Forum: Singapore's outsized influence in healthcare, even as a colony
The former Communicable Disease Centre (CDC) site is known colloquially as 'or sai' (black lion in the Hokkien dialect), named after the emblem of Middleton Hospital, Singapore's first infectious disease hospital established in 1913. It evolved into the CDC in 1992, following a merger between Middleton and Tan Tock Seng hospitals in 1985.
The National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) took over the CDC's functions in 2018, ceasing the latter's continuous operations after 111 years.
This long history meant many architecturally significant structures, including the remaining pavilion 'Nightingale' wards designed by municipal engineer and later prominent Swan and Maclaren partner D.M. Craik, were maintained for over a century. It also draws a link to 'Lady with the Lamp' Florence Nightingale, whose radical ideas on caring for wounded soldiers in the Crimean War (1854) and Indian Rebellion (1857) made a huge impact on British and colonial hospital design.
Pavilions are rectangular, open-plan wards that made it easy for nurses to monitor patients. They also have large windows to let in fresh air and light. This challenged pre-19th century belief that bad air, or 'miasma', spread disease and was prevented from entering wards, resulting in gloomy spaces.
Furthermore, the site played an outsized role in tracking epidemics during colonial days. We are familiar with Singapore's post-independence fight against infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, Sars and most recently, Covid-19. However, not many knew the League of Nations Health Organisation (LNHO) established its Eastern Bureau here in 1925.
Due to its global significance as a transshipment hub, the first international system to report and distribute information on infectious diseases was broadcast from Singapore via wireless radio and telegraph. These reports contained news on cholera, smallpox, typhoid and other diseases, as well as information on everything from quarantine arrangements to the health of haj pilgrims .
Without a doubt, colonial healthcare and quarantine facilities at Middleton Hospital and St John's Island played an important role in monitoring travellers carrying infectious diseases through Singapore. This function enabled port authorities worldwide to reduce the spread of outbreaks.
From an architectural and historical perspective, it is important for the revitalised site to capture and showcase these significant stories and more.
Ian Tan
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