Keynote Speakers
Keynote 1
The Future of Nursing Leadership: Extending Lives, Empowering Nurses, Transforming Healthcare
Ms Pauline Tan
Director of Nursing, Chief Nurse, The National Kidney Foundation
Ms Pauline Tan is the Chief Nurse of The National Kidney Foundation (NKF). Known for her humility and nurturing leadership, Pauline leads her team of over 1200 nurses to deliver empathetic, compassionate and exceptional service to more than 5,400 dialysis patients across 45 dialysis centres in Singapore.
With 36 years of nursing experience in Singapore and Canada, Pauline has since made great strides in transforming community dialysis care. She established training programmes aimed to develop promising nursing leaders, while focusing on enhancing the skills sets of all nurses to ensure highest possible standards of personalised patient care.
Under her exemplary leadership, NKF introduced a holistic renal rehabilitation programme, empowering dialysis patients to have better quality of life. With patients’ safety, comfort and treatment outcomes in mind, Pauline implemented innovative treatment solutions, including nocturnal dialysis, plastic cannulas for overnight dialysis, and ultrasound technology to improve cannulation. Through collaborative efforts in training nurses to resolve blocked catheters, the resulting streamlined and efficient process benefitted patients in time and cost, while freeing up hospital beds for more critical needs.
Pauline’s unwavering commitment to living out NKF’s care philosophy earned her the most prestigious accolade – the President’s Award for Nurses in 2023 – and multiple awards for the Foundation. Her vision is for all nurses to be strong patient advocates to uphold their rights and interests, while delivering high quality care. Her relentless approach towards person-centered care echoes NKF’s resolute mission of Giving Life and Hope to every patient and their loved ones.
Across Malaysia and Singapore, nurses stand at the heart of healthcare delivery—especially as populations age and the burden of chronic diseases continues to grow. As the largest group of healthcare professionals, nurses are not only caregivers at the bedside but also leaders who shape patient outcomes, influence policy, and transform systems of care.
This keynote draws on Pauline Tan’s unique journey as a nurse leader in both Canada and Singapore. During her time as a clinician at Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, she saw first-hand how multidisciplinary collaboration, evidence-based practice, and patient-centred models of care could significantly improve outcomes for patients with complex chronic illnesses. These Canadian experiences highlighted the need to empower nurses not just as skilled caregivers, but also as active partners in clinical decision-making and system design.
Building on that foundation, Pauline’s leadership at the National Kidney Foundation Singapore over the past eight years has focused on elevating dialysis care standards to extend the lives of patients with kidney failure. Through structured training frameworks, embedded mentorship, and a culture of accountability and compassion, her team has achieved measurable improvements in survival rates, reduced hospitalisations, and enhanced quality of life. In recognition of these contributions, Pauline received the President’s Nurse Award 2023—Singapore’s highest honour for nursing excellence.
With over three decades of experience in nursing—and eight years leading a national dialysis nursing team—Pauline will share how high standards of practice, strong mentorship, and resilient teams can drive tangible improvements in care outcomes.
The keynote will also explore the leadership capabilities needed to sustain this transformation:
· Developing robust succession planning to prepare nurses for advanced practice, leadership, and management roles.
· Building emotional resilience and intelligence in nurse leaders to navigate increasing system pressures.
· Fostering a culture of mentorship, recognition, and professional growth to retain talent and reduce burnout.
· Preparing nurse leaders to engage with technology, health economics, and policymaking.
Participants will gain insights into how nurses can embrace technological change, lead digital health initiatives, and balance efficiency with compassion in high-pressure environments. Emphasis will also be placed on the importance of regional collaboration between Malaysia and Singapore—to share best practices, harmonise training, and collectively shape the next generation of nursing leaders.
Ultimately, this keynote is a call to action: for nurses to see themselves not only as caregivers, but as change-makers who hold the key to advancing healthcare in ASEAN. By extending lives, empowering nurses, and transforming healthcare—we can build a future where patients live not just longer, but better.
Key Panel 1 Discussion
Voices of Experience - A Dialogue Across Nursing Generations
Moderator
Ms Pua Lay Hoon
Chief Nurse, Woodlands Health
Ms Pua Lay Hoon is the Chief Nurse of Woodlands Health (WH), Singapore’s newest integrated healthcare campus serving the northern population. With over 30 years of experience in nursing and healthcare leadership, she has played a pivotal role in shaping clinical services, talent development, and operational readiness at WH.
Panellist
Adjunct Associate Professor Yong Keng Kwang
Group Chief Nurse (NHG Health), Chief Wellness Officer (NHG Health), Assistant Chief Executive Officer (Institute of Mental Health)
Adj A/Prof Yong Keng Kwang is a driving force behind nursing excellence and staff well-being at NHG Health. As Group Chief Nurse, he leads over 8,000 nurses across NHG institutions, advancing four strategic thrusts: relationship-based care, role optimisation, digital enablement, and positive practice environments. Since April 2024, he has also served as Assistant CEO (Strategic Planning) at the Institute of Mental Health, where he co-leads planning for mental health services. Previously, as Chief Nurse of TTSH, he steered the development of its 3,800-strong nursing workforce. In 2023, A/Prof Yong was appointed NHG Health’s first Chief Wellness Officer, where he champions staff well-being and resilience through organisation-wide strategies. His work ensures that care teams remain supported, capable, and committed to high-quality, person-centred care.
Ms Wong Sook Thow
Deputy Group Chief Nurse, SingHealth, Chief Nurse, KK Women's and Children's Hospital
A nursing leader with 36 years of experience, I began my career in 1989 as a MOH Gold Medal Award recipient from the School of Nursing. I specialised in Paediatric Intensive Care nursing after obtaining my Advanced Diploma in Critical Care Nursing in 1994.
My leadership journey includes dual master's qualifications: a Master in Health Services Management from Curtin University (2001) and a Master of Arts in Education & HRD from George Washington University (2003), both supporting my transition into nursing education and management roles. Currently serving as Chief Nurse at KKH and Deputy Group Chief Nurse of SingHealth, I oversee Nursing Transformation across the SingHealth cluster.
I champion innovation culture within nursing teams, believing that technology and innovation are crucial to addressing manpower challenges in healthcare. I am also focused on positioning KKH's community presence in maternal and child health, aligning with MOH's population health priorities. My expertise spans clinical excellence, nursing education, and strategic leadership, with a particular commitment to fostering innovation and community-centred healthcare delivery across the healthcare system.
Ms Pauline Tan
Director of Nursing, Chief Nurse, The National Kidney Foundation
Ms Pauline Tan is the Chief Nurse of The National Kidney Foundation (NKF). Known for her humility and nurturing leadership, Pauline leads her team of over 1200 nurses to deliver empathetic, compassionate and exceptional service to more than 5,400 dialysis patients across 45 dialysis centres in Singapore.
With 36 years of nursing experience in Singapore and Canada, Pauline has since made great strides in transforming community dialysis care. She established training programmes aimed to develop promising nursing leaders, while focusing on enhancing the skills sets of all nurses to ensure highest possible standards of personalised patient care.
Under her exemplary leadership, NKF introduced a holistic renal rehabilitation programme, empowering dialysis patients to have better quality of life. With patients’ safety, comfort and treatment outcomes in mind, Pauline implemented innovative treatment solutions, including nocturnal dialysis, plastic cannulas for overnight dialysis, and ultrasound technology to improve cannulation. Through collaborative efforts in training nurses to resolve blocked catheters, the resulting streamlined and efficient process benefitted patients in time and cost, while freeing up hospital beds for more critical needs.
Pauline’s unwavering commitment to living out NKF’s care philosophy earned her the most prestigious accolade – the President’s Award for Nurses in 2023 – and multiple awards for the Foundation. Her vision is for all nurses to be strong patient advocates to uphold their rights and interests, while delivering high quality care. Her relentless approach towards person-centered care echoes NKF’s resolute mission of Giving Life and Hope to every patient and their loved ones.
Keynote 2
Navigating the Future - Identifying Current Healthcare Issues and Evolving Nursing Direction
DGH Dr Kenneth Mak
Director-General of Health, Ministry of Health, Singapore
Professor Kenneth Mak is Director-General of Health at the Ministry of Health Singapore.
In this role, Professor Mak is the principal medical adviser to the Singapore Government and provides professional input and guidance to other Ministries and public agencies on health and healthcare related issues.
Professor Mak oversees the provision of all health services in Singapore. Within the Ministry of Health, he ensures that clinical services are delivered seamlessly across multiple settings by the public healthcare system. He leads in developing and implementing national healthcare policies in areas such as population health, healthcare regulation, communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases, healthcare professional standards as well as the development and enhancement of the performance of the nation’s healthcare system and services. Professor Mak works closely with Singapore’s Regional Health Systems and healthcare institutions on care integration as well as on Singapore’s long-term healthcare transformation strategy.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Professor Mak advised the Multi-Ministry Taskforce as well as other governmental agencies in crafting Singapore’s overall strategy for managing the outbreak and oversaw the integrated public health response to control the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Professor Mak is a familiar face in Singapore as he appeared regularly in the media conferences of the COVID-19 Multi Ministry Taskforce.
Professor Mak is the Registrar of the Singapore Medical Council, which is the Professional Board that ensures that medical practitioners, registered for clinical practice in Singapore, are competent and fit to practice medicine, upholding high standards of clinical practice and maintaining public confidence in the medical profession.
Professor Mak is a general surgeon with subspecialty interests in hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery, as well as in trauma surgery. He maintains his clinical practice as
a Senior Consultant surgeon in the Department of Surgery, at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore. His previous administrative appointments include Chief of Surgery at three public hospitals in Singapore and Chairman of the Medical Board at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore. Professor Mak was Deputy Director of Medical Services (Health Services Group) in MOH from 2015 to end-2019. He was appointed Director of Medical Services in 2020 and this appointment was redesignated in May 2023 to Director-General of Health to better reflect his role as the main overseer of clinical and public health of Singaporeans.
Professor Mak retired from voluntary military service in 2021, as a Colonel with the Singapore Armed Forces. He had held various command and staff appointments at
Battalion, Brigade and Division level.
Key Panel 2 Discussion
Voices of Experience - A Dialogue Across Nursing Generations
Moderator
Adjunct Associate Professor Yong Keng Kwang
Group Chief Nurse (NHG Health), Chief Wellness Officer (NHG Health), Assistant Chief Executive Officer (Institute of Mental Health)
Adj A/Prof Yong Keng Kwang is a driving force behind nursing excellence and staff well-being at NHG Health. As Group Chief Nurse, he leads over 8,000 nurses across NHG institutions, advancing four strategic thrusts: relationship-based care, role optimisation, digital enablement, and positive practice environments. Since April 2024, he has also served as Assistant CEO (Strategic Planning) at the Institute of Mental Health, where he co-leads planning for mental health services. Previously, as Chief Nurse of TTSH, he steered the development of its 3,800-strong nursing workforce. In 2023, A/Prof Yong was appointed NHG Health’s first Chief Wellness Officer, where he champions staff well-being and resilience through organisation-wide strategies. His work ensures that care teams remain supported, capable, and committed to high-quality, person-centred care.
Panellist
Ms Paulin Koh
Chief Nursing Officer, Ministry of Health Singapore
Puan Gowry a/p Narayanan
Director of Nursing Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia
DGH Dr Kenneth Mak
Director-General of Health, Ministry of Health, Singapore
Professor Kenneth Mak is Director-General of Health at the Ministry of Health Singapore.
In this role, Professor Mak is the principal medical adviser to the Singapore Government and provides professional input and guidance to other Ministries and public agencies on health and healthcare related issues.
Professor Mak oversees the provision of all health services in Singapore. Within the Ministry of Health, he ensures that clinical services are delivered seamlessly across multiple settings by the public healthcare system. He leads in developing and implementing national healthcare policies in areas such as population health, healthcare regulation, communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases, healthcare professional standards as well as the development and enhancement of the performance of the nation’s healthcare system and services. Professor Mak works closely with Singapore’s Regional Health Systems and healthcare institutions on care integration as well as on Singapore’s long-term healthcare transformation strategy.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Professor Mak advised the Multi-Ministry Taskforce as well as other governmental agencies in crafting Singapore’s overall strategy for managing the outbreak and oversaw the integrated public health response to control the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Professor Mak is a familiar face in Singapore as he appeared regularly in the media conferences of the COVID-19 Multi Ministry Taskforce.
Professor Mak is the Registrar of the Singapore Medical Council, which is the Professional Board that ensures that medical practitioners, registered for clinical practice in Singapore, are competent and fit to practice medicine, upholding high standards of clinical practice and maintaining public confidence in the medical profession.
Professor Mak is a general surgeon with subspecialty interests in hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery, as well as in trauma surgery. He maintains his clinical practice as
a Senior Consultant surgeon in the Department of Surgery, at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore. His previous administrative appointments include Chief of Surgery at three public hospitals in Singapore and Chairman of the Medical Board at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore. Professor Mak was Deputy Director of Medical Services (Health Services Group) in MOH from 2015 to end-2019. He was appointed Director of Medical Services in 2020 and this appointment was redesignated in May 2023 to Director-General of Health to better reflect his role as the main overseer of clinical and public health of Singaporeans.
Professor Mak retired from voluntary military service in 2021, as a Colonel with the Singapore Armed Forces. He had held various command and staff appointments at
Battalion, Brigade and Division level.
