Changing mindset to confront diabetes
Exercise regularly. Eat healthily. Take your medications consistently. Such familiar advice is undoubtedly crucial in managing diabetes. But in the face of recurring challenges—think long working hours, physical limitations, the allure of convenient food and sugary drinks, and unsatisfactory blood glucose control—sustaining healthy lifestyle practices over one’s lifetime may prove daunting for individuals with diabetes. […]
Feeling old and useless – the silent suffering of seniors dealing with mental health challenges
Talking to someone about one’s mental health struggles is tricky business. The topic is still shrouded in taboo, and opening up about it may convey weakness and invite judgment. Now imagine how much more difficult this may be for seniors who suffer from depression or anxiety. According to the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) National Population Health […]
Warnings and planning: how to prepare for a disaster
Disasters can strike at any moment, with little notice. Very often, individuals and households have precious few minutes and maybe even seconds to react and take the necessary action to protect themselves and their family members. Having a plan or some semblance of what to do amidst the panic could prove invaluable in such scenarios. […]
If Singapore were to come under attack or face a natural disaster, how prepared would you be?
Every year on Feb 15, the siren wails of Singapore’s public warning system ring across the country at 6.20pm to commemorate Total Defence Day. Now, without asking Google or ChatGPT, do you know what the annual exercise is for? Do you know what the siren wails sound like? A quick history lesson – 6.20pm on Feb 15 is the exact […]
As scams get more sophisticated, young and digitally savvy individuals are more likely to fall prey
Whether we know it or not, just about everyone has received some form of scam call, message or email. Some of us are alert enough to ignore these attempts to deceive but unfortunately, an alarming proportion of the population fall prey to such scams. Despite media coverage of the issue, a total of 14,349 scam cases were […]
Mask-wearing now goes beyond just protecting against COVID-19
Why have some people kept their masks on, more than two months after they were no longer required almost everywhere in Singapore? What threats and worries continue to plague our minds that we still feel unsafe? We can point to the 11,732 new COVID-19 infections reported by the Ministry of Health on Tuesday (Oct 12) and the […]
COVID-19 fallout: youth and risk in Southeast Asia
The pandemic has hit students all over the world hard. Over the last two years, they have had to cope with severe uncertainty about how they would study and whether they would gain the critical qualifications which they have been working towards for years. Campus closures have extended well beyond national lockdowns in many countries, […]
Making AI more trustworthy to facilitate adoption and use
Lack of trust in AI and the absence of the humanistic care factor are a couple of reasons why some people still have a negative attitude towards medical AI. Because of this, research on data science is often approached from the angle of making AI more reliable, accurate, explainable and actionable. These outcomes contribute towards the […]
Pre bunking fake news about COVID-19 vaccines
Dr Catherine Wong, Research Fellow at IPUR, talks about her recent study on what makes a society resilient to the persuasiveness of fake news. Her pilot study uses a fake news game to see if intervention is effective against the manipulation of fake news producers. The webinar titled “Pre Bunking Fake News about COVID-19 Vaccines […]
Using Artificial Intelligence to Support Healthcare Decision: A Guide for Society
AI technology is increasingly being used in the healthcare sector and has demonstrated its accuracy and efficiency in diagnosing and predicting diseases. Despite its huge impact on our daily lives in every sector of society, AI technology has some drawbacks and comes with risks, especially due to potentially biased algorithms. To raise awareness of these […]