Desmond Teo, a pharmacist by training, shares how he pivoted to data analytics, why he decided to return to school for the Master of Science (MSc) (Biomedical Informatics) programme, what skills that he has gained through the programme and how they help him in his current role.

Hi Desmond! Tell us a bit about yourself.

Desmond: Hello! I graduated with a Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours) from the National University of Singapore (NUS). After graduation, I worked as a pharmacist at the National University Hospital, performing clinical duties as well as serving the community. It was during this period that I was roped in to participate in automation and technology-related projects.

Some of the key projects I worked on were an outpatient pharmacy automation system and a mobile application to improve medication management for patients and caregivers. These projects sparked my interest in technology and data, marking the start of my journey into the fields of health informatics as well as health technology. This led me to eventually take up my current position as a Data Analyst with the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore (HSA).

At HSA, I work with a team of data analysts and regulatory experts in the area of pharmacovigilance, which involves the investigation of safety signals arising from the use of drugs and vaccines through analysing electronic health records.

This was around the time that you decided to sign up for the MSc (Biomedical Informatics) programme. What motivated you to do so?

Desmond: The work I do at HSA requires a good mix of clinical and technical skills. A thorough understanding of health informatics and how data is processed and transmitted through the healthcare systems in Singapore is needed as well. To further improve my technical capabilities and expand my exposure in analysing health-related data, I decided to take up the MSc (Biomedical Informatics).

I decided on the MSc (Biomedical Informatics) specifically because of its core focus on evidence-based clinical decision-making and technical skillsets. I felt that the competencies acquired through this master’s programme would be highly relevant to both the clinical and technical aspects of my work.

Did your organisation support your decision to pursue a Master’s Degree?

Desmond: HSA offered a partial sponsorship to support my studies, which helps to alleviate part of the tuition and miscellaneous fees.

You spoke about wanting to further improve your work competencies. Which modules in the programme have helped you accomplish that?

Desmond: First off, I had planned to improve my technical capabilities in machine learning and computational algorithms in health informatics, so I selected the “Analytics” specialisation whose scope of modules more closely aligned to my overall objectives for taking this master’s degree programme.

I really appreciated the modules offered by the NUS School of Computing. Since I came from a clinical background and had less exposure to technical computing skills, the modules offered by the School helped me develop a strong foundation in programming and data science. This encouraged me to expand my skills in machine learning and computational algorithms further.

Two other modules that were relevant to my current work role are Advanced Statistical Learning (SPH6004) and Advanced Human Factors Engineering (BMI5206).

Advanced Statistical Learning gave me a very clear and foundational understanding of machine learning algorithms and the computational motivations behind them. Advanced Human Factors Engineering taught me how to employ a principled approach to design biomedical informatics applications while focusing on the problem statement and the people using the finalised product or system.

I also have to mention two particular lecturers who have left a lasting impression on me: Asst Prof Feng Mengling and Dr Nesaretnam Barr Kumarakulasinghe.

Assistant Prof Feng’s approach to each lesson encouraged me to reflect critically about what I understood about algorithms, and revealed how much more I actually had to learn. Every lesson with him was an intellectually stimulating one and I could deeply appreciate the amount of growth I experienced through the module.

Dr Nesaretnam is an exemplary example of how a clinician can expand his expertise beyond clinical care and into the world of design thinking and human factors engineering. His lessons were highly interactive and practical; we got opportunities to get hands-on with the concepts that we were taught (e.g. designing user personas, building wireframes, etc.). This made understanding highly theoretical concepts much easier.

What plans do you have for the future, after completing the programme?

Desmond: I hope to be able to apply the learnings into my day-to-day work, focusing on real-world applications and evaluating the implications of such applications. Ultimately, my passion still lies in healthcare, and I aspire to be in a position where I can leverage both clinical and technical skillsets to develop, implement and evaluate solutions to improve health outcomes and further innovation in the healthcare sector.

The MSc (Biomedical Informatics) programme has amplified my knowledge of healthcare informatics and health information systems. Through this programme, I gained skills in areas like evaluating clinical decision support systems and developing artificial intelligence programs in healthcare.

Do you have any advice for students planning to apply for the programme?

Desmond: I think the first question to ask yourself would be “What are the learning options available for the field of study I am interested in?”. Nowadays there are multiple ways in which we can acquire knowledge, be it through formal studies like a master’s or doctorate degree programme, online short courses, bootcamps, workshops, or even picking up certain skillsets through doing a project.

Ideally, the learning option should fulfil the learning objective you have for yourself. Before I applied for this master’s programme, I also completed some online courses on data analytics and data science, which helped to give me a good head start in learning the foundational skills and concepts. The master’s programme then helped to crystallise and fine-tune these skills further, along with the opportunities to work on real-world projects.

Desmond enjoys volunteering and finds the experience rewarding, such as when he had to privilege of providing mentorship and guidance to the team that went on to win the Beyond! Health Hack 2021.

Finally, from your perspective, what is the state of health informatics as an industry?

Desmond: My personal opinion is that the healthcare sector is currently undergoing rapid technological advancement. There are growing opportunities to develop and implement innovative solutions in the healthcare space, as the technical and data infrastructure continues to mature. Health informatics is in a prime spot to capitalise on such rapid growth. With the growing availability of health-related data and connectivity across various systems and platforms, there will then be an increasing demand for specialised skillsets to transform data into valuable insights which can potentially translate into better health outcomes for patients and the public in general.

At the same time, there needs to be continual effort and investment into evaluating, monitoring and maintaining these informatics applications so that they continue to be effective and relevant as the healthcare industry evolves. With this, the demand for individuals with health informatics capabilities in both the public and private sectors would likely persist or even increase further.

Nonetheless, the challenges that come with health informatics ― such as data readiness, maturity and adequacy of informatics applications, and concerns on privacy and security ― will continue to be present. However, in my opinion, these are also what make this area of work more realistic and fulfilling.

Read more about the programme and the experience of other students here: MSc (Biomedical Informatics).