Brahm Centre to open new outlet in Telok Blangah to meet rising demand for eldercare
Seniors living in the West can expect more wellness activities closer to home, with Brahm Centre opening up a new outlet in Telok Blangah. Set to open next January, the new centre aims to meet rising demand for eldercare services, from counselling to art therapy. The centre marked the occasion with its first-ever senior art exhibition. Natalie Ong with this report.
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Business Times
6 hours ago
- Business Times
Hong Kong-listed China Medical System seeks secondary listing on SGX
[SINGAPORE] Hong Kong-listed China Medical System (CMS) is seeking a secondary listing on the mainboard of the Singapore Exchange (SGX) in July this year. CMS is a specialty pharma with a focus on sales and marketing in China, with capabilities across the full lifecycle of drug development, from identifying clinical needs to research and development (R&D) regulatory approval, and commercialisation. It has been listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong since 2010. The pharmaceutical company expects the secondary listing will help it deepen its presence in South-east Asia and 'tap into a new and sophisticated investor base in Singapore'. CMS said it is looking to replicate its success in South-east Asia – building on the proven track record attained in China's pharmaceutical industry. 'This region, with a population of nearly 700 million, is experiencing surging pharmaceutical demand due to rapid economic growth, the rise of the middle class, ageing population, and the increasing burden of non-infectious diseases,' it said. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Its financial performance in 2023 and 2024 were hit by China's volume-based procurement (VBP) policy – three of its products were included in the VBP list. This policy aims to lower the prices of drugs with generic competition, by guaranteeing certain procurement volumes from public hospitals at significantly reduced prices through a bidding process. But CMS had a top-line rebound in H2 2024, driven by progress in commercialising innovative drugs and the continued growth of non-VBP exclusive products. The company moved towards innovative drugs, given that they typically enjoy a pricing advantage due to their exclusiveness, novelty and quality, and are supported by favourable government policies. It expects growth momentum will accelerate on the back of the replenishment of its pipeline of innovative drugs to about 40 products as at Dec 31, 2024. It noted four key platforms to scale its pharmaceutical ecosystem across Asia-Pacific. CMS R&D is involved in drug discovery and development targeting global markets, while PharmaGend is a development and manufacturing platform for regional manufacturing and supply. It also has Rxilient Health, a Singapore-headquartered entity focused on registration and commercialisation in South-east Asia and a Singapore venture arm, which makes strategic investments to support regional pharma innovation. In a statement on Jun 24, CMS said the proposed listing will not involve issuance of new shares, and the shares will continue to be primarily listed and traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange thereafter. Singapore is its regional headquarters for its South-east Asia and Middle East business, the company said. The announcement follows the news of several new listings on SGX – software services provider Info-Tech Systems, a data centre real estate investment trust (Reit) by Japanese telco Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT), and a spin-off of mainboard-listed construction company Lum Chang Holdings' interior fit-out business. Info-Tech Systems, whose shares are expected to begin trading on Jul 4, is the first SGX mainboard listing in two years. NTT DC Reit, which will have a portfolio of six of NTT's data centre assets, will likely be the largest Singapore Reit listing in a decade. Meanwhile, interior fit-out business Lum Chang Creations is looking to list on the Catalist board.
CNA
8 hours ago
- CNA
Singapore to raise age limit for first-time blood donors from 60 to 65
SINGAPORE: In a move to expand Singapore's pool of blood donors, the Health Sciences Authority will raise the maximum age for first-time blood donors from 60 to 65, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung announced on Saturday (June 28). The rule relaxation, which kicks in on Jan 1, 2026, is aligned with longer life expectancy and better health in older age, said Mr Ong. He also said local data showed that adverse donor reaction actually decreases with age among Singapore's first-time donors up to the current limit of 60 years old. "There is no reason to believe that once you cross 60 years old, suddenly the adverse reaction prevalence rate is going to shoot up," said Mr Ong during an event at Marina Bay Sands marking World Blood Donor Day. Currently, first-time whole blood donors in Singapore must be aged 60 or below. Repeat donors can donate until they are 65, or beyond if they meet health criteria and have donated recently. Under the revised policy, healthy people will be able to donate blood for the first time until the age of 65, bringing Singapore in line with jurisdictions such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Ireland, the Netherlands, South Korea and the United Kingdom. BLOOD BANK CHALLENGES Mr Ong, who is also the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, noted that Singapore faces structural challenges in maintaining a stable blood supply. An ageing population is driving up demand for blood products, while the pool of eligible donors is shrinking, he said. The number of new blood donors has also declined, from over 20,000 in 2013 to around 18,000 in 2024. At the same time, demand is rising, said Mr Ong. Last year, more than 35,000 patients in Singapore received blood transfusions, which are needed for surgeries, cancer treatment and childbirth complications. "Each blood donation saves up to three lives," said Mr Ong. But if blood stocks run low, surgeries will be postponed, treatments delayed and lives could be at risk, he warned. Singapore also contends with seasonal fluctuations in supply, with donor numbers falling during festive periods, school holidays and long weekends when many travel overseas. Early last year, Group O blood stocks in Singapore dropped to critical levels as the country's stockpile stood at less than six days' worth of blood. A personal appeal by Mr Ong, he said, resulted in the blood stock rising by almost 2.3 times in a week. Mr Ong said that this experience showed how people are willing to step forward, adding that authorities would work to make donation more convenient, and to minimise rejection of willing donors. ENCOURAGING MORE TO STEP FORWARD Beyond the policy change, Mr Ong shared that he himself had been unable to donate blood for years because he had lived in the UK during the 1980s, when there was a risk of exposure to Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) - also known mad cow disease - a rare brain disorder linked to contaminated beef. However, a revision in donor guidelines now allows him to donate via apheresis, which he said makes the risk of blood contamination by vCJD "negligible". During donation by apheresis, only specific blood components like platelets or plasma are collected, while the rest is returned to the donor. Despite structural changes and policy reviews, Mr Ong stressed that the success of the national blood programme still hinges on community involvement. At the event on Saturday, over 2,000 champion blood donors were recognised, alongside 34 community organisations that had run donation campaigns, including student groups, businesses and even fan clubs of visiting pop stars. "Giving is a very joyous thing," said Mr Ong.
CNA
11 hours ago
- CNA
What is tapping, and can it really improve mental health?
It looks a little goofy. A self-help method called ' tapping,' which involves using the fingertips to perform acupressure while countering negative emotions with breathing exercises and positive affirmations, has elicited eye-rolls from some mental health professionals. 'I'm safe in my car,' a woman on TikTok says as she practises the technique, using a finger to tap the top of her head, then the side of her eyebrow and the middle of her chin. 'I am my safe space.' In the video, she explains that driving by herself is a struggle, but tapping has helped lower her anxiety and refocus her thoughts. Anecdotes like this are easy to find on social media. Over the last 15 years or so, tapping has also popped up on wellness podcasts, TV shows and even the best-seller list. As a result, the practice, also known as the Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT, has attracted a devoted following and become a big business. But many experts remain skeptical. WHERE DID TAPPING COME FROM? Tapping, which falls under the umbrella of energy psychology, originated from a technique called Thought Field Therapy developed by the psychologist Roger Callahan in the 1980s. He conceived of it while working with a patient who had a severe phobia of water, which Dr Callahan tried treating in various ways, including exposure therapy by the pool. One day, when the patient complained that just looking at the water gave her a stomachache, Dr Callahan told her to tap firmly under her eye, an area he knew to be associated with the ' stomach meridian ' in traditional Chinese medicine. According to Dr Callahan, after two minutes of tapping, the patient declared her stomachache had disappeared, along with her fear of the water. Dr Callahan developed Thought Field Therapy from there, contending that some patients required a series of acupressure points to be touched in a specific order. Thought Field Therapy was discredited by psychology experts, in part because there isn't a way to measure energy meridians, nor any evidence that proves they exist. But in the 1990s, Gary Craig, a Stanford graduate who later became an ordained minister, rebranded the technique, creating a simplified version called EFT. Proponents suggest that tapping not only relieves stress and anxiety but can also improve symptoms of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, addiction and chronic pain, among other maladies. Practitioners now pay hundreds of dollars to take EFT courses or pursue an official certification. DOES IT WORK? Even though there are more than 200 studies that examine meridian tapping, this body of work is not as robust as it might sound. Research that claims to highlight the effectiveness of EFT has been riddled by conflicts of interest, small sample sizes, statistical errors and a lack of rigour. For these reasons, prominent members of the American Psychological Association have said that the push to popularise EFT is based on pseudoscience. 'When you really look at the evidence, it falls apart,' said Cassandra L Boness, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of New Mexico and the lead author of a peer-reviewed commentary published in 2024 that raised concerns about the quality of EFT research and questioned the effectiveness of the technique. But that isn't to say that EFT is useless, experts said. Those who try the technique are instructed to think about or do activities they may find scary or uncomfortable – a form of exposure therapy, which is a powerful way of regulating emotions. Tapping also involves taking a moment to explore one's thoughts, which therapists say can help people understand their behavior. In essence, tapping is 'a hodgepodge of interventions, some of which are, I'm sure, quite effective,' said David F Tolin, the director of the Anxiety Disorders Center at the Institute of Living in Hartford, Connecticut. But there isn't high-quality research to show that tapping itself is the active ingredient, he added. WHAT'S THE HARM? Despite the lacklustre evidence, some patients and therapists insist tapping truly helps. 'It doesn't replace existing best practises for treating PTSD, depression, addictions or other serious conditions,' said David Feinstein, who offers classes and certifications in energy medicine, along with his wife. But, in his opinion, it can make those treatments more effective. Melissa Lester, a psychotherapist in Sandy Springs, Georgia, said she found tapping could provide quick benefits, including a calmer, clearer mind. She decided to become certified in the technique because she wanted to give her clients an alternative when methods offered by other therapists, like cognitive behavioural therapy, didn't produce the desired results. Providing an alternative treatment can indeed be useful to patients, Dr Boness said, but she questioned whether it was ethical to do so in the absence of rigorous scientific evidence. Her 'biggest fear,' she added, was that vulnerable people would turn to tapping, and then find that it doesn't work. 'It's not actually a psychological treatment,' she said.
