Lien Foundation, Duke-NUS Medical School collaborate to set up Asia’s first palliative care research and training centre

March 2008

From left to right: Dr Jeremy Lim, Director of Policy & Research at SingHealth, Dr Ranga Krishnan, Executive Vice Dean of Duke-NUS, Mr Lee Poh Wah, Programme Director at Lien Foundation and Dr Cynthia Goh, Centre Director of Lien Centre for Palliative Care.

Filling a vacuum in end-of-life knowledge and training that Singapore currently faces, the Duke-NUS Medical School (Duke-NUS) and the Lien Foundation have collaborated to set up Lien Centre for Palliative Care.

The first of its kind in Asia, the Centre is the result of an initiative by Lien Foundation, which has committed $7.5 million over a period of five years in support of the facility. The gift will attract a dollar-for-dollar matching grant from the Singapore Government.

Said Mrs Margaret Lien, Chairman of the Lien Foundation: “The Centre is a key thrust of the Foundation’s continued efforts to raise awareness of palliative care and the capacity of medical staff in this area.”

She added: “We hope to create a virtuous cycle where the experience of good palliative care will fuel demand from patients. Then more funds and resources can be attracted into palliative care to meet the growing needs of the aged.”

The Centre will study the cultural differences in attitudes and beliefs in dying. Finding out what people want in their last stage of life will enable the Centre to develop better palliative service in Singapore. It will tap on the research capabilities of Duke-NUS, with support from the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) and Singapore Health Services (SingHealth).

It will also provide healthcare professional education and development. Besides pain management skills, doctors, nurses as well as allied health care professionals will be trained in soft skills to help them to become a better listener, and learn how to conduct medical examinations in a dignified and respectful manner for the patients.

Dr Cynthia Goh, a faculty member of Duke-NUS and a veteran palliative care pioneer and medical specialist, will head the Centre as its Director. She said: "For the first time, real resources have been set aside for research and education."

“Up till now, those activities have been largely carried out by professionals working as volunteers in their spare time on a limited budget. We endeavour to live up to the trust the Lien Foundation has put in us, to use these resources in generating and disseminating knowledge that has a real impact on the lives of our patients," Dr Goh added.

The Centre will be located at the National Cancer Centre Singapore to foster close collaboration with clinicians caring for patients, to leverage on the vibrant academic and research biomedical science community, and on resources at the Duke-NUS campus in the vicinity.