Emeritus Professor Quah Thuan Chong grew up in the island of Penang (a beautiful city off the western coast of West Malaysia) and came to another island (another beautiful island off the southern coast of West Malaysia) in 1971 to study medicine at the then University of Singapore.
He was captivated and inspired by Professor Wong Hock Boon, the "walking encyclopaedia" and "the smartest man I've ever known personally" whose motto is "if you want to do paediatrics, you've got to live paediatrics, eat paediatrics, sleep paediatrics". He was also inspired by the children he got to know when he was doing his housemanship (internship) in 1976 in the University Department of Paediatrics (then at the Mistri Wing in the Singapore General Hospital).
Then and there, he decided to spend the rest of his life looking after kids. After spending a very happy one year in the paediatric department in Alexandra Hospital under another wonderful mentor, Dr Tan Keng Wee, he went back to the University's Department of Paediatrics, and has been there ever since (moving together with the department to the National University Hospital in 1986).
He started to devote his life to paediatric haematology and oncology in 1983, training under Professor Wong, and also in Australia and Jerusalem (under Professor Shimon Slavin, for marrow transplant, under whose guidance he did the first bone marrow transplant in Singapore). Despite the increasing demands of paediatric haematology and oncology practice, he has managed to find time to maintain his interest in general paediatrics too - thanks to the help from his 3 very devoted and capable assistants (A/Prof Allen Yeoh, A/Prof Tan Poh Lin and Dr Koh Pei Lin).
He is constantly delighted at the dizzying advances in paediatric haematology and oncology but remembers that our mission is not only to heal, but also to care and to comfort the children and families under our care. He is very proud of his team, who are fiercely dedicated to the children under their care, and sees a very bright future for the division and the department.
