On the afternoon of 26 Oct 2019, two premier institutions steeped in history and medical expertise had officially entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU). The MOU was signed by Professor Dr. Tunku Kamarul Zaman bin Tunku Zainol Abidin, Director of the University of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) and Associate Professor Tan Mann Hong, Division Chair of the Musculoskeletal Sciences of the Singapore General Hospital (SGH), in the presence of Associate Professor Dr. Azura binti Mansor; Deputy Director of Clinical Services (Surgical) of UMMC and Professor Andrew Tan Hwee Chye, Head of Department of the SGH Orthopaedic Surgery. It all began back in 2017, in San Diego California, where a casual dinner after the Orthopaedic Research Society Annual Meeting had presented an opportunity for the heads from the two institutions to meet and discuss the possibilities of creating synergies between both the institutions and after close to 2 years of extensive planning, the MOU had materialized.
The MOU would allow both institutions to partake in activities such as (but not limited to), student and/or academic and administrative staff exchanges, joint research activities, exchange of publications, reports and other academic materials and information as well as sharing of other activities and programmes in areas of mutual interest. With the signing of the MOU, both institutions would be able to enhance their research capabilities in the areas of Orthopaedics and elevate their respective institutions to greater heights, just like the African proverb, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."
