 | |
| Formerly | Integrated Health Information System (IHiS) |
|---|---|
| Industry |
|
| Founded | 2008 |
| Founder | Ministry of Health, Singapore |
| Headquarters | Singapore |
| Parent | MOH Holdings Pte Ltd |
| Website | www |
Synapxe Pte Ltd, formerly known as Integrated Health Information System (IHiS), is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MOH Holdings Pte Ltd, the holding company through which the Singapore Ministry of Health owns corporatised institutions in the public healthcare sector. [1]
IHiS was founded in 2008 by the Ministry of Health, Singapore. [2]
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, IHiS developed several healthtech projects including, the Command, Control, and Communications (C3) System, which was co-developed with Tan Tock Seng Hospital. [3] [4] Some other projects such as the GPConnect system were transferred to IHiS following the merger of Information Systems Division (ISD) of MOH Holdings and IHiS in November 2016.
In January 2021, GPConnect was adopted and deployed as the national EMR system for Singapore's COVID-19 vaccination operations (VacOps). [5] [6] [7] [8] As well the VacOps program which was established to support Singapore's vaccination operations VacOps, with an aim to deploy various HealthTech solutions to multiple vaccination centers, public health preparedness clinics and polyclinics. IHiS also tech-enabled mobile vaccination teams to visit community care facilities such as nursing homes and residential facilities. [9] [5] [6]
In 2023, it is reported that IHiS will move out of its current premises to Elementum, located at Biopolis, One-north, Singapore. [10]
The National Electronic Health Record (NEHR) is a system that collects and organizes patient health care records and is managed by IHiS. [13]
The Outpatient Pharmacy Automation System (OPAS) is a system that automate pharmacy processes of sorting, packing and dispensing a variety of drugs including blister packs, boxes and loose tablets into one complete system. [14] [15]
In 2015, IHiS established the HealthHub, a web portal and mobile application for national health information and services. It allows Singaporeans to view evidence-based health and wellness information, access health records, and perform transactions across public healthcare clusters such as appointments, bill payments and refilling of medication. [16] [6] [17] [18] [7] [19]
Personal particulars of 1.5 million SingHealth patients and records of medicines dispensed to outpatients, affecting a total of 160,000 such patients, were stolen in a cyberattack occurring between 27 June and 4 July 2018. Information relating to the names, National Registration Identity Card numbers, addresses, dates of birth, and race and gender of patients who visited specialist outpatient clinics and polyclinics between 1 May 2015 and 4 July 2018 was maliciously accessed and copied. Information relating to patient diagnosis, test results and doctors' notes were unaffected. [20] Information on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was specifically targeted. [21]
In response, IHiS had strengthened public health systems against data breaches. 19 measures were put in place, including two-factor authentication for all administrators, proactive threat hunting and intelligence, allowing only computers with latest security updates on hospital networks, and a new database activity monitoring. [22] [23]
A Committee of Inquiry was convened for the SingHealth breach and subsequently released a report. After the release of the report, IHiS dismissed two employees and demoted one for being negligent in handling and misunderstanding the attack respectively, with financial penalties imposed on two middle management supervisors, and five members of the senior management including CEO Bruce Liang. Three employees were commended by IHiS for handling the incident diligently even when not part of their job scope. IHiS has since fast-tracked a suite of 18 measures for enhancing cybersecurity. [24] [25] The Personal Data Protection Commission fined IHiS $750,000 and SingHealth $250,000 for not doing enough to safeguard personal data under the Personal Data Protection Act, making it the largest fine imposed for data breaches. [26]
Subsequently, on 6 March 2019, cybersecurity company Symantec identified a state-sponsored group, known as Whitefly, behind the cyberattack. Although the country is not identified, that group has been found to be behind several related cyberattacks against Singapore-based entities since 2017. [27] [28]
IHiS and its employees have been involved in the publication of several research papers, including;
Singapore General Hospital (SGH) is an academic health science centre and tertiary referral hospital in Singapore. It is located next to the Bukit Merah and Chinatown districts of the Central Region, close to the Outram Community Hospital (OCH), which functions as a supplementary community and rehabilitation hospital to SGH for newly discharged patients. There is also the Outram Polyclinic to complement outpatient care. All of these institutions are operated by SingHealth, which comes under the purview of the Ministry of Health (MOH).
Singapore Health Services, commonly known as SingHealth, is Singapore's largest group of healthcare institutions. The group was formed in 2000 and consists of four public hospitals, three community hospitals, five national specialty centres and a network of eight polyclinics. The Singapore General Hospital is the largest hospital in the group and serves as the flagship hospital for the cluster.
The Duke–NUS Medical School (Duke–NUS) is a graduate medical school in Singapore. The school was set up in April 2005 as the Duke–NUS Graduate Medical School, Singapore's second medical school, after the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, and before the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine. It is a collaboration between Duke University in the United States and the National University of Singapore in Singapore. Duke-NUS follows the American model of post-baccalaureate medical education, in which students begin their medical studies after earning a bachelor's degree. Students are awarded degrees from both Duke University and the National University of Singapore.
Tan Chorh Chuan is a Singaporean college administrator and professor who served as the second president of the National University of Singapore between 2008 and 2017. He is currently a professor at the National University of Singapore.
Vivian Balakrishnan is a Singaporean politician, diplomat and former ophthalmologist who has been serving as Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2015. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Cashew division of Holland–Bukit Timah GRC since 2006, and previously the Ulu Pandan division of Holland–Bukit Panjang GRC between 2001 and 2006.
Zaiful Nizam bin Abdullah, more commonly known as Zaiful Nizam or monoymously as Zaiful, is a Singaporean professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Singapore Premier League club Hougang United and the Singapore national team.
The Personal Data Protection Act 2012 ("PDPA") sets out the law on data protection in Singapore. The PDPA regulates the processing of personal data in the private sector.
The following lists events that happened during 2018 in the Republic of Singapore.
Singapore Taekwondo Federation (STF) is Singapore's national governing body for taekwondo. It is affiliated to World Taekwondo (WT) and Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC). In May 2019, the STF was suspended from both organisations.
The 2018 SingHealth data breach was a data breach incident initiated by unidentified state actors, which happened between 27 June and 4 July 2018. During that period, personal particulars of 1.5 million SingHealth patients and records of outpatient dispensed medicines belonging to 160,000 patients were stolen. Names, National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) numbers, addresses, dates of birth, race, and gender of patients who visited specialist outpatient clinics and polyclinics between 1 May 2015 and 4 July 2018 were maliciously accessed and copied. Information relating to patient diagnosis, test results and doctors' notes were unaffected. Information on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was specifically targeted.
The COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The first case in Singapore was confirmed on 23 January 2020. Early cases were primarily imported until local transmission began to develop in February and March. In late March and April, COVID-19 clusters were detected at multiple migrant worker dormitories, which soon contributed to an overwhelming proportion of new cases in the country.
TraceTogether was a digital system implemented by the Government of Singapore to facilitate contact tracing efforts in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore. The main goal was a quick identification of persons who may have come into close contact with anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19. The system helps in identifying contacts such as strangers encountered in public one would not otherwise be able to identify or remember. Together with SafeEntry, it allows the identification of specific locations where a spread between close contacts may occur.
The following lists events that happened during 2021 in the Republic of Singapore.
Jonathan Tan is a Singaporean swimmer. He represented Singapore at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships held in Gwangju, South Korea and he finished in 34th place in the heats in the men's 50 metre freestyle event.
The Singapore Heart Foundation (SHF), formerly known as the Singapore National Heart Association (SNHA), is a registered Charity and Institution of a Public Character (IPC) in Singapore. It aims to promote heart health, prevent and reduce disability and death due to cardiovascular diseases and stroke.
The COVID-19 vaccination in Singapore is an ongoing immunisation campaign against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), in response to the ongoing pandemic in the country. Singapore has a very high vaccination rate, with more than 92% of its total population having completed their vaccination regimen.
SafeEntry was a national check-in system which enables the logging of visitors at various locations during the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, allowing health authorities to track and isolate confirmed clusters. It was used in tandem with TraceTogether, the national contact tracing platform in Singapore. The system was deactivated on 9 February 2023 after authorities determined there was no longer a need for the system.
The following lists events that happened during 2022 in the Republic of Singapore.
The adoption of electric vehicles in Singapore is supported by the Singapore government via the Singapore Green Plan 2030 to have new car models required to run on cleaner energy sources and installation of up to 60,000 electric vehicle charging stations. Financial incentives are given to the public for installation of charging points and purchase of electric cars.
The following lists events that happened during 2023 in the Republic of Singapore.