Guiding the next generation in crisis management and more

Published on 28 October 2024

Clinical A/Prof Gerald Chua imparts vital skills to healthcare professionals in training, equipping them for the challenges of acute patient care.

How do medical professionals make sound decisions in life-or-death situations? When the pressure mounts, nurses, doctors and other team members rely on analytical, collaborative and leadership skills to navigate the crisis.

For Clinical A/Prof Gerald Chua, Senior Consultant, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital (NTFGH), the key to success lies in rigorous training.

He often cites Archilochus: “We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.”

This belief led him to co-develop and facilitate the Crisis Resource Management (CRM) workshop, which is designed to simulate high-stress, real-world scenarios. The goal? To prepare healthcare professionals for the unexpected.

In a crisis, every tick of the clock matters. Often-overlooked skills – such as leadership, role delineation, mutual support, effective communication and situational awareness – become as crucial as clinical expertise. 

A/Prof Chua explained that the workshop helps participants turn what they already know into action. “Simulated emergency scenarios equip our medical personnel with the necessary skills, so that they can translate the knowledge of what needs to be done into action during actual emergencies,” he said.

He emphasised the need for lessons to have a lasting impact. “These lessons need to be practical and sticky, and have to transform how participants approach actual situations,” he added. “When a patient’s life hangs in the balance, and time is critical, our goal is to ensure that they act decisively without panic.”

Passing the torch

The CRM workshop is just one example of how A/Prof Chua, a specialist in respiratory medicine and intensive care, has shaped the careers of countless medical professionals who deal with acute situations. Over the past two decades, he has played a pivotal role in clinical education.

Along with his clinical work at NTFGH, he contributes to undergraduate medical education for the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), and the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

At the national level, he chairs the Intensive Care Medicine Sub-Specialty Training Committee and is a member of the PGY1 Training and Assessment Standards Committee. He also serves on the Federation of Royal Colleges of Physicians (UK) MRCP Part 1 examination board.

Through his leadership, A/Prof Chua has fostered a culture of excellence and resilience in crisis management. His mentees describe him as not just a mentor, but an inspiring and dedicated guide, committed to helping today’s medical trainees grow into compassionate and capable leaders.

Adj A/Prof Adrian Kee, Head & Senior Consultant, Division of Respiratory & Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, National University Hospital (NUH), and Senior Consultant, National University Cancer Institute Singapore (NCIS), fondly recalled his time as a junior doctor under A/Prof Chua’s guidance.

 “He had incredibly high expectations of us medical officers in the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU),” Adj A/Prof Kee shared. “We were looking after the sickest patients in the hospital, so we always had to stay sharp and know our patients very well.”

“A/Prof Chua has devoted much of his time and energy to nurturing the next generation,” Adj A/Prof Kee added. “His lead-by-example approach has been invaluable, and his dedication to guiding his juniors to grow into better doctors should certainly stand as one of his contributions (to medicine in Singapore).”

The pursuit of excellence

For A/Prof Chua, learning is a lifelong pursuit and is essential to being a competent doctor. He believes that continuously updating one’s knowledge and skills is critical to maintaining high standards in the profession.

“Competency is the cornerstone of medical professionalism. Patients and the public trust us to deliver the high-quality care we profess we have been trained to do. We must not only acquire knowledge and skills, but also continually improve and keep ourselves current,” he explained. “Beyond the initial training, we have a responsibility to keep learning, and that requires conscientiousness. The learning cycle never ends.”

A/Prof Chua also stressed that the willingness to place patients’ needs over those of the medical profession is central to healthcare. “That is the essence of altruism,” he said. “Sustaining this altruism throughout our careers requires humility. How committed are we to prioritising patient welfare? To do so consistently, humility is essential at every stage of a doctor’s journey.”

Inspired by his parents

A/Prof Chua grew up inspired by his parents, both doctors. His father, a surgeon, worked in the public service before starting his own practice. Even into his 70s, A/Prof Chua’s father would respond to emergency calls in the early hours of the morning “at 3am”.

“To respond in this way, it’s not only that you have to be very diligent, but also deeply committed to putting your patients’ needs above your own,” A/Prof Chua said. “There’s a significant element of personal sacrifice.”

When asked about the legacy he hopes to leave, he shared how his perspective has evolved over time. “If you’d asked me this question 15 years ago, I would have said that I’d like people to remember how good a doctor I was,” he said.

“Now, I believe our success lies in the doctors after us. We’ll only have truly succeeded if the doctors who follow us are even better than we are. I hope to be remembered for how I was able to make a positive impact at some point in the professional and personal journey of my colleagues.”

Clinical A/ Prof Gerald Chua is a recipient of the National Outstanding Clinician Educator Award at the National Medical Excellence Awards (NMEA) 2024. The annual national award by the Ministry of Health (MOH) recognises the efforts of clinicians and healthcare professionals who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of healthcare

In consultation with Clinical A/Prof Gerald Chua, Senior Consultant, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine, NTFGH, and Clinical A/Prof, Department of Medicine, NUS Medicine, and Adj A/Prof Adrian Kee, Head & Senior Consultant, Division of Respiratory & Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, NUH, and Senior Consultant, NCIS.