Community Care Nursing Leadership Programme - Edward Poon

In the span of 26 years, Associate Professor Edward Poon has taken on many different roles and responsibilities in both acute and Community Care settings. His journey in acute care began in 1988 when he joined the Singapore General Hospital as a Staff Nurse. Six years later, he ventured into the Community Care sector when he assumed the role of an Infection Control Nurse at St. Andrew’s Community Hospital, where his leadership journey started to take shape.

Assoc. Prof. Poon was later promoted to leadership roles such as Director of Nursing at Dover Park Hospice and Chief Nurse at Ang Mo Kio–Thye Hua Kwan Hospital. He then took on the role of Director of Nursing at St Luke’s ElderCare (SLEC) in October 2017, and subsequently, became the Academic Director as well in May 2019.

Assoc. Prof. Poon continues to collaborate with acute hospitals and is now an associate with the Geriatric Education & Research Institute. In addition, he is part of a team that offers palliative care training to eight nursing homes in Singapore. Today, Assoc. Prof. Poon is looking into the training curriculum and pedagogy of SLEC and is nurturing the next generation of nurses with the extensive skills and knowledge that he has acquired to date. His involvement in education also extends to the Singapore Institute of Technology where he holds a teaching position as an Associate Professor in the Health & Social Sciences cluster. He shares with us his stories.

Assoc. Prof. Poon continues to collaborate with acute hospitals and is now an associate with the Geriatric Education & Research Institute. In addition, he is part of a team that offers palliative care training to eight nursing homes in Singapore. His involvement in education also extends to the Singapore Institute of Technology — where he holds a teaching position as an associate professor in the Health & Social Sciences cluster. Today, Assoc. Prof. Poon is looking into the training curriculum and pedagogy of SLEC while nurturing the next generation of nurses with the extensive skills and knowledge that he has acquired to date. He shares with us his stories.

1. We understand that you took on various leadership roles in your career in the Community Care sector. How has the transition from being a nurse to a leader impacted you?

I took on my first leadership position as an Infection Control Nurse at St. Andrew’s Community Hospital in 1994. Being in this position taught me that a good leader is someone who dares to drive change and implement innovative ideas, especially during critical moments. In my 26 years of leadership experience, I have participated in innovating and developing new models of care at the bedside and in Community Care across various organisations to drive transformation.

Transitioning from a nurse to a leader comes with greater responsibilities, but I am prepared to take them on for the people I care for. While undertaking leadership roles, I am often required to be present at various meetings to initiate ideas, devise management approaches and make decisions that are feasible and sustainable for the organisation. Meanwhile, I am happy and proud to be able to build the capability of my team of nurses and other sector professionals through training and information sharing. This cultivates a sense of purpose in me and makes my efforts worthwhile, especially when the nurses express their appreciation.

2. What is the difference between being a nurse and a nurse leader?

I do feel that being a nurse encompasses the “Act of Caring”, while leading the nurses focuses on the “Art of Caring”. In essence, the “Act of Caring” emphasises on the execution of the tangible aspects of the job such as tending to patients. The “Art of Caring”, on the other hand, is centred on intangible aspects, which include training and developing the nurses’ capabilities further.

The role of a nurse generally involves managing physical and mental stress that is mainly kept within the working hours. However, as a nurse leader, I take on a bigger role to prioritise our nurses’ overall well-being so that they will be able to better care for our patients at all times. One of the strategies SLEC has incorporated is to develop our team of nurses to become more confident in their duties and also equip them with good critical-thinking and sound decision-making skills.

At SLEC, we emphasise on upholding and maintaining the quality of care. To achieve that, we ensure that our nurses receive appropriate training at SLEC’s in-house training academy. As the Director of Nursing, I oversee the training programmes while being a trainer myself.

3. What’s an important skill/knowledge that you wish to impart to the next generation of nurses? What makes nurturing the next generation of nurses a joy?

I would like to highlight the importance of having a good foundation in the philosophy of care in nursing. Only with a sound foundational knowledge of providing care in nursing will we be able to provide humanistic care (a type of care where emphasis is placed on the uniqueness and nobility of each individual) for our community.

To groom the next generation of nurses and leaders, I also conduct training for sector professionals under the Agency for Integrated Care’s Learning Institute. This is one aspect of my work that I enjoy doing. I hope that by imparting skills and sharing my knowledge, I am able to contribute to the sector better.

4. You’re also a palliative care trainer from what we know. Given the association of palliative care with the end of life, could you share with us why you chose palliative care specifically and why it strikes a chord with you?

“If you know how to die, you know how to live,”- Tuesdays with Morrie by American author, Mitch Albom.

This quote from Tuesdays with Morrie intrigued me after reading the book. It occurred to me that the philosophy of palliative care echoes my personal beliefs of humanistic care. Palliative care embraces a humanistic approach where it focuses on providing compassionate care for patients as they journey through their last phase of life — especially for patients who have little hope of recovery. This aspect of palliative care deeply resonates with me.

5. What is the vision you have for SLEC regarding the quality of care?

My vision in terms of leadership development in SLEC revolves around 3 ‘G’s:

Go:  The best way to truly understand the issues our staff face is to be on-the-go and work alongside them on the ground.

Grow: Growth and development of skills or talent in a workplace is crucial. As such, we aim to foster a conducive and positive environment where our nurses are able to discover their full potential. This will also negate possibilities of a blame-and-scold culture.

Glow: It is important to present equal opportunities for all our staff such as allowing them to participate in various projects or presentations. This way, we are able to guide and impart relevant knowledge to our nurses.

Together with the support of Assoc. Prof. Kenny Tan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SLEC, we aim to promote a strong organisational culture that can positively influence the quality of care at SLEC.

Wish to develop and grow your career in the Community Care sector? The Community Care Nursing Leadership Programme (CCNLP) might be just for you. Open to local Registered Nurses who have at least five years of nursing experience, this programme is tailored to further deepen their knowledge and skills in the community setting. Discover your full potential with the Community Care Nursing Leadership Programme (CCNLP) at www.aic.buzz/GROW.