Plans for Paediatric and Neonatology Services for Residents in Northern Sector

15 Er Dr Lee Bee Wah asked the Minister for Health (a) whether there are plans to offer paediatric and neonatology services for residents living in the northern sector; and (b) if so, whether there is a timeframe as to when residents can expect these services to be ready.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Paediatric services are provided at various levels ranging from primary to tertiary care. At the primary healthcare level, general practitioners (GPs) and polyclinics manage common paediatric and neonatal conditions as well as provide well child services, such as developmental assessment and childhood vaccinations. There are already existing healthcare facilities in the north providing care for women and children at the primary care level, including the two polyclinics at Yishun and Woodlands and some general practitioner (GP) clinics, out of around 130 GP clinics in the north. In addition, there are nine specialised clinics that provide obstetrics and gynaecology and paediatric services in the community in the north.

Over the next few years, residents in the north can look forward to new service developments and healthcare facilities. We will be opening Woodlands Integrated Healthcare Campus (WIHC), which includes a new acute hospital, in phases from 2022 to complement the existing Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Yishun. The Ministry of Health is currently in the process of planning the clinical services for WIHC.

Services planning for this new campus will be based on both regional healthcare needs and the optimisation of clinical expertise and manpower resources across the national healthcare system. We will ensure that good quality healthcare services are accessible to patients.