Walk the talk SingHealth scholar and physiotherapist Tan Siang Yin derives satisfaction from giving patients the best healthcare By Kent Chan MS TAN Siang Yin’s first exposure to the job of a physiotherapist was when she was in her teens. While doing volunteer work for a healthcare organisation, she witnessed how a physiotherapist had handled a child suffering from cerebral palsy. She saw how the physiotherapist was able to build rapport with the child and gain the trust of his patient. That experience inspired her to be a physiotherapist. Today, Ms Tan, 25, works as a physiotherapist at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH). A scholar with the Singhealth Group, of which SGH is one of the member organisations, Ms Tan first studied anatomy, physiology, biomechanics, as well as basic psychology at Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP). The three-year programme at NYP was followed by a year at the University of Sydney (UOS), where she completed her bachelor’s degree in applied science (physiotherapy). Asked to describe her work now as a physiotherapist, she says: “Busy, busy, busy.” Ms Tan sees about 20 patients daily, each for about 15 to 30 minutes. She says: “As a physiotherapist, I have to assess, diagnose and manage a patient’s condition. We empower patients by educating them, thus enabling them to manage their own condition.” For those who are warded, Ms Tan and her colleagues help them improve skills like walking, so that they can recover sooner, and go home. Ms Tan says she constantly updates her professional knowledge and skills by reading physiotherapy journals. She adds that the physiotherapy field can be further divided into three main disciplines: musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary and neurology physiotherapy. But she says: “I feel that I have a long way ahead to build up my experience and clinical expertise before I consider myself as a specialist.” At present, her biggest challenge is to provide the best quality healthcare service to her patients. She knows that she has to be a team player — after all, there are many other medical professionals in different fields within SingHealth, all working towards the common goal of providing better care for their patients. “I am a drop in the ocean. I believe everyone plays a part inthe giant jigsaw puzzle of SingHealth,” says Ms Tan. “I have learned to improve myself as a team player within the dynamics of a big organisation. ”She is enjoying her career, but for aspiring scholars who want a career in physiotherapy, she says:“This profession is not financially rewarding. But it is the intangibles such as self satisfaction and the passion to help others that keep you in this profession.”