Excellence for Singapore Award 2003

CITATION

SINGAPORE NATIONAL EYE CENTRE
Founded in 1991, the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC), is one of the largest ambulatory eye centres in Asia handling 250,000 outpatient visits and 12,000 major eye operations annually. It has rapidly developed itself into one of the most eminent centres of excellence in ophthalmology internationally.

Not only has SNEC achieved excellence in clinical service for local patients, but it is also a regional referral eye centre, known for its excellent clinical outcomes for difficult eye diseases. It is a pioneering centre for new treatment and is a partner in several multi-centric clinical trials for several eye conditions causing blindness.

In research, SNEC has achieved eminence in several areas of basic, translational and clinical R&D. Its recent research work on myopia in children is particularly commendable and contributes significantly to the prevention of the condition in young children.

SNEC is a renowned teaching centre of excellence. In addition to being responsible for the nation's training of high-quality eye surgeons, it has attracted trainees from the region and beyond, from as far as USA, UK and Mexico. It has also been responsible for training and the setting up of eye centres in several regions in China - Xiamen, Shandong and Tianjin. Its teaching collaboration with several other centres of excellence worldwide has allowed it to extend its expertise to the international community.

Noteworthy are the following world and Asian "firsts" which SNEC and the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNEC, have achieved:

A world pioneer in performing conjunctival stem cell transplantation. A pioneer in the latest advances in laser refractive surgery in Asia. The national Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme, a project jointly carried out by SNEC and the Primary Health Division of the Ministry of Health over a decade and the largest of its kind in the world.

For achieving excellence in the area of ophthalmology, with several world and Asian "firsts" to its credit, and for putting Singapore on the international map with its eminence in this area of medical expertise, the Singapore National Eye Centre is conferred the Excellence for Singapore Award 2003.