Citation

Phoon WO. Singapore Med. J. 1980; 21(3): 573-582.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1980, Singapore Medical Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

7444475

Abstract

During the last decade, tremendous changes have occurred in health status and patterns of health care in Singapore. These changes have presented great opportunities for the Department of Social Medicine and Public Health to conduct research into a wide variety of topics of vital interest to community health. Subjects studied include health problems of urbanization, especially those related to industrial health, highrise living, and traffic accidents; health consequences of changing lifestyles particularly those related to smoking and alcohol; the changing epidemiology of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, particularly those related to smoking and alcohol; the changing epidemiology of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, particularly those relating to hypertension, cancer, tuberculosis and venereal diseases; new aspects of health care delivery especially those pertaining to the aged; Chinese medicines and primary health care; health education techniques and priorities, with special respect to teachers, mothers, and workers, and road users; and medical problems and social changes, including the erosion of the extended family system and the wider practice of abortion. The enormous coverage of research activities carried out by the department is seen in the publication figures by staff and postgraduate students of our department (1970, 5; 1971, 6; 1972, 7; 1973, 23; 1974, 24; 1975, 29; 1976, 28; 1977, 18; 1978, 14; 1979, 23). It is obvious therefore that in this short paper we can only hope to select some research projects for discussion. Among ongoing major projects which did not receive mention in the text of this paper are the Study of Occupational Health Hazards of Firemen, the Prospective Cohort Study on the relationship of Hepatitis B Carrier Status and the development of Hepatoma, a study of transplacental passage of lead and problems of Child Rearing in Highrise Apartments.

Language: en

Keywords

Abortion, Induced; Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Asia; Attitude; Behavior; Biology; Blood Pressure; Breast Feeding; Cancer; Cardiovascular Effects; Child Health; Community Health Services; Delivery Of Health Care; Demographic Factors; Developing Countries; Diseases; Economic Factors; Education; Ethnic Groups; Geographic Factors; Health; Health Education; Health Status Indexes; Hemic System; Incidence; Industry; Infant Nutrition; Infections; Macroeconomic Factors; Measurement; Men; Mental Health; Mortality; Neoplasms; Nutrition; Physiology; Population; Population Characteristics; Population Dynamics; Psychological Factors; Public Health; Reproductive Tract Infections; Research Methodology; Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Singapore; Smoking; Southeastern Asia; Spatial Distribution; Suicide; Treatment; Tuberculosis; Urban Spatial Distribution; Urbanization; Women