Detail

Singapore will overhaul the training and career pathways for allied health professionals, introducing a common foundational first-year curriculum from 2027 before students choose their specialisations. Health Minister Mr Ong Ye Kung announced the move at the opening of St Andrew’s Community Hospital, noting that current training is too siloed across fields like physiotherapy, occupational therapy, nutrition, psychology, and radiography. Training pathways have expanded beyond polytechnics to include degree programmes at SIT and master’s courses at NUS, but cross-disciplinary learning remains limited. With more healthcare shifting into the community, the new model aims to build multidisciplinary, holistic care teams better equipped to support patients. Currently, only SP and NP offer courses directly related to allied health professions; however, all five polytechnics in Singapore offer biomedical-related programmes.

[Lianhe Zaobao]