The National University Health System (NUHS) has recently rolled out new enhancements on its mobile application in anticipation of a government initiative to amalgamate similar apps into a unified platform.
One of the key updates on the NUHS App is the introduction of estimated wait times in real time for the emergency departments of National University Hospital, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, and the urgent care centre of Alexandra Hospital. These wait times are updated every 30 minutes, allowing patients to plan their visit accordingly.
Moreover, emergency patients now have the convenience of filling out health declaration forms before their arrival using the app. This streamlined process enables them to proceed directly to registration after presenting their completed forms to the screeners at the entrance.
In another significant addition, the NUHS App now features the NurseFirst helpline staffed by emergency triage nurses from Woodlands Health. This helpline assists individuals who are unsure about their symptoms by directing them to the appropriate hospitals or clinics based on their condition.
Furthermore, users of the NUHS App can now easily locate the nearest GPFirst and PaedsENGAGE clinics within a 2-kilometre radius of their current location, enhancing accessibility to primary care services.
The NUHS App, initially launched as the OneNUHS App in collaboration with Synapxe, Singapore’s national health tech agency, has garnered over 840,000 unique users since its inception in 2021. The recent feature upgrades are part of NUHS’s broader strategy to leverage digital tools for enhancing care navigation and improving the overall patient experience amidst increasing healthcare demands, particularly with an aging population.
Dr. Malcolm Mahadevan, adjunct professor and NUHS chief of emergency medicine, emphasized the significance of the new features in aiding patients and their families in planning their healthcare journey and making informed decisions. By providing transparency on wait times, the app also supports hospital operations by optimizing patient flow and managing expectations during peak periods.
NUHS highlighted that a significant portion of priority 3 patients, comprising individuals with minor ailments such as colds and nosebleeds, were discharged after their visit without the need for hospitalization, based on 2024 data. The institution also utilizes artificial intelligence to forecast hospital bed availability up to two weeks in advance.
Looking ahead, NUHS is committed to enhancing and maintaining its applications as part of the Ministry of Health and Synapxe’s initiative to consolidate public healthcare apps into a single platform by 2027. This consolidation will include integrating the NUHS App, HealthHub SG, SingHealth’s Health Buddy, and NHG Cares App. Synapxe has revealed plans to incorporate AI into the unified app to deliver personalized health information through a multilingual, conversational interface, as shared during its recent AI conference.
