“The AM-ETHOS Medical Student Fellowship has enabled me to work on a research project supervised by A/Prof Sng Ban Leong in KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital. It has been a great learning opportunity for me to gain insights into the research projects and the clinical practice of Anaesthesiology. Through the research experience, I have been inspired by how ingenuity and dedication can make tangible impact in clinical work. This fellowship is indeed one of the highlights of my medical school experience, which aligns with my career aspirations in Anaesthesiology and provides for valuable professional development.”
“I am drawn both to the field of Anaesthesia and the promise that clinical research holds for the improvement of patient care and outcomes. The encouraging and fruitful experience with my Research Year mentors, Prof Alex Sia and A/Prof Sng Ban Leong, continues to affirm this. Under their guidance, my Research Year project investigates the effects of two different forms of labour epidural maintenance (conventional patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) and KK Women's and Children's Hospital's novel variable frequency automated mandatory bolus (VAMB) technique) on the adverse outcomes of motor block and instrumental delivery. The AM-ETHOS Duke-NUS Medical Student Fellowship has allowed me to continue carrying out my Research Year project with confidence, lending further support to my time with my mentors. It has thereby enriched a key opportunity for my learning and growth, for which I am grateful.”
Photo caption: Vikaesh is the fourth from left, next to his mentor A/Prof Sophia Chew.
“I am a 3rd year medical student at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine with a passion for clinical research and innovation. I have always been fascinated with the way research has been able to constantly improve and better the practice of medicine and transform it into what it is today. I too, hope to be a part of this exciting field of medical research, revolutionising healthcare in the 21st century.
As I started to embark on this journey, I was very fortunate to have met Dr Sophia Chew (SGH) and A/Prof Ti Lian Kah (NUH) who have mentored and supported me throughout this process. We conducted a novel prospective study elucidating the association between ethnicity and postoperative hyperglycemia in the local population undergoing cardiac surgery. I even had the opportunity to present this project at the Anaesthesia ACP Academic Day 2017 where we managed to clinch the Best Poster Presentation Award. Subsequently, I am also very grateful to have had the chance to travel to Copenhagen, Demark where I shared our findings at Euroanaesthesia 2018, The European Anaesthesiology Congress. Since then, we have also managed to publish the paper in the Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia.
With the successful completion of the project, we have now started to embark on a new idea, with the aim of applying Artificial Intelligence to refine current supraglottic airway devices, and to develop a modified Laryngeal Mask Airway (LMA) to revolutionise airway access in the field of Anaesthesia. This multidisciplinary project involving various medical specialists and Medtech companies is a truly exciting and promising project, with very real and practical applications! We are also very honoured to have SMSTDA’s sponsorship for this project, which would allow us to further our work in this area and materialise our ideas of a new and improved LMA.
This research journey of mine has been a truly exciting adventure which has imparted much knowledge and skills in me. I am also very grateful to have the invaluable guidance and support of my mentors, without whom, none of this would have been possible. It is a long, but enriching process, which has only just begun for me. I hope that other students, too, would have the chance to engage in such meaningful and exciting research, under the guidance of truly inspiring mentors! “
