Retirement of Dr Teoh Ming Keng from MPS UK
Dr Teoh Ming Keng will be retiring as Head of Medical Services (Asia), Medical Protection Society (MPS), at the end of this year. On 15 October 2019, SMA held a simple lunch at the SMA conference room and presented him with a token of appreciation in recognition of his 15 years of service to doctors in Singapore. Dr Teoh holds an SMA Merit Award which was presented in 2012 at the SMA Annual Dinner.
Dr Teoh has held many distinguished appointments as a vascular surgeon. He joined MPS as a medico-legal adviser in 2004 and was appointed to his current position in 2008. Dr Teoh has since been the main liaison between MPS and SMA, helping doctors better understand MPS' positions and often assisting individual doctors in indemnity matters. We will miss his fair and balanced approach to the often heated, even passionate, situations that can arise in medical malpractice indemnity.
Dr Rob Hendry, Medical Director, succeeds him and will oversee the work of MPS in Singapore, together with Mr Kim Lee, Business Development Director, Asia. We look forward to working with Dr Hendry to further develop our relationship with MPS.
Renewal of IDI-SMA MoU
On 3 October 2019, SMA representatives met with Ikatan Dokter Indonesia (IDI, or Indonesian Medical Association) representatives – Dr Moh. Adib Khumaidi (IDI President-Elect) and Dr Ihsan Oetama – to renew the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) first signed in 2014. Members of our IDI–SMA Joint Committee also hosted a lunch with the IDI representatives.
Highlights from the MoU include:
- Members of our Associations should abide by the publicity guidelines of the other country when advertising their healthcare services there.
- Members of our Associations should not make unsubstantiated laudatory claims or insensitive remarks which undermine the professionalism of doctors in the other country.
-
Before members of our Associations organise or participate in talks, workshops or other activities for the purpose of promoting or advertising their healthcare services in the other country, they should endeavour to request for a formal invitation from the national medical association, medical specialty bodies or hospitals.
Feedback on LIA pre-authorisation form for Integrated Shield Plans – follow up
SMA and Life Insurance Association (LIA) representatives met on 22 October 2019 to further discuss and clarify the contents of the pre-authorisation form. Following the meeting, we understand that LIA will issue a clarification statement regarding the use of the pre-authorisation form to better explain its intention and purposes.
Incoming ED for SMA CMEP
The SMA Council has appointed Dr Lee Pheng Soon as the Executive Director (ED) of the SMA Centre for Medical Ethics and Professionalism (SMA CMEP).
Dr Lee was President of the SMA (2003-2006) and is currently a member of the SMA Council and Chairperson of the Professional Indemnity Committee.
Dr Lee recently retired after 30 years in pharmaceutical and nutrition science research. He is now a heartlands family physician and an occasional lecturer at the University of Otago, New Zealand, where he is Honorary Fellow in Human Nutrition.
We wish to convey our thanks to A/Prof Gerald Chua, the outgoing ED, for his service to SMA CMEP and the medical community.