EDB-MOH Health & Wellness Programme Office (HWPO)
The EDB-MOH Health and Wellness Programme Office (HWPO) is a joint initiative between Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and Ministry of Health, Singapore (MOH). HWPO seeks to further enhance Singapore's healthcare system while driving innovation through platforms that promote public-private partnerships to accelerate companies' development of future solutions today.  Through these innovation partnerships, HWPO seeks to entrench Singapore as a sophisticated lead market to develop more effective systems and solutions that can address unmet healthcare needs in Asia and global markets.

Key Partnership Platforms

• Public Private Co-Innovation Partnership
• Silver Community Test-Bed Programme
• National Grand Challenge

Partnering Singapore in Healthcare Innovation

• Hill-Rom: Driving  Innovation for Asia Pacific in Singapore
• Hocoma AG: Developing Applications for Medical Robotics
• A*STAR-Tekes: Developing Online Health Monitoring Platform

World-Class Healthcare

Key Partnership Platforms

• Public Private Co-Innovation Partnership
• Silver Community Test-Bed Programme
• National Grand Challenge

Public Private Co-Innovation Partnership
In November 2010, Singapore Government has launched the Public Private Co-Innovation Partnership to develop solutions for the government's longer-term needs. The Government will commit S$450 million over the next five years to fund such collaborations. Each company can receive more than S$1.75 million in funding for three key stages - proof of concept, proof of value and test-bedding of prototypes.

Under this initiative, Singapore's Ministry of Health is calling for proposals for a remote monitoring solution for chronic disease patients, initially targeted for diabetic population. Advances in tele-health technologies can ease the burden of chronic disease management by allowing caregivers and physicians to monitor and administer care remotely. By reducing noncompliance and enabling painless testing, the new technologies can improve the level of care and quality of life for patients. Companies that are developing these solutions can further leverage Singapore as a reference site when commercialising and exporting the solution globally.

For more info, please visit http://www.coinnovation.gov.sg/moh_remotemonitoring.html

Silver Community Test-Bed Programme
Launched by the Ministry of Community, Youth & Sports (MCYS), the Silver Community Test Bed Programme offers a platform for companies, public agencies and educational institutions to test-bed age-friendly assistive devices and products in a real-life home setting. MCYS had provided up to S$3 million as seed funding to facilitate the test-bed process for the 1st and 2nd grant calls. The first two calls provided a chance for participating seniors to experience state-of-the-art technology. These range from a personal care robot to a touch-screen communication device and a wireless health monitoring system.

In July 2010, MCYS launched the third grant call for proposals and will provide funding support for innovative and affordable solutions that enable seniors to live and remain in the community, across the health and social care continuum.  The Singapore Government is setting aside $10 million to support the programme over the next two years.

National Grand Challenge
Singapore’s Health Promotion Board (HPB) has launched the inaugural National Grand Challenge in 2010. Supported by HWPO, this programme seeks proposals from companies to develop new solutions to prevent and control obesity and pre-diabetes. When selected in end 2010, companies can work with partners in Singapore’s public-sector healthcare system to develop innovative technologies and business models.

Partnering Singapore in Healthcare Innovation

• Hill-Rom: Driving Innovation for Asia Pacific in Singapore 
• Hocoma AG: Developing Applications for Medical Robotics
• A*STAR-Tekes: Developing Online Health Monitoring Platform

Hill-Rom: Driving Innovation for Asia Pacific in Singapore
Hill-Rom has established its Asia-Pacific Innovation Centre in Singapore to focus on applied development in micro-electronics, embedded software and electro-mechanical systems, all of which are integral to the development of new Hill-Rom beds and therapy surfaces. The centre will also be the home-base for new teams looking at R&D projects for global applications of Hill-Rom products.

In 2010, Hill-Rom launched the Patient Support Development Center in Singapore. This centre will collaborate with hospitals in Asia to develop new products for the region. Hill-Rom also launched a Respiratory Care Development Center that will identify and develop innovative global respiratory care products in Singapore.

Hocoma AG: Developing Applications for Medical Robotics
Hocoma AG - a Swiss medical technology company that is a leader in robotic rehabilitation therapy for neurological movement disorders - announced its partnership with Singapore’s Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) Rehabilitation Centre to develop and optimise clinical and equipment applications. TTSH Rehabilitation Centre will also be the Training Centre for Hocoma in Asia Pacific.

A*STAR-Tekes: Developing Online Health Monitoring Platform
In January 2010, Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, announced the first bilateral Joint Call for Proposals (JCP) in areas including healthcare, wellness and ageing. The JCP is part of the 2nd Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by both parties to promote R&D and scientific collaboration.

This follows the success of projects under the first MOU, which included the development of an online health monitoring platform that can remotely track the sleep activity of elderly patients. This platform has been successfully tested at a Singapore nursing home, allowing caregivers to monitor and advise their patients from anywhere in the world as long as they have an internet connection.

World-Class Healthcare
Singapore has established strong fundamentals in healthcare excellence, having established the world’s 4th best healthcare infrastructure (World Competitiveness Yearbook 2010, IMD) while spending less than 4% of GDP on healthcare and providing universal coverage for Singaporeans with multiple layers of care. Singapore has also established an integrated system that addresses the full continuum of care, which is underpinned by an electronic medical records exchange system as well as a growing base of pharmaceutical and medical technology R&D activities.

As an advanced urbanised, ageing nation in Asia that has achieved healthcare excellence, Singapore presents a sophisticated lead market that enables companies to fast-track their innovation process to develop future solutions that can address Asia’s fast-growing healthcare needs.