Singapore Diagnostics wins as Diagnostics Provider of the Year

From a single site in the Philippines, it has since spread to 40 locations in the country.

Singapore Diagnostics (SGD) is the Philippine flagship company of Singapore-based healthcare group, Pathology Asia.

Despite almost a decade of operations, the past 24 months have been the most challenging. It was a transition from crisis-mode to post-pandemic hypergrowth. The result is that SGD is now amongst the largest and prestigious pathology laboratories in the Philippines.

The institution identified that in the Philippines, there is widespread inequity in the quality and accessibility of healthcare services. To complicate matters, Filipino healthcare professionals are most sought-after across the globe, creating an even bigger shortage of talent.

The challenge was three-pronged: the shortage of quality facilities, the ensuing lack of patient accessibility, and the gap in global skill set for healthcare workers.

The result, after applying all the identified pain points, is that Singapore Diagnostics became a world-class facility.

SGD was the first Philippine-based healthcare institution to be accredited by the College of American Pathologists. This reflects the high standards of its processes, competence, and personnel. Through this accreditation, SGD earned its position amongst the world’s elite laboratories.

From a single site in the Philippine financial hub, SGD grew its geographic reach to 40 locations throughout the Philippines. From SGD-branded laboratories, to laboratory out-sourcing, to technical management arrangements, SGD shared its brand of quality and affordability to most of the Philippines.

The vision is to continue providing laboratory tests, all at the most affordable prices to reach 70 locations by 2023.

It has also grown into a well-regarded reference laboratory. It has developed its own logistics backbone, from couriering specimens, to processing and delivering results to over 600 partner laboratories around the Philippines.

These partner laboratories, ranging from village-based, rural health centers, to top-notch hospitals, are direct beneficiaries of the CAP-Accredited quality of SGD.

It is also proud to consider itself a prime training ground for medical technologists for providing formal training and development programs to enhance the competencies of its team. SGD has created its own Credentialing Program where employees are encouraged to train in the specialist streams of Hematology, Immunochemistry and Microbiology.

For these milestones, SGD was given the Diagnostics Provider of the Year – Philippines award in the recently concluded Healthcare Asia Awards.

This year, with its theme of Recognising Trailblazing Initiatives in the Healthcare Sector, the awards programme aims to honour hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare providers that have risen above the challenges and made a remarkable impact to their patients, most especially amidst the massive disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The panel lauds SGD for demonstrating success amidst the challenges in quality, access, and skills facing the industry.

SGD intends to ensure the futureproofing of the organisation. Whilst retaining the traditional brick-and-mortar laboratory model, SGD partners with multiple tech-enabled and app-based healthcare companies by processing lab tests for them.

It utilises tech-enabled logistics providers in delivering personnel, lab materials and consumables to patients and customers. SGD also connects its partner laboratories directly to patients through the laboratory app, Biomark. It aims to continue building its stance as a technology-inclusive laboratory.