Empathy Levels Among Healthcare Professionals: An Asian Multi-professional Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: The aim of the study was to measure empathy in healthcare professionals in Singapore and to compare the scores between the different professions: doctors, nurses, and allied health professionals.

Methods: An online survey questionnaire was conducted using the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) from July 2019 to January 2020. The total JSE score was calculated and compared among the different groups.

Assessment of Scrub Practitioners' List of Intraoperative Non-Technical Skills (SPLINTS) in an Asian Ambulatory Surgical Setting.

Communication and other nontechnical skills can affect the number of adverse events occurring in perioperative areas. Our study assessed the properties of the Scrub Practitioners' List of Intraoperative Non-Technical Skills (SPLINTS) used to assess nontechnical skills of scrub nurses in a diverse Asian ophthalmic ambulatory setting. We evaluated the content validation index, cultural equivalence index, concurrent validity, interrater reliability, test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and concurrent validity.

Reducing the number of invalid surgical consents in the day surgery unit.

Aim: To reduce the number of invalid surgical consents in the Singapore National Eye Centre Day Surgery Unit over a period of 6 months.

Methodology: A multidisciplinary team involving doctors, nurses, day surgery unit, operating theatre, listing and clinical audit staff looked into the listing process and the root causes of the high number of invalid consents. A Pareto chart detailing the top causes of invalid consents was drawn, and with a prioritisation matrix, feasible yet effective changes were identified and effected.

Reducing wrong intraocular lens implants in cataract surgery.

Purpose Wrong lens implants have been associated with the highest frequency of medical errors in cataract surgery. The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) framework to sustainably reduce wrong intraocular lens (IOL) implants in cataract surgery. Design/methodology/approach In this mixed-methods study, the SEIPS framework was used to analyse a series of (near) misses of IOL implants in a national tertiary specialty hospital in Singapore.

Safety and Efficacy of Chloral Hydrate Sedation in Paediatric Sedation for Ophthalmic Procedures.

Introduction: Chloral hydrate (CH) sedation is routinely used in paediatric ophthalmic examination in Singapore as an alternative to examination under general anaesthesia. Despite CH's traditionally high success rates and relatively low rate of adverse events, there is little data on its safety and efficacy as a sedative for ophthalmic procedures in an Asian population.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed, including children who underwent CH sedation at the Singapore National Eye Centre from January 2012 to January 2015.

Improving presurgical pupil dilation for cataract surgery patients.

Insufficient pupil dilation, a common challenge in cataract surgery, may lead to surgical complications. After a quality improvement project was conducted, the proportion of patients with the desired pupil dilation of > or = 7 mm increased from 39.5% to 88.