The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) will soon adopt the Next Generation Electronic Medical Record (NGEMR) system across all its medical facilities, following a new partnership between Synapxe, the National HealthTech agency, and the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA). The rollout aims to enhance coordination of care and operational efficiency for military personnel.
Improving coordination and access to medical data
Under the Master Partnership Agreement between Synapxe and DSTA, the SAF’s medical systems will be integrated with NGEMR over the next two years, with full implementation expected by 2028. The system will allow SAF medical clinicians to access consolidated laboratory results, imaging reports, and clinical notes from public healthcare providers connected to the NGEMR network.
This integrated access will help doctors provide more informed care, reduce duplicate tests, streamline referrals, and lower administrative costs. Clinicians will be able to retrieve essential medical information directly within the NGEMR platform instead of waiting for separate reports from hospitals, significantly improving the speed and quality of care delivery.
Announcing the initiative, Minister of State for Defence Desmond Choo described the partnership as a major milestone in advancing healthcare for military personnel. He noted that it extends the benefits of NGEMR beyond public healthcare institutions, bringing greater alignment within Singapore’s national healthcare ecosystem.
Strengthening HealthTech for seamless military care
Synapxe Chief Executive Foo Hee Jug highlighted the collaboration as a significant step towards delivering seamless care and improved outcomes for national servicemen.
“We are proud to partner DSTA and SAF to extend the use of NGEMR to our national servicemen. Together, we are strengthening HealthTech capabilities to support the SAF in delivering seamless care, smarter decisions, and improved outcomes for our servicemen. This is a bold step that we are taking together, towards a healthier, more connected Singapore,” he said.
DSTA Chief Executive Ng Chad-Son emphasised the importance of interoperability and data connectivity in improving healthcare outcomes.
“This interoperable solution leverages technology to connect people, data and systems for better health outcomes. By bridging the NGEMR with the SAF medical systems, we will enable a connected healthcare ecosystem where SAF personnel’s medical histories and follow-up information will flow securely and efficiently to and from the SAF and the public healthcare system. This will give healthcare professionals the up-to-date insights they need to make faster, better-informed decisions for holistic patient care of every SAF serviceman,” he said.
Enhancing care quality and efficiency
Brigadier General (Dr) Lee Wei Ting, Chief of Medical Corps at the Ministry of Defence, said the integration marks SAF’s continued commitment to improving healthcare delivery for servicemen.
“This partnership underscores SAF’s commitment to strengthening healthcare delivery for our servicemen. With the implementation of NGEMR, we will significantly enhance care coordination between the SAF Medical Corps and the public healthcare institutions. Ultimately, this is about ensuring our servicemen receive seamless, good quality medical care, whether they are being treated within the military or the public healthcare network,” he said.
The signing ceremony saw Brigadier General (Dr) Lee Wei Ting, Mr Ng Chad-Son, and Mr Foo Hee Jug formalising the Master Partnership Agreement.
Supporting Singapore’s broader HealthTech goals
The NGEMR initiative is one of Singapore’s major HealthTech programmes aimed at transforming care delivery across the nation. Its rollout across the National Healthcare Group (NHG) and the National University Health System (NUHS) was completed in July 2024. The phased implementation for SingHealth is ongoing and is also expected to be completed by 2028.
By extending NGEMR to the SAF, Singapore is moving closer to a unified healthcare framework that connects both public and defence medical systems, enabling more cohesive and patient-centred care for all.
