Press Room

Healthcare and data science will get a boost with the signing of an agreement between Singapore’s National Research Foundation (NRF) and British national institute for health data science Health Data Research UK (HDR UK). The collaboration reinforces Britain’s position as a leader in health data science, and Singapore as a centre of research excellence that is transforming health through precise medicine, HDR UK and NRF said in a media release.

The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) will study over three years the impact of the urban environment on mental health, said Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat on June 3. The study will examine factors such as urban design features, density and human behaviours, Mr Heng said at the opening plenary of the World Cities Summit 2024, held at Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre. Mr Heng, who is chairman of the National Research Foundation Board, said insights from the study will “serve to better inform the way we rejuvenate, reinvent and reimagine our city-state”.

A new study covering about 10,000 people in Singapore has identified genetic variations which predispose people of different ethnicities here to certain medical conditions and adverse drug responses. The upshot is that a better understanding of the genetic risk of getting a disease can enhance the preventive care strategy under the Republic’s Healthier SG initiative that will be rolled out later in 2023.