Opening Remarks by Adj Prof Tang Kong Choong at the Healthcare Leaders Dialogue
04 Sep 2026 Speeches
Opening Remarks by Adj Prof Tang Kong Choong,Chairman, WSH Council (Healthcare) Committee at the Healthcare Leaders Dialogue on
Friday, 4 September 2026, 9.30am
Mr Silas Sng, Commissioner for Workplace Safety and Health,
Mr Christopher Koh, General Manager, Workplace Safety and Health Council,
esteemed leaders, partners, and friends from our public and private healthcare institutions,
Good morning. I want to begin by expressing my deepest appreciation to all of you for making time to join us at this Healthcare Leaders Dialogue.
Your presence here is important. It is a clear demonstration that we, as leaders, take our responsibility to protect the people who care for our patients every day seriously.
The healthcare profession is no doubt a very demanding one. Our workers often work irregular hours, and they are expected to show up and give their best to their patients every day. Over the years, our healthcare system has grown in scale and complexity. The demands placed on our people have also intensified. Our workforce faces not only physical risks, but also psychological and organisational pressures that are unique to healthcare settings. The question before us is not whether workplace safety and health is important, but how we must continue to strengthen it in a way that is sustainable, practical, and deeply embedded into how healthcare is delivered.
That is why dialogues such as today’s are important. And I am glad for the strong presence and presentation we see this morning.
WSH Landscape and Progress Made
Between 2021 and 2025, we had an average of 13 major injuries a year. In terms of major injury rate, while we are below the national average, our performance has however been irregular. In 2024, we saw a record high of 17 major injuries. Our minor injuries paint a grimmer picture with climbing numbers, the majority of which arose from physical assaults.
What is encouraging is that when I look back over the past few years, I believe we have made progress in how we approach workplace safety and health in the healthcare industry.
I think many of us would agree that there has been a shift in how workplace safety and health is viewed today. It is no longer seen as something separate, or secondary. Increasingly, we recognise that it is closely tied to the quality of care we provide. In short, how we care for our staff affects how our staff care for our patients.
We have also seen stronger collaboration across institutions, union and agencies to tackle common workplace safety and health challenges and support our workforce more effectively.
So, we have moved beyond thinking about WSH as just a compliance exercise. Today, it is increasingly recognised as an enabler of safer care, workforce resilience and better organisational outcomes.
A more connected WSH community through the Community of Practice
We have also become more connected as an industry. One way this is happening is through our Community of Practice (CoP) for WSH practitioners. The CoP provides a platform for healthcare institutions to come together, share experiences, and talk openly about what works and what does not.
Through these conversations, institutions gain practical insights that can be applied in their own settings. More importantly, the CoP has fostered meaningful professional relationships across institutions, creating a trusted network where practitioners continue to connect and share ideas beyond the formal sessions.
Perhaps the strongest indication of this trust is the willingness of institutions to openly share not only their successes, but also the challenges they encountered and the lessons they learnt during implementation, so that others can benefit from their experiences.
This spirit of openness and peer learning is also reflected in the CARE Challenge. Winning projects are shared through the CoP, enabling healthcare institutions to learn from one another's experiences, adapt proven practices, and drive continual improvement in workplace safety and health.
Continuing Efforts to Take Care of the Mental Well-being of our Staff: CARE Challenge
Mental well-being has been an area of concern nationally. In healthcare, we have recognised the importance of mental well-being and have continued to put in concerted efforts to look after the mental well-being of our staff. The CARE Challenge was organised to recognise healthcare institutions that have put in place programmes to care for their staff. Later on, we will recognise institutions that have stepped forward in this area.
Supporting Return-to-Work
Today, we also mark the official launch of the Return‑to‑Work Guide for Employers in Healthcare. For this, I would like to thank the members of the Return-to-Work Workgroup, comprising staff from the various hospitals and nursing homes, HSEU, MOM and WSH Council, under the able leadership of Ms Heidi Tan, Senior Principal Occupational Therapist from Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
This Guide is an important milestone. It reminds us that workplace safety and health extend beyond injury prevention. Supporting injured workers or workers who have experienced health issues through recovery, successful return to work, and continued employment is just as important.
A well‑managed return‑to‑work process benefits everyone — the worker, his team, and the organisation. It shows that we value our people and are prepared to support them through difficult periods.
What We Are Working Towards This Year
Injuries from manual handling, slips, trips and falls, as well as patient and visitor abuse or harassment against healthcare workers, continue to occur frequently in healthcare settings. These risks are not always easy to remove, but they can be better managed through good systems, training, and leadership support.
We also cannot ignore the mental and emotional strain of healthcare work. Stress, fatigue, and emotional load are real issues that affect performance, safety, and long‑term retention. Addressing these require sustained effort, not quick fixes.
So, as we look ahead, let me share a few areas that I hope we will focus on to raise WSH standards in healthcare.
First — ownership by leaders. Guidelines and programmes can only go so far. Real change happens when leaders make safety personal. When a Head of Department walks the ground and observes and asks how their staff are doing. When a CEO includes staff well-being in their strategic priorities and sets aside resources to improve the well-being of staff. I hope each of you leaves today asking: what can I, as a leader, do to improve WSH in my workplace?
Second — integration. Workplace safety and health cannot be an add-on. As we redesign workflows, adopt new technologies, and transform care delivery, WSH considerations need to be part of those conversations from the start. Built in, integrated, not added later.
Third — Physical and mental health and psychological safety. While workplace safety remains critical, it cannot be our only focus. The health of our staff be it physical, mental and emotional, has an equally direct impact on how work is done. A workforce that is unhealthy or overstretched cannot perform at its best. One of the areas that I hope we can encourage eligible staff to sign up for Healthier SG or offer health screening services to other staff. Caring for staff health is therefore not just a welfare issue; it is a core leadership responsibility.
And fourth — collaboration. No single institution has all the answers. The challenges we face are shared, and so must be our solutions. The platforms we have — including dialogues like this one — are an important part of how we can work together to better protect our staff.
Closing
This morning’s programme reflects these focus areas. We will be updated on the workplace safety and health injury statistics in the healthcare industry, and recognise institutions that have taken positive steps forward to care for their staff well-being. During the panel discussion, I hope we will have an open and meaningful exchange on leadership, challenges, and solutions.
I would like to thank our speakers, panellists, committee members, and the organising team for making this dialogue possible.
I encourage each of you to take key insights from today and bring them back to your organisations. The decisions we make as leaders have a direct impact on the safety and well-being of our healthcare workers.
Let us use this opportunity well. I look forward to having a meaningful and productive dialogue with you this morning.
Thank you.