LKCMedicine rolls out programme to cultivate empathetic doctors

Image: (L-R, front row) Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) Chief Executive Officer, Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash and NTU’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) Dean, Professor Joseph Sung, at the signing ceremony which was witnessed by (L-R) Chief of AIC’s Silver Generation Office (SGO), Dr Sng Hock Lin; Guest of Honour, Minister for Health, Mr Ong Ye Kung; and Chief Operating Officer, Dr Serene Ng on 19 October 2024. 

NTU and the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) are collaborating to cultivate person-centred care and foster a spirit of volunteerism among students from NTU’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) as they train to become doctors for an ageing population.

Under the agreement, AIC and LKCMedicine will work collaboratively to introduce AIC’s Silver Generation Ambassador (SGA) programme in the first two years of NTU’s Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree programme. AIC will provide curated training for medical students to deepen their knowledge on community resources that support active ageing, empathetic communication, and effective senior engagement.

The initiative is part of LKCMedicine’s Longitudinal Community Experience programme, rolled out under the School’s refreshed MBBS curriculum in August 2024.

The SGA programme aims to train NTU’s medical students to be skilled communicators who understand the social determinants of health and can apply this knowledge effectively in patient care. Students will also learn how local communities can support patients, particularly the seniors, by leveraging available resources, services, and national schemes to enhance their health and well-being.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was exchanged today between AIC’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash, and LKCMedicine’s Dean, Professor Joseph Sung, at the School’s Art & Science of Medicine Festival 2024.

The ceremony was witnessed by Guest of Honour and Minister for Health, Mr Ong Ye Kung, Chief of AIC’s Silver Generation Office (SGO), Dr Sng Hock Lin, and LKCMedicine Chief Operating Officer, Dr Serene Ng.