Indian-origin nurse conferred with President's Award in Singapore for outstanding services

Singapore government on July 21 honoured an Indian-origin nurse Kala Narayanasamy with the President's Award for Nurses, the highest accolade in the nursing profession, for her outstanding services during the coronavirus pandemic. According to Singapore's Ministry of Health, the award this year was given to five nurses which include two from acute hospitals, and one each from hospice, national speciality centre and community nursing settings. 

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The health ministry in a release on Tuesday said that each awardee received a trophy, a certificate signed by President Halimah Yacob and an SGD$10,000 cash prize that can be used for their professional and personal development. Kala Narayanasamy, who is Deputy Director of Nursing at Woodlands Health Campus tapped on her experience from the 2003 outbreak of SARS-CoV-1 and used it in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic during her deployment at the frontline. 

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Kala Narayanasamy while talking to the media said that she learned a lot during the 2003 SARS outbreak and deployed her nursing skills amid the current health crisis to quickly convert wards at the hospital for immediate infection care where she was working. The 59-year-old nurse reportedly has 40 years of working experience in nursing and healthcare. Kala is currently planning and developing clinical workflows for the new campus of the Woodlands Health Campus, who congratulated her for the achievement on its Facebook handle. 

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President's medal

According to Singapore's Ministry of Health, the nurses who received the award were nominated by their institutions, public or peers, and were interviewed by a panel chaired by Dr. Chia Shi-Lu. The President's award recognises nurses who have shown sustained outstanding performance and contributions to patient care delivery, education, research, and administration. The award is open to all registered nurses from healthcare institutions in the public, private, and community care sectors, as well as the educational institutions.

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(With inputs from PTI)