniority, and many entry-points for budding clinician-scientists to tap their passion for clinical research.

8. The key to this endeavour, as always, is talent. MOH and A*STAR have developed various talent development programmes to attract, retain and train clinician-scientists and translational researchers. This pool of clinician-scientists will play a pivotal role in bridging the clinical and scientific communities with their unique training and skill sets. These talent development programmes have been designed to cater to clinician-scientists and researchers at different points of their careers.

9. For example, the pinnacle Singapore Translational Researcher Award, or STAR Award, aims to recruit and retain researchers who are renowned in their fields of expertise. They bring with them a wealth of experience and through their networks help catalyze greater collaborations between Singapore and the international institutions which they work closely with. Some of them will lead or contribute to the development of the national flagship programmes. One example is Prof Michael Chee who will be working with the Institute of Mental Health on the Neuroscience TCR flagship programme.

10. I am also happy that we have successfully persuaded two internationally renowned scientists to join us from overseas – Prof David Virshup & Prof Dan Tenen (who is currently in the US at a conference). Of important significance is the return of two outstanding Singaporeans, Prof Wong Tien Yin and A/Prof Ong Sin Tiong, who were previously based overseas and will now be working full time in Singapore. We warmly welcome you back and hope that you will lead the way for a future wave of returning talent.

11. At the next level of talent development, we have the Clinician Scientist Award or CSA which provides grant funding and salary support for clinicians who are prepared to invest more time in research. Three of our awardees today come from the pioneer batch of the Clinician Scientist Investigator (CSI) scheme, which started in 2004, and have now progressed on to more senior investigator positions within the new scheme. 

12. Last but not least, we have the new fellowship programmes which allow young clinicians to pursue Masters or PhD training together with their Advanced Specialty Training.  This will equip them with the necessary research skills to embark on their careers as clinician-scientists. We hold high hopes that several, if not many, of you here will progress on to the clinician-scientist scheme and, in time to come, go on to lead our future major research programmes.

13. The Government will also ensure that the supporting infrastructure is conducive. We will invest in the necessary research facilities to support all of you.  Recent examples include the Centre for Translational Medicine at the Kent Ridge campus, SingHealth’s Pathology building at the Outram campus and substantial research facilities in the huge building going up right next to us at the NUS-Duke Graduate School of Medicine. We are also reviewing our governance frameworks to ensure the best environment for our researchers. The National University Health System has already been established and is progressing very well, while SingHealth is currently reviewing its governance relationship with the Duke-NUS GMS and the National Specialty Centres on Outram to see how it can develop itself into an academic medical campus. These are exciting times indeed.

Raising Healthcare Quality

14. But amidst all these celebrations, we should not lose sight of what this is all for. Our investments in TCR and the biomedical sciences are meant to raise the quality of healthcare we provide, be it in terms of new medical devices, more effective drugs or better ways of treating diseases.

15. As such, our research should always be focused on delivering the best value for the common man. We must be practical in our approach, as funding is limited and we cannot afford to indulge in esoteric research.

16. I ask our award winners to bear this in mind.  You have all worked hard to come so far, and you have the potential to go further.  You richly deserve your awards and we celebrate with you.  But the awards are also mantles of responsibility, because others look to you as guides to the future. The Government looks to you to deliver success in our biomedical sciences effort through the discovery of new treatments.  The Singaporean man-in-the-street of course hopes that you will improve healthcare for them.  But more importantly, your colleagues will observe and learn from how you approach intellectual debate, how open you are to collaboration, how you lead and mentor those who follow in your footsteps.  How you serve as role models will shape the attitudes and behaviours of a much larger pool of people.  It is a weighty responsibility, but a noble burden.   I have every confidence that you will rise up to the challenge and we will all cheer you on.

17. I look forward to your future contributions in medicine and science as well as to the general research community. To everyone here, these are exciting times with many opportunities, and I hope you will each make a significant contribution.

Conclusion

18. Please allow me to offer my heartiest congratulations to all our award winners.  I wish you all a fruitful research career in Singapore.