Hospital staff who help patients find jobs receive Healthcare Humanity Award

Several members of the NHG Health Bounce Back Support Team received the Healthcare Humanity Award on Oct 23. They include (from left) Yvette Choo, senior occupational therapist from Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) and Yishun Community Hospital (YCH); Heidi Tan, senior principal occupational therapist at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH); Tess Hng, TTSH principal medical social worker; and Chella Sim, senior medical social worker with KTPH and YCH.

ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI

Published Oct 23, 2026, 05:00 PM

Updated Oct 23, 2026, 05:52 PM

SINGAPORE – With the support of the NHG Health Bounce Back Support Team, more than 130 patients have found jobs or got back on their feet after prolonged illnesses affected their employment prospects.

For their teamwork and commitment to patient care, the NHG team received the award for collaboration on Oct 23 at the 2026 Healthcare Humanity Awards ceremony.

NHG Health said that helping patients return to employment is as much a clinical responsibility as a social one, and this also helps patients regain their independence and confidence.

“Recovery is not complete until patients have the support, tools, and confidence to rebuild their working lives”, said Heidi Tan, senior principal occupational therapist with Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) and a member of the team.

The support team comprises 10 medical social workers and occupational therapists from TTSH, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and Yishun Community Hospital.

Patients they have helped include those who had been living for many years with conditions such as epilepsy, chronic kidney disease, chronic pain and depression.

Their ability to return to work had been affected by less visible and fluctuating symptoms, such as fatigue, pain and anxiety, which would affect their physical and psychological abilities to cope with work demands and sustain employment, said Tan .

Yet, many of them do not meet the permanent disability criteria for job support services , and are left to seek employment on their own, Tan added.

The NHG team collaborated with partners such as social enterprise Inclus and private company UEMS Solutions to help these patients with tailored employment support, including career coaching, vocational training, job placement, and ongoing employment support.

Within a year of the team’s formation in end-2023, they received 65 referrals. The number grew to 219 by the second year, and 275 by September 2026.

Of the referrals completed by September 2025, about 61%, or 134 patients, managed to get a job or were able to independently seek work.

A total of 20 teams received awards from President Tharman Shanmugaratnam at the ceremony organised by MOH Holdings (MOHH).

The Healthcare Humanity Awards, which began in 2004, celebrate extraordinary individuals and teams whose actions reflect the deepest values of care.

“Caring for people goes beyond treatment, to helping them to live with hope and dignity. Our award recipients show us what this means in practice,” President Tharman said in a press release.

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam (right) and Health Minister Ong Ye Kung presented the Healthcare Humanity Awards. ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam (right) and Health Minister Ong Ye Kung presented the Healthcare Humanity Awards.

Another 80 individuals received the Healthcare Humanity Award for their compassion, dedication, resilience and selflessness. They collected the award from Health Minister Ong Ye Kung.

One of the individual recipients was Darryl Tan, 41, principal resident physician with Ng Teng Fong General Hospital’s (NTFGH) psychiatry department.

Darryl Tan, principal resident physician with Ng Teng Fong General Hospital’s psychiatry department, is one of the recipients of the 2026 Healthcare Humanity Awards. ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI

Darryl Tan, principal resident physician with Ng Teng Fong General Hospital’s psychiatry department, is one of the recipients of the 2026 Healthcare Humanity Awards.

Tan, who had to battle an aggressive form of lymphoma after being diagnosed with it in 2012, has worked to strengthen healthcare workers’ mental health, psychological safety and well-being.

He has also provided support individually to junior doctors in distress.

Tan once counselled a first-year doctor who had been lambasted by a patient’s caregiver. She shared with him that she felt most hurt after being accused of not caring for the patient, even though she had poured her heart into caring for her patients.

The incident fuelled his passion to support and advocate for fellow healthcare workers, Tan told The Straits Times.

“I see this same dedication to healthcare time and again in so many colleagues I work with in the hospital,” he said.

Darryl Tan (second from right) also advocates for ways to improve patient experience in the hospital. PHOTO: NG TENG FONG GENERAL HOSPITAL

Darryl Tan (second from right) also advocates for ways to improve patient experience in the hospital.

PHOTO: NG TENG FONG GENERAL HOSPITAL

Wei Qiang is a correspondent at The Straits Times. He is on the health beat, with a special interest in healthcare policies.

Tharman Shanmugaratnam

Healthcare professionals

Ng Teng Fong General Hospital

10 月 23 日，NHG 健康康复支持团队的几名成员获得了医疗保健人道主义奖。他们包括（从左至右）：邱德拔医院 (KTPH) 和义顺社区医院 (YCH) 的高级职业治疗师 Yvette Choo；陈笃生医院 (TTSH) 的高级首席职业治疗师 Heidi Tan；陈笃生医院 (TTSH) 的首席医疗社会工作者 Tess Hng；以及邱德拔医院和义顺社区医院的高级医疗社会工作者 Chella Sim。

ST 摄影：AZMI ATHNI

发布于2026年10月23日下午5:00

更新于2026年10月23日下午5:52

新加坡——在NHG Health Bounce Back Support Team的支持下，超过130名患者在长期疾病影响了他们的就业前景后找到了工作或重新站了起来。

NHG 团队因其团队合作和对患者护理的承诺，于 10 月 23 日在 2026 年医疗保健人道主义奖颁奖典礼上获得了合作奖。

NHG Health 表示，帮助患者重返工作岗位既是临床责任，也是社会责任，这也有助于患者重获独立和自信。

“只有当患者获得重建工作生活所需的支持、工具和信心时，康复才算完成，”陈笃生医院 (TTSH) 高级首席职业治疗师兼团队成员 Heidi Tan 说。

支持团队由来自陈笃生医院、邱德拔医院和义顺社区医院的 10 名医务社工和职业治疗师组成。

他们帮助过的患者包括多年来患有癫痫、慢性肾病、慢性疼痛和抑郁症等疾病的患者。

谭表示，他们重返工作岗位的能力受到了不太明显且波动不定的症状的影响，例如疲劳、疼痛和焦虑，这些症状会影响他们应对工作需求和维持就业的生理和心理能力。

谭补充说，然而，他们中的许多人并不符合就业支持服务的永久性残疾标准，只能自己寻找工作。

NHG 团队与社会企业 Inclus 和私营公司 UEMS Solutions 等合作伙伴合作，为这些患者提供量身定制的就业支持，包括职业指导、职业培训、就业安置和持续的就业支持。

该团队于 2023 年底成立，一年内收到 65 例转介案例。到第二年，这一数字增长到 219 例，到 2026 年 9 月，增长到 275 例。

截至 2025 年 9 月完成的转介案例中，约有 61%（即 134 名患者）成功找到工作或能够独立寻找工作。

在卫生部控股公司（MOHH）举办的颁奖典礼上，共有 20 支队伍从尚达曼总统手中接过奖项。

医疗保健人道主义奖始于 2004 年，旨在表彰那些以实际行动体现最深层关怀价值观的杰出个人和团队。

“关爱他人不仅仅是治疗，更是帮助他们充满希望和尊严地生活。我们的获奖者用实际行动诠释了这一点。”尚达曼总统在新闻稿中表示。

尚达曼总统（右）和卫生部长王乙康颁发了医疗人道主义奖。海峡时报摄影：阿兹米·阿特尼

尚达曼总统（右）和卫生部长王乙康颁发了医疗保健人道主义奖。

另有80人因其同情心、奉献精神、坚韧不拔和无私奉献而荣获医疗人道主义奖。他们从卫生部长王乙康手中接过奖项。

其中一位获奖者是 41 岁的 Darryl Tan，他是黄廷方综合医院 (NTFGH) 精神科的首席住院医师。

吴廷方综合医院精神科首席住院医师陈达里（Darryl Tan）是2026年医疗人道主义奖的获得者之一。（海峡时报照片：AZMI ATHNI）

吴廷方综合医院精神科首席住院医师达里尔·谭是 2026 年医疗保健人道主义奖的获得者之一。

谭在 2012 年被诊断出患有侵袭性淋巴瘤后，一直致力于加强医护人员的心理健康、心理安全和福祉。

他还曾单独为遇到困难的年轻医生提供支持。

谭医生曾辅导过一位被病人家属严厉斥责的一年级医生。她向医生倾诉，尽管自己全心全意照顾病人，但被指责不关心病人让她感到最受伤。

谭告诉《海峡时报》，这件事更加激发了他支持和帮助其他医护人员的热情。

他说：“我在医院里与很多同事共事，一次又一次地看到他们对医疗保健事业的这种奉献精神。”

达里尔·谭（右二）也积极倡导改善患者在医院的就医体验。照片：黄廷方综合医院

达里尔·谭（右二）也倡导改善患者在医院的就医体验。

照片：黄廷方综合医院

魏强是《海峡时报》的记者，主要负责健康领域的报道，尤其关注医疗政策。

尚达曼

医疗保健专业人员

吴廷方综合医院