01-Oct-16 By using technology to let staff check out medical equipment like supermarket produce, Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore saves 4,640 manpower hours a year. It is rolling out an inventory management system in general wards. With Singapore's greying population, such innovations help mitigate the shortage of healthcare professionals, said Minister of State for Manpower Teo Ser Luck. [image: Healthcare Purchasing News]

30-Sep-16 German medtech firm Biotronik opened an expanded production plant in Singapore. The firm produces implantable pacemakers, defibrillators and stents. "This small nation of 5.5 mn people is the fourth-largest exporter of high-tech goods in the world... We will be manufacturing components for Biotronik's latest and most innovative products for distribution around the world," said Erik Trip, Managing Director. [image: Biotronik]

18-Sep-16 A growing number of Singaporean women are heading to Malaysia, Thailand and Australia to preserve their fertility, in the hope of having children when they finally marry Mr Right. These women - professionals in their mid-30s to early 40s - are getting their eggs frozen abroad as the procedure is not allowed in Singapore, except on medical grounds. [image: ST Illustration / Adam Lee]

15-Sep-16 New guidelines on social media use for medical professionals are part of the updated Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines released by the Singapore Medical Council on 14-Sep-16. The changes were made to keep up with a "more complex" medical practice, due to factors such as advanced technology, innovative communication, new modes of treatment and changing expectations of patients. [image: Reuters]

15-Sep-16 Biomedical manufacturing contributed just under SGD30 bn (USD41 bn) to Singapore's GDP in 2014. Of this, pharmaceuticals accounted for nearly SGD17 bn and medical technology about SGD11 bn. This sector employs over 18,000 workers, most of whom are highly skilled and technically qualified. [image: ZUU Online]