SAF MEDICAL CORPS WELCOMES NEW CHIEF

When the motto you live by requires you "To Seek, To Save, To Serve", and your daily duties mean the difference between life and death, the expectations and responsibilities are immense.

For the new Chief of Medical Corps (CMC), Colonel (COL) (Dr) Benjamin Seet, who took over the command from Rear-Admiral (RADM) (Dr) John Wong on 29 May, the realisation is that he is now responsible for the health of all SAF servicemen.

"This is indeed a heavy responsibility, as I am now accountable to all parents, spouses and children for the health and well-being of their sons, husbands and fathers," COL (Dr) Seet told cyberpioneer.

COL (Dr) Seet is a proponent of change and change he believes, must stem from trust. His vision for the Medical Corps is to be able to inspire confidence among the soldiers as well as members of the public.

"Trust is a lofty goal, but a necessary one for us," said COL (Dr) Seet, who previously held the posts of Chief Army Medical Officer and Commander SAF Medical Training Institute concurrently.

"To achieve this, we need to literally transform the SAF's medical services, to break old mindsets and perceptions."

The SAF Medical Corps is currently in the process of transformation, as it is gradually restructuring from a hierarchical service-centric organisation to a non-linear, task-focused system. Operating systems from the medic in the field to the Combat Support Hospital are also being systematically modernised.

The change of command ceremony held on 28 May was witnessed by Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant-General (LG) Desmond Kuek.

Before assuming the post of CMC on 29 Sep 2006, RADM (Dr) John Wong was previously the Chief Naval Medical Officer. He is also a qualified Diving Physician with the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Looking forward, COL (Dr) Seet shared his emphasis for the near future: "This year, my focus is people. We will implement new career constructs, increase the profile of jobs and enhance training.

"This will ensure that our people can take on the evolving and increasingly complex challenges of the 3rd Generation SAF," he said.