AsianScientist (May 10, 2016) – A S$1million (~US$730,000) gift from Indonesian philanthropist Dato’ Sri Professor Dr. Tahir has kickstarted a new partnership in medical education and research between the National University of Singapore (NUS) and the prestigious Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Indonesia.
The collaboration between the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (NUS Medicine) and UGM was marked by the signing of an agreement by Tahir and officials from both universities.
The collaboration, which has a focus on medical education, will include student electives and the development of a global medicine curriculum. In addition, the two medical schools will work together to build clinical and governance capacity through training workshops as well as attachments in various medical specialties, in hopes of facilitating research collaborations.
Speaking at the ceremony, NUS President Professor Tan Chorh Chuan noted the very high priority that nearly all countries of the world accorded healthcare. Medical research has provided deep insights into the fundamental nature of many important diseases, leading to the development of better diagnostic tools and treatments that have benefited countless patients.
These factors—paired with advances in the clinical training of doctors, nurses and health professionals—have resulted in entire populations experiencing greater life expectancies and quality of life.
However, Tan said, at the same time, nearly all societies are currently facing great healthcare challenges—ranging from epidemics of chronic conditions like obesity, diabetes and hypertension, to the threat of infectious disease outbreaks. Countries are also confronted with rising healthcare costs and an ever-growing demand for healthcare services that often outstrip supply.
“At NUS Medicine, we have placed a strong emphasis on biomedical research which focuses on how Asians differ in the progression of disease and their responses to treatment, compared with Caucasians,” Tan said.
“We have also given high priority to translating key discoveries into new management approaches, diagnostic tools and treatments which benefit patients in Singapore and Asia.”
“In this regard, collaborations with like-minded institutions are very important as these enable the pooling of complementary expertise, clinical experiences and research, which are necessary to accelerate the development of new treatment approaches and implementation of clinical best practices.”
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Source: National University of Singapore; Photo: National University of Singapore/Universitas Gadjah Mada.
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