Advancing industry–academia alliance to nurture the next generation of innovative MedTech talents
MedTech firms BD Medical Products and Terumo Asia Holdings have come on board to strengthen Duke-NUS Medical School's unique innovation programme to address critical unmet healthcare needs. By doing so, these industry partners gain opportunities to collaborate with healthcare institutions, access clinical environments and observe firsthand, the needs of clinicians and patients. In addition, their involvement will help cultivate future MedTech talent and nurture meaningful career pathways.
The Duke-NUS Health Innovator Programme (DHIP) is a first-of-its-kind, nine-month fellowship in Singapore that assembles multidisciplinary teams to solve healthcare challenges under the guidance of industry mentors. BD Medical Products and Terumo Asia Holdings will play key roles in the upcoming fourth edition, running from August 2025 to May 2026. Senior executives from both organisations will mentor teams, providing personalised guidance, industry insights and networking opportunities, not just locally, but also regionally and globally. An investment of S$50,000 from the two organisations will further bolster the academic innovation community and life sciences ecosystem, aligning expertise, resources and funding to translate early-stage ideas into real-world healthcare impact, ultimately benefiting patients.
Led by Assistant Professor Rena Dharmawan, Assistant Dean for Innovation Education and Ecosystem Development at Duke-NUS, who's also a Senior Consultant Surgeon and Duke-NUS alumnus, DHIP fosters a culture of healthcare innovation by bringing together students from various disciplines, including medicine, engineering and business, to collaborate on breakthrough ideas. Participants are guided through the entire innovation pipeline by healthcare professionals and doctors from the public and private healthcare sector, from analysing clinical problems and conceptualising solutions to prototyping and pitching their ideas to industry experts.
John Ong, Associate Director, New Product and Development at BD Medical Products, said,
"We are thrilled to collaborate with Duke-NUS Medical School through its innovation programme, fostering meaningful partnerships among clinicians, industry leaders and academics. This collaboration leverages BD's expertise in developing innovative technologies and solutions to advance our shared mission of improving health worldwide."
Dr. Amit Garg, Regional Director, Medical Affairs & Digital Health, Terumo Asia Holdings, said,
"We are excited to deepen our collaboration with Duke-NUS Medical School as we embark on this meaningful journey of co-creation and learning. Committed to contributing to society through healthcare, we look forward to fostering robust knowledge exchange and forming new partnerships that enhance our capabilities and enable us to address emerging medical challenges."
As well as guiding the teams all the way from idea to prototypes of their inventions, the Programme aims to instil an innovator mindset in students to enrich the local healthcare ecosystem with a diversity of talents. It is also an effective platform for fostering multidisciplinary collaboration, helping participants develop the skills to communicate across science, technology, business and clinical fields to co-develop healthcare solutions.
Associate Professor Christopher Laing, Vice-Dean, Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Duke-NUS, said,
"Keeping our society healthy is a rapidly evolving challenge. Our communities are growing older on average, there is a growing shortage of care professionals, and new technologies—including Artificial Intelligence—are being integrated into our daily lives. The job of being a doctor is not the same as it was even as recently as 20 years ago. DHIP is dedicated to instilling an innovation mindset and nurturing the next generation of researchers and MedTech talent, empowering them to push boundaries and pursue bold ideas that improve patients' lives."
Duke-NUS welcomes more industry mentors to step forward to support the programme, share their expertise and help drive transformation in healthcare. To find out more, please reach out to us at: healthinnovator@duke-nus.edu.sg
To this end, the school convened a panel discussion on 18 November 2025, bringing together clinicians, academics and industry leaders to explore collaboration models that cultivate market-ready MedTech talents through mentorship and real-world exposure.
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About Duke-NUS Medical School
Duke-NUS is Singapore's flagship graduate entry medical school, established in 2005 with a strategic, government-led partnership between two world-class institutions: Duke University School of Medicine and the National University of Singapore (NUS). Through an innovative curriculum, students at Duke-NUS are nurtured to become multi-faceted 'Clinicians Plus' poised to steer the healthcare and biomedical ecosystem in Singapore and beyond. A leader in ground-breaking research and translational innovation, Duke-NUS has gained international renown through its five Signature Research Programmes and ten Centres. The enduring impact of its discoveries is amplified by its successful Academic Medicine partnership with Singapore Health Services (SingHealth), Singapore's largest healthcare group. This strategic alliance has led to the creation of 15 Academic Clinical Programmes, which harness multi-disciplinary research and education to transform medicine and improve lives.
For more information, please visit www.duke-nus.edu.sg
Provided by Duke-NUS Medical School
