With an ageing population, we see an increase in patients suffering from multiple medical conditions, often requiring the care of doctors with different specialties. Mr Cheng Yam Kwang, 66, was one such patient. He suffers from coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, and gout and was seeing three doctors - two hospital specialists and one polyclinic GP, on a regular basis. For Mr Cheng, this means having to relate his personal medical history at least thrice, struggle with having to remember follow-up visits made at two different locations, and often taking on the burden of constantly alerting each doctor to the diagnosis of the other two during routine consultations. He does this to ensure that his treatment for one aliment does not hinder or conflict with the progress of the other two.

To help make the lives of their patients like Mr Cheng easier, Alexandra Hospital (AH), Singapore’s first integrated general hospital, has set up an Integrated Care (ICare) clinic, which aims to provide one- stop care to patients and cut down on unnecessary hospital visits. The ICare clinic is the flagship clinic of AH’s Live Better programme, which focuses on helping patients plagued with multiple health issues.

A dedicated generalist doctor, trained in Internal Medicine or Family Medicine will be assigned to each patient. These experienced specialists are well versed in handling a wide variety of illnesses, and are skilled to diagnose, treat and manage chronic diseases often faced by the middle-aged and older people. And because the ICare clinic is set up with both basic and advanced diagnostic equipment and treatment services on-site in the hospital, it is very often the only stop patients need to make. The hospital has seen close to 3500 patients at the clinic since its opening in June 2018.

Dr Teng Gim Gee, Head of the Live Better programme says, “This one principal doctor will attend to our patients’ healthcare needs and consolidate care plans for those with multiple chronic conditions. In keeping with the One Care Team approach, the principal doctor, assisted by other healthcare providers and specialists, will be able to address the patient’s concerns. This makes it more convenient for our patient, allows him to forge a closer relationship with his doctor and saves him both time and money”.

Today, Mr Cheng only sees Dr Desmond Teo, a consultant at the ICare Clinic, in the outpatient setting. This has allowed them to build a deeper doctor-patient relationship. Mr Cheng has this to say about the new arrangement, “I save time from travelling and I don’t need to go to two places for my care because Dr Teo is the one doctor who is taking care of me.”

• Personalised care by a principal doctor without compromising on quality of treatment
• Holistic overview and understanding of patient’s medical conditions by principal doctor
• Cut down multiple trips to different specialists’ clinics for consultations
• Save time and money

• Patients with multiple medical condition
• Recently discharged from our medical ward
• Require medication attention across various specialisations
• Has undiagnosed symptoms

Other than providing a comprehensive range of services from internal medicine, general medical care for adult and geriatric patients, chronic diseases management and preventive care, the ICare team also manages:

• Cardiovascular diseases (heart and vascular system)
• Dermatological diseases (skin)
• Endocrinology diseases including Diabetes (hormones and glands)
• Gastroenterological diseases (stomach and intestinal system, liver and gallbladder)
• Hematological diseases (blood)
• Psychological and psychiatric diseases
• Pulmonary diseases (lungs and respiratory system)
• Renal diseases (kidneys)
• Rheumatological diseases (joints and musculoskeletal system)