On August 21, 2026, Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) and Singapore’s Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in Beijing and co-hosted “Caring for an Ageing Society - PUMCH-TTSH Partnership Symposium”. PUMCH President Zhang Shuyang and TTSH CEO Tang Kong Choong signed the MoU on behalf of their respective institutions. Attendees at the ceremony included PUMCH Vice President Du Bin; David Liang, Deputy Chief of Mission and Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of Singapore in China; and Dr. Mervyn Koh, Divisional Chairman of Integrative and Community Care that oversees Departments of Geriatric Medicine, Palliative Medicine, Rehabilitation Medicine.

▲PUMCH President Zhang Shuyang and TTSH CEO Tang Kong Choong signed the MoU

Under the agreement, the two hospitals will engage in comprehensive cooperation across three core pillars: clinical care and integrative care models, medical education and talent development, and joint research. Key areas of focus will include geriatric medicine, hospice and palliative care, rehabilitation nursing, and clinical ethics.

In her remarks, President Zhang Shuyang noted that despite the geographic distance between them, the two institutions share common aspirations: putting patients first, leading through academic excellence, and driving development through innovation. This partnership represents a convergence of mature expertise and emerging demands, as well as a dialogue between established practices and locally adapted approaches. Moving forward, both sides will deepen collaboration in geriatrics, palliative care, and rehabilitation services, exploring clinical practices tailored to their respective national contexts to help the elderly enjoy later life with greater quality and dignity.

TTSH CEO Tang Kong Choong extended his congratulations on PUMCH’s 105th anniversary. He remarked that though founded in different eras, the two hospitals share the same founding mission. Facing the contemporary challenges of increasing life expectancy and increasingly complex healthcare needs, the two institutions will combine their strengths, learn from one another, drive collaborative innovation, and jointly explore more compassionate care pathways—building resilience and long-term capacity for the healthcare systems of both nations.

Minister-Counsellor David Liang stated that this partnership brings together complementary strengths in geriatrics, palliative care, and rehabilitation. It not only deepens institutional medical cooperation but also serves as a vivid example of people-to-people exchanges between Singapore and China, which will undoubtedly benefit the two peoples and further strengthen bilateral relations.

▲Event highlights

The signing ceremony was followed by “Caring for an Ageing Society - PUMCH-TTSH Partnership Symposium”. PUMCH Vice President Du Bin and TTSH CEO Tang Kong Choong delivered keynote speeches on PUMCH’s practices in building age-friendly hospitals and Singapore’s experiences in elderly care, respectively. Experts from both hospitals engaged in in-depth discussions on topics including the restructuring of geriatric care systems, hospital-to-home continuity of care, clinical research on sarcopenia, and the development of palliative care disciplines.

In recent years, PUMCH has established its distinctive strengths in comprehensive geriatric assessment, sarcopenia management, and the integration of traditional Chinese and western medicine. The hospital has opened specialized clinics for frailty-sarcopenia and geriatric memory, exploring an integrated care model for hospital-community-home continuity. Its independently developed "X-age" system offers an end-to-end solution, spanning the entire continuum from rapid screening to full-cycle management; furthermore, PUMCH has hosted an international geriatrics conference for 16 consecutive years, continuously driving and guiding the advancement of the discipline nationwide.

▲PUMCH’s independently developed "X-age" digital assessment and intervention system for frailty and sarcopenia

In the field of palliative care, PUMCH pioneered clinical practice in China in 2012 and established its Palliative Medicine Center in October 2022. The hospital has built a complete, full-process service chain encompassing outpatient clinics, consultations, co-management, multidisciplinary teams (MDT), and internet healthcare. It has also established a benchmark for a continuous palliative care network bridging "PUMCH, secondary hospitals, communities, and families," making it a leader and model for palliative medicine in the Chinese mainland. In 2014, PUMCH took the lead in offering the course Palliative Medicine, establishing China's first comprehensive palliative medicine curriculum spanning all levels of medical education. As the Beijing Palliative Care Guidance Center, the hospital oversees the city’s capacity building and quality control. It also showcases the trajectory of China’s palliative medicine to the world amid ongoing international collaboration.

▲Chinese Expert Consensus on the Definitions of Palliative Care and Hospice Care (2025), spearheaded by PUMCH

TTSH is one of Singapore’s largest and most pioneering multidisciplinary hospitals, and the first in Singapore to be recognized as an Age-Friendly Health Systems Participant by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). Its pioneering EDIFY (Emergency Department Interventions for Frailty) program and TTSH@Home Virtual Ward model provide vital benchmarks for geriatric healthcare across the Asia-Pacific region.

Looking ahead, both hospitals will continue to deepen cooperation in geriatrics, palliative care, and rehabilitation nursing, exploring clinical protocols and practice guidelines suited to their respective national contexts. Together, they aim to secure a higher-quality and more dignified later life for the elderly while contributing to the advancement of a global community of health for all.

Representatives from the Embassy of Singapore in China, Enterprise Singapore, and heads of relevant clinical departments from both hospitals attended the event.

▲Group photo of leaders and honored guests attending the event

Written by Chen Xiao and Wang Lu

Pictures courtesy of Sun Liang and the International Cooperation Office

Reviewed by He Jing, Kang Lin and Ning Xiaohong

Edited by Chen Xiao and Wang Lu

Chief editor Duan Wenli

Supervised by Wu Peixin