SINGAPORE- Singapore's growing healthcare needs calls for public and private healthcare providers to work more closely as one integrated healthcare system, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong on Saturday (July 23).

He was speaking at Raffles Medical Group's 40th anniversary dinner at the Shangri-La Hotel.

"By 2030, one in four Singaporeans will be aged 65 and above. As our population ages, the focus of healthcare provision will also adjust to the needs of an older population, such as management of chronic diseases," he said.

He highlighted how since 2015, Raffles Hospital has been receiving emergency patients brought in by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) ambulances in a partnership between the Ministry of Health and Raffles Medical Group. Since then it has treated more than 2,400 of such patients

"These patients pay subsidised rates similar to what they would pay in the public hospitals. This has helped improve patients' access to Accident & Emergency (A&E) services," he said.

During the dinner, Raffles Medical Group pledged a donation of $1 million to the National Kidney Foundation. The money will go towards the setting up of the Raffles-NKF Renal Wellness Centre at Raffles Hospital.

Space for the centre will be set aside in the new extension that is currently being developed adjacent to the hospital that is located on North Bridge Road. The centre will offer a haemodialysis services together with a renal transplantation centre.

The donation will also go towards the Raffles-NKF Peritoneal Dialysis and Wellness Centre which will be set up later this year at Whampoa. In addition, the Group is committing $4 million to award 40 university scholarships over the next five years to deserving students who wish to develop careers in the healthcare sector.