Treatments that Blend Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine
Ministry of HealthSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Ms Joan Pereira’s inquiry into clinical trials for integrative Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) treatments and their future landscape and costs. Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong explained that the Ministry of Health supports collaborative research through the TCM Research Grant, which has disbursed $8 million since 2013. Ten projects are currently in progress, including studies on acupuncture for dry eyes and TCM management for childhood asthma, with a third grant call under evaluation. While public hospitals already use evidence-based TCM like acupuncture for pain and stroke recovery, its role will expand as further clinical evidence for safety and efficacy emerges. Due to the early stage of research collaborations, the Ministry is currently unable to estimate future costs for integrated treatments but will continue monitoring developments.
Transcript
78 Ms Joan Pereira asked the Minister for Health (a) how many clinical trials featuring integrative treatments that utilise Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine are in the works; and (b) how will the landscape for integrative medicine evolve in the years to come and what are the expected treatment costs.
Mr Gan Kim Yong: The Ministry of Health has been encouraging collaborative research between researchers and practitioners in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and those from our healthcare institutions and institutes of higher learning. To support this, the Ministry established the TCM Research Grant in 2013. We have provided $8 million funding to date.
Ten research projects were funded after the first two grant calls, and they are in various stages of progress. Examples of the collaborative projects include (a) a randomised controlled trial conducted by the Singapore Eye Research Institute and Singapore Chung Hwa Medical Institution on the use of acupuncture and herbal treatment in dry eyes; and (b) a study conducted by KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital and Singapore Thong Chai Medical Institution on the supportive role of TCM in the management of mild to moderate childhood asthma. The third grant call closed on 30 June 2018 and the proposals are being reviewed.
TCM plays a complementary role in our healthcare system. Where evidence for efficacy and safety is demonstrated, like acupuncture for pain management and post-stroke rehabilitation, our public healthcare institutions have incorporated these into the care for patients. As more research evidence supporting its efficacy emerges, TCM can play a larger role.
However, as we are still in the early stages of our research collaborations, we are unable to estimate the future costs of treatments integrating conventional western and traditional Chinese medicine. We will continue to monitor the progress and evaluate research evidence supporting not only its effectiveness but also its safety when TCM is used together with modern mainstream medicine.