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CNA938 Rewind - A Letter to Myself: How Pranati Bagchi built a lavender spaceship to fuel young girls' confidence

CNA938 Rewind - A Letter to Myself: How Pranati Bagchi built a lavender spaceship to fuel young girls' confidence

CNAa day ago
CNA938 Rewind
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Pranati Bagchi the founder of The Lavender Spaceship Project, an online school that provides a "girl-centric" education in coding and other tech-related skills. Pranati shares how the seeds of her entrepreneurial journey were planted when he daughter had a dispiriting experience at a coding class, how she persevered through the early days of being a one-woman-operation, and how her students are gaining more than just technical skills but the confidence to believe that they too can reach for the stars.
CNA938 Rewind - A Letter to Myself: How Pranati Bagchi built a lavender spaceship to fuel young girls' confidence
Pranati Bagchi the founder of The Lavender Spaceship Project, an online school that provides a "girl-centric" education in coding and other tech-related skills. Pranati shares how the seeds of her entrepreneurial journey were planted when he daughter had a dispiriting experience at a coding class, how she persevered through the early days of being a one-woman-operation, and how her students are gaining more than just technical skills but the confidence to believe that they too can reach for the stars.
34 mins
CNA938 Rewind - TalkBack: Pre-authorisation certification - Are you using more private healthcare services?
Great Eastern has halted pre-authorisation certificates for admissions to Mount Elizabeth hospitals in Orchard and Novena, citing 'efforts to manage rising healthcare costs and ensure long-term affordability for all policyholders.' Lance Alexander and Daniel Martin speak with Alfred Chia, CEO of SingCapital, to discuss whether more Singaporeans are turning to private healthcare services.
17 mins
CNA938 Rewind - First RTS Link train unveiled — an engineer weighs in
The first of eight trains for the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System has been unveiled, as the project gains steam. Lance Alexander and Daniel Martin speak with engineering expert Teo Chor Kok, a member of the Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Technical Committee at the Institution of Engineers, Singapore.
10 mins
CNA938 Rewind - Israel-Iran conflict: truce seems to be holding, is it over?
Iran has warned that it has little faith in Israel's commitment to a fragile ceasefire that ended the most intense and destructive confrontation between the two foes to date. The truce seems to be holding, but is it over? Lance Alexander and Daniel Martin speak with Dr Rohan Gunaratna, Professor of Security Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University.
18 mins
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Certis says sick leave policy designed to address system misuse, not to penalise employees
Certis says sick leave policy designed to address system misuse, not to penalise employees

CNA

time12 hours ago

  • CNA

Certis says sick leave policy designed to address system misuse, not to penalise employees

SINGAPORE: Security firm Certis said on Tuesday (Jul 1) that its medical leave policy was designed to address instances of system misuse, and not to penalise employees. 'The aim is to ensure fairness and maintain operational readiness, especially amid ongoing challenges in recruiting and retaining officers in a tight labour market. The policy helps us address rostering challenges and mitigate manpower shortages, as we ensure the safety and well-being of our stakeholders,' said a spokesperson. Details of the company's sick leave policy made headlines recently, with requirements for staff to remain at home or to share their "live" location via digital devices. 'We wish to clarify that the policy applies only to our frontline officers. We conduct care visits only under compelling circumstances, such as when officers are on frequent or extended medical leave,' Certis said on Tuesday. 'These visits can be to the officers' homes, or to the hospitals if they are hospitalised. Furthermore, supervisors will remain available if our officers require any assistance.' The spokesperson added that the intent of such follow-ups was not punitive. It was instead to understand if its officers require further support and also to help manage manpower planning. 'In vast majority of the cases where medical leave is genuinely taken, such visits are often well-received by our officers,' said Certis. 'We have encountered a very small number of cases where individuals have misused medical leave. For instance, there have been situations where officers took MCs to travel overseas. These irresponsible behaviours affect overall team resourcing and are unfair to colleagues who need to cover additional shifts.' Certis also said that it understands that there have been rumours of employees being terminated solely as a result of non-compliance to these policies. 'We firmly reject these rumours. Termination of employment is decided upon the severity of an officer's misconduct, such as proven malingering, and only taken as a last resort after an extensive and fair process. 'Since recent media reports, Certis has been actively engaging with our union partner, the Union of Security Employee. We are working with USE to review the current processes around the care visits, and will partner them to strengthen our engagement with employees to ensure greater clarity around our policies and to reinforce our commitment to fair and respectful treatment of all staff.' The spokesperson added that Certis acknowledges its frontline roles can be physically demanding and challenging. 'We deeply value the efforts of our officers on the ground and recognise the importance of supporting their health and well-being.'

Current state of private insurance, private healthcare not sustainable: Ong Ye Kung
Current state of private insurance, private healthcare not sustainable: Ong Ye Kung

CNA

time13 hours ago

  • CNA

Current state of private insurance, private healthcare not sustainable: Ong Ye Kung

SINGAPORE: The current state of private insurance and private healthcare is unsustainable, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung on Tuesday (Jul 1), as he spoke of a "knot" in the relationship between the insurers and private hospitals. Mr Ong was giving the Ministry of Health (MOH)'s perspective on Great Eastern's suspension of its pre-authorisation certificates for admission to Mount Elizabeth hospitals since Jun 17. The insurer said then that the move is part of the its "ongoing efforts to manage rising healthcare costs and ensure long-term affordability for all policyholders", citing its observation that over the past few years, "certain private hospitals have been charging significantly more for similar treatment". In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Mr Ong said that private health insurers and private hospitals have "gotten themselves tied up in a knot, to the detriment of all stakeholders, including patients". The "knot" came about in big part due to insurance design, he said. "Insurers know that policyholders are worried about incurring an unexpected huge hospital bill, so they launch insurance products that offer generous coverage to win customers and market share." These products include "as-charged" or no-limit coverage, as well as riders - add-ons to the insurance plan - that will cover almost all costs. In such cases, as insurers are footing almost the entire bill, there is the tendency to "use more than is necessary", said Mr Ong, calling it "human nature". To illustrate this point, he said that the likelihood of a patient with such riders making a claim is 1.4 times that of a patient without one, and the size of the claim is also on average 1.4 times more. This leads to higher claims and insurers realising that the premiums they collect can no longer cover those claims. Insurers then respond by introducing more safeguards into the claims process, such as suspending pre-authorisation for hospitals with higher claims or entering into panel arrangements with doctors, he said. They also respond by raising premiums, he said, noting that premiums for riders have increased sharply over the past few years. This causes policyholders, insurers, doctors, and hospitals to all be caught in a "knot". "Policyholders are naturally unhappy that they are paying rising premiums but with more restrictions. Healthcare providers are finding it more cumbersome to make claims. Insurers are struggling to stay viable for their health portfolios. "As for (the) Government, with all these developments, we can see that more patients with private insurance are opting for subsidised public health care," said Mr Ong. He added that this will increase the pressure on the public healthcare system, noting that public healthcare currently accounts for about 80 per cent of hospital beds in Singapore but provides care for 90 per cent of all inpatients. MOH INTERVENTION INSUFFICIENT SO FAR To tackle the issue, MOH has intervened in a few ways, said Mr Ong. One way it did so was to introduce fee benchmarks to guide pricing and prevent over-charging of medical bills. Since 2018, it has done so for private professional fees. Now, over 90 per cent of cases fall within the surgeon fee benchmarks, compared with 80 per cent in 2018, said the health minister. The average annual growth in private surgeon fees has also moderated from 3 per cent for the period of 2010 to 2018, to 0.4 per cent for the period of 2019 to 2023. "We are now studying the possibility of going beyond professional fees, by introducing more benchmarks for hospital charges, to guide fee setting by private hospitals," added Mr Ong. MOH has also intervened in instances when doctors make errant claims. The ministry has taken action against a "small minority" of offending doctors by making them attend a "refresher course on fee setting" or suspending them from claiming from MediSave and MediShield Life. Noting the need for more affordable private hospital choices, Mr Ong said that the ministry is exploring the possibility of a new not-for-profit private hospital - first introduced in February 2024 - but that such a move will take a few years still. However, MOH's actions are insufficient, said Mr Ong. "Ultimately, private insurers need to take a hard and realistic look at their product design, particularly those of riders." THE ROLE OF PRIVATE INSURERS Mr Ong acknowledged that private insurers have made "some effort" to redesign their insurance plans. Most insurers now offer more affordable rider alternatives which do not fully cover deductibles or have a larger co-payment component, he said. "But more importantly, these riders can help to dull the incentives to over-service and over-charge, while still providing the additional protection against large cash co-payments that policyholders value. "It will help focus private hospitals and private doctors on delivering value and ensuring affordability for their patients," said Mr Ong. "In the longer term, patients seeking care in private hospitals will find that they are getting a better deal than the current situation, which is clearly unsustainable." Every stakeholder will need to do its part so that the "knot" can be gradually loosened and untied, said Mr Ong, adding that MOH will be "facilitating" this untying process. "The recent moves by insurers may be disconcerting, but we need to see them against this broader context and the need to set the private healthcare financing system on a more sustainable footing. Otherwise, everyone loses." Mr Ong added that Great Eastern's move only affects those patients on private insurance plans and who intend to receive care at private hospitals.

Could tiny bubbles be the future of cancer care? Singapore's new clinical trial says 'yes'
Could tiny bubbles be the future of cancer care? Singapore's new clinical trial says 'yes'

Independent Singapore

time17 hours ago

  • Independent Singapore

Could tiny bubbles be the future of cancer care? Singapore's new clinical trial says 'yes'

SINGAPORE: In a quiet but potentially trailblazing move, Singapore is slated to introduce medical trials in the second half of 2025 for a novel, nonintrusive treatment that utilises bubbles. However, these are not ordinary bubbles; these are microbubbles designed to destroy liver tumours without taking out a single layer of skin. According to a recent Healthcare Asia article, this next-generation treatment, known as histotripsy, employs intensive ultrasound to generate microscopic bubbles in the liver. These bubbles quickly inflate and collapse, crashing tumours reflexively — not thermally — which could lessen problems and protect adjacent healthy tissues. 'This technique may also enhance other treatment strategies such as immunotherapy,' said Dr. Glenn Bonney, senior consultant at the National University Hospital and National University Cancer Institute, Singapore. A first for Southeast Asia The clinical trial, involving 40 patients at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) and the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), specifically targets individuals over the age of 21 with lumps smaller than three centimetres who are not candidates for surgical procedures. The trial will evaluate the tumour's reaction over six months and keep a close eye on possible complications and aftereffects. If the outcomes are encouraging, regulatory endorsement will be pursued, said Dr. Brian Goh, head of hepatopancreatobiliary and transplant surgery at SGH and NCCS. A decade in the making The expertise behind this invention came from the University of Michigan, where a team led by biomedical engineering professor Zhen Xu has spent over a decade finalising the science. 'Histotripsy uses microsecond-length ultrasound pulses at very high pressure,' Xu explained. 'This requires new instrumentation that did not exist commercially.' In contrast to high-intensity focused ultrasound, which scalds tissue employing heat, histotripsy functions more like an infinitesimal jackhammer, mildly disruptive, yet highly targeted. Xu, who co-developed the platform and co-founded the company HistoSonics, said the team had to build their equipment from nothing to bring this idea to life. Backed by big philanthropy Singapore's entry into this turf is boosted by a substantial $12 million contribution from the Li Ka Shing Foundation and Temasek Trust, which financed the city-state's first histotripsy system. This pioneering machine was bestowed upon NCCS and the National University Cancer Institute as part of a larger push to fast-track cancer innovation in the region. Histotripsy's future is not confined to liver tumours. Researchers are exploring the same platform as a possible treatment for haemorrhagic strokes, epilepsy, and even cardiovascular ailments. Scientists are also trying an all-in-one transcranial device that can 'awaken' the brain through the cranium, a sci-fi-sounding application that's getting closer to reality. A hopeful future With national recruitment projected to complete within the year, all eyes are now on the trial outcomes. If the results are satisfactory, Singapore may soon become a regional — or even global — leader in steering this next wave of cancer treatment. As Dr. Goh put it simply: 'If the results are positive, we will apply for the necessary approvals for treatment.' And just like that, the unassuming microbubble may rise as the improbable hero in the fight against one of the most fatal diseases of this era.

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