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Amidst the ongoing industry transformation and digital disruptions in the healthcare industry, the Healthcare Services Employees’ Union (HSEU) and NTUC LearningHub (LHUB) are setting up a Healthcare Academy to help workers adapt to changes, learn skills and transit to emerging jobs seamlessly.
Workers Impacted by Changes
Several groups of healthcare workers such as the Medical Records Officers and Patient Service Associates will be impacted by digitalisation. Their job roles may not be required or may evolve in the next few years.
a. Medical Records Officers (MROs)
Approximately 600 MROs across all public healthcare clusters will be affected by the move to digitise medical records under the National Electronic Health Record (NEHR) system. Many of these jobs will not be required in three to five years when medical records are expected to be fully digitised.
b. Patient Service Associates (PSAs)
There are approximately 4,000 PSAs across all public healthcare clusters and their job roles may be expanded as some of the current functions could be done via automated machines such as the self-registration and payment kiosks.
Setting Up of Healthcare Academy
HSEU and LHUB are jointly setting up a Healthcare Academy that adopts a multi-faceted learning system to equip healthcare workers with adaptive skills to cope with changes. Through regular engagement sessions with union members, HSEU identifies skill gaps and works with partners to help workers stay agile in the changing environment. Refer to Fact Sheet on Healthcare Academy for more details.
In the next one year, HSEU will also be working with various partners – Ministry of Health, healthcare institutions, professional associations of various healthcare professions and institute of higher learnings to map out the requirements for career progression, job switch and role enhancements.
Ms K. Thanaletchimi, President of HSEU, shared, “The healthcare sector is growing – there are boundless opportunities for workers to explore and seek career growth. But the industry is also undergoing major changes so workers are concerned about how their jobs will be impacted. The union is determined to work with NTUC LearningHub to help workers smoothly transit to new jobs before their current jobs disappear. The Ministry of Health believes that the union is able to make a difference working the ground with the workers and is giving their full support to the Healthcare Academy.”
Mr Kwek Kok Kwong, Chief Executive Officer of LHUB added, “NTUC LearningHub has been working with HSEU and healthcare sector to understand the emerging trends and technological changes in the sector. Leveraging design thinking, LHUB customised the pilot programme for the first few batches of healthcare workers; and will scale it up for the rest of the sector thereafter. Against the backdrop of a fast-changing landscape, this initiative is crucial to ensure that our workers in the healthcare sectors stay ahead of the impending changes and build up their adaptive and technology skills to stay relevant and progress in their careers.”
Enhanced Role of PSAs in Tan Tock Seng Hospital
Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) was the first unionised hospital to work with HSEU to embark on a PSA Framework in 2013. Under this framework, 38% of 500 inpatient and outpatient PSAs are trained in one or more Value Added Services . Earlier today, NTUC Secretary-General (SG) Ng Chee Meng met PSAs at TTSH’s Centre of Geriatric Medicine who have progressed from managing hospital administrative duties to taking on clinical support and training roles. One of them is 30-year-old Johnsten Wee who has progressed from a Patient Service Associate to a Patient Service Executive.
NTUC SG Ng Chee Meng said, “The Healthcare Academy will play an important role to keep our healthcare workers ready and relevant in the industry.” He continued, “With an ageing population, there is a growing demand for better healthcare services with the use of technologies. This is where the Healthcare Academy comes in. The Academy, in partnership with the hospitals and NTUC LearningHub, will train our healthcare workers to use new technologies and techniques; and importantly, help our workers develop a positive mindset to embrace the changes, stay relevant through skills upgrading and remain resilient in the new economy.”
Looking Ahead
In long-term, the Healthcare Academy aims to ensure sustainable employment for healthcare workers in a sector that is undergoing changes to meet future healthcare needs. The Labour Movement and HSEU are committed to do more to help workers embrace change and stay ahead of the curve.
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