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A Gathering in Appreciation: SMA Annual Dinner 2025

Sylvia Thay

This year's SMA Annual Dinner on 17 May saw some 400 guests gathered at Grand Copthorne Waterfront's grand ballroom for another highly anticipated evening of collegiality. Guest of Honour for the event, Ms Lai Wei Lin, Permanent Secretary (Policy & Development), along with distinguished guests, including Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi, Member of Parliament for Nee Soon GRC, President of the Malaysian Medical Association Dato Dr Kalwinder Singh Khaira, and President of the Medical Association of Thailand Prof Prakitpunthu Tomtitchong, were warmly welcomed by attendees.

SMA President Dr Ng Chee Kwan commenced the evening's programme with his welcome address (see page 10), where he summed up the Association's ongoing efforts and work in the areas of advocacy and representation. He also reiterated SMA's motto, "Service before Self", as a sign of the Association's commitment to better the medical profession for the good of the public and patients.

SMA Honorary Membership

The SMA Honorary Membership was instituted in 1969 and is the highest honour that SMA can bestow on persons who are distinguished in public life or who have rendered meritorious service to the medical profession or to the Association.

This year, SMA presented the Honorary Memberships to Prof Ho Lai Yun and Prof Tay Boon Keng. Their citations were delivered by Clinical Asst Prof Benny Loo Kai Guo and Prof K Satku, respectively (see pages 12 and 14).

Prof Ho Lai Yun has devoted more than four decades of his professional life to the local paediatric community, being the founding head of the Department of Neonatology in Singapore General Hospital and the Department of Child Development at KK Women's and Children's Hospital. Beyond his clinical work, Prof Ho sat on many committees and councils such as the Joint Committee on Specialist Training, Ministry of Health, the Continuing Medical Education Coordinating Committee, and the Panel of Chairmen of the Disciplinary Tribunal. He is also an advocate for children's welfare and protection, having served as the vice-chairman of the Singapore Children's Society since 2002.

Prof Tay Boon Keng is well respected as an eminent orthopaedic surgeon and has been a major contributor to the development of orthopaedic practice in Singapore, including introducing the Advanced Trauma Life Support Course and the US Specialty Board's annual in-training examinations. He was also chairman of the medical board at Singapore General Hospital and is the current emeritus consultant of Singapore Health Services' International Healthcare Collaboration Office. Furthermore, Prof Tay led the Medical Alumni Association as its president for four terms and was the chief medical officer at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore.

The Honorary Memberships were presented to Prof Ho and Prof Tay by Ms Lai Wei Lin to loud applause and cheers.

Recognising dedication

In its cause to advocate for and represent the medical profession, SMA has come such a long way over the decades only with the support and help of many volunteers holding various positions in the Council and committees.

One such dedicated doctor is Dr Chong Yeh Woei, Chairperson of the SMA Charity Fund (SMACF), who shared with guests the Charity's latest fundraising campaign – "Journey with SMACF". During his sharing, Dr Chong encouraged guests to work with SMACF in supporting needy medical students in their pursuits. To find out more about how you can partner with SMACF, please visit https://www.smacf.org.sg.

Dr Ng Chee Kwan took to the stage once again and introduced the 66th SMA Council. Following which, a short video looking back at the SMA Centre for Medical Ethics and Professionalism's (SMA CMEP) 25 years of work was played, and Dr Ng thanked the faculty and staff of SMA CMEP for the effort and work they have put into running the many courses and seminars, including the recent mandatory medical ethics continuing medical education programmes. Tokens of appreciation were also presented to SMA CMEP's past executive directors – Dr T Thirumoorthy, Prof Chin Jing Jih, Clinical A/Prof Gerald Chua and Dr Lee Pheng Soon – in appreciation of their leadership (see page 20 for a recap of SMA CMEP's journey).

The evening continues

Through the dinner, many guests were seen mingling within and beyond their tables, with multiple groups gathered around the ballroom as guests caught up with one another. Another area that saw people gathered in varying group sizes was the instant photography booth, where guests called upon friends and colleagues to pose and capture a snapshot of the evening.

Over the course of the Annual Dinner, a myriad of awards were given out in recognition and thanks for individuals who have put in their time, effort and support towards the Association, the medical profession and research, and/or to the wider community.

SMA Merit Award

The SMA Merit Awards were presented to three recipients who had made significant contributions to SMA and the medical profession, or in social service to the community.

Adj A/Prof Lim Yean Teng is a senior consultant cardiologist at Cardiology Associates Pte Ltd and adjunct associate professor at the Department of Medicine, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (NUS Medicine). A/Prof Lim has held many leadership roles, including being the chairman of the medical board of National University Hospital from 2003 to 2005 and the head of the Division of Cardiology of NUS from 1999 to 2006. SMA presented the Merit Award to A/Prof Lim in recognition of his significant contributions to the field of cardiology, and service to the medical community as chairperson of the Fee Benchmarks Advisory Committee from 2018 to 2021.

Dr Tan Wu Meng is a clinical assistant professor at Duke-NUS Medical School and a consultant of the Division of Medical Oncology at the National Cancer Centre Singapore. He was a Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC from 2015 to 2025, and chair of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Health from 2020 to 2025. Dr Tan was also a member of the SMA News Editorial Board from 2005 to 2010 and the author of the SMA feedback paper on Healthcare Workers' Safety in 2008. SMA presented the Merit Award to Dr Tan in recognition of his significant contributions to the medical profession, and service to various Ministries and the Government Parliamentary Committee for Health.

Dr Valerie Teo Hui Ying is a senior consultant and the head of Kallang Polyclinic, adjunct assistant professor at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, and clinical lecturer at NUS Medicine. Dr Teo is also the president of the Singapore Bowling Federation and the captain of the SMA bowling team for the Inter-Professional Games. She has served on the SMA Sports and Games Committee since 2014 and has also represented the nation in international events. SMA presented the Merit Award to Dr Teo in recognition of her significant contributions to the SMA Sports and Games Committee, and sporting achievements on the National Bowling Team at the 2006 Asian Games and 1999 SEA Games.

SMA Long Service Awards

The SMA Long Service Award serves to appreciate individuals who have contributed their time and services to the SMA Council and committees. A big thank you to all awardees for your hard work and support of the Association!

30 years of service

Dr Wong Chiang Yin: SMA Council (since 1995); SMA President (2006-2009)

20 years of service

Dr Pwee Keng Ho: Singapore Medical Journal (SMJ) Editorial Board (since 2005)

Dr Diana Tan Yuen Lan: Complaints Committee (since 2005)

10 years of service

Dr Chee Hsing Gary Andrew: Sports and Games Committee (Golf) (since 2015)

Dr Cheong May Anne: Doctors-in-Training Committee (since 2015)

Dr Ng Chee Kwan: SMA Council (since 2014); SMA President (since 2023)

Dr Tina Tan: SMA News Editorial Board (since 2014); SMA Council (since 2020)

Staff

Norita Bte Abdul Wahab: Senior Executive, Membership, 10 years of service

Sylvia Thay: Deputy Manager, SMA News, 10 years of service

Krysania Tan: Chief Administrator, 5 years of service

Sharon Wee: Executive, Professional Indemnity Services, 5 years of service

SMJ Best Research Paper Award

The SMJ Best Research Paper Award has been presented since 2004, with the aim to encourage the publication of high quality local and international research papers within the SMJ, and to promote and recognise local and regional researchers for their achievements. The top three research papers of 2024 were selected from 36 original articles published in 2024. SMJ Editor-in-Chief Prof Ang Tiing Leong presented the commemorative trophies and certificates to representatives from the following papers.

Dr Evelyn Gabriela Utama and team: "Improving children's cooperativeness during magnetic resonance imaging using interactive educational animated videos: a prospective, randomised, non-inferiority trial" (January 2024)

Dr Julian Tay Cheong Kiat and team: "Clinical characteristics and outcomes in Asian patients with heart failure with mildly reduced ejection fraction" (August 2024)

Adj A/Prof William Kong Kok-Fai and team: "Clinical profile and outcomes in patients with moderate to severe aortic stenosis with or without concomitant chronic kidney disease" (November 2024)

We congratulate the authors and recipients of the above awards and encourage more quality submissions to SMJ!

Expressing our thanks

The 66th SMA Council thanks our Guest of Honour, Ms Lai Wei Lin, and all guests for taking the time to join us at yet another successful run of the SMA Annual Dinner. We would also like to thank our generous sponsors: Art Works Advisory, Mitsubishi Electric, and Summit Planners. We hope everyone had a great and fulfilling time at SMA Annual Dinner 2025 and we look forward to hosting our colleagues, friends and volunteers again next year!