Our Education

2025/09/10

Hand surgery in Singapore is unique as a separate specialty with its own training pathway. Our department was established in 1990 with the objectives of advancing the specialties of hand surgery and reconstructive microsurgery. Prior to this, our surgeons had already achieved several important milestones, including the replantation of an amputated thumb in Singapore in 1977, and the free vascularised fibular graft transfer to the forearm in 1978.

We are an academic hand surgery department with equal emphasis on clinical work, teaching and research. In addition to the treatment of traumatic and degenerative conditions of the upper limb, the department also provides care for congenital differences, musculoskeletal tumours, brachial plexus injuries, and sports-related conditions of the hand and wrist. We work closely with the Division of Orthopaedic Trauma and provide soft tissue coverage for open fractures of the lower limb. The department runs a Microsurgery Training Laboratory with regular basic and advanced microsurgical courses. A dedicated outpatient facility, the Hand & Reconstructive Microsurgery Centre (HRMC), opened in April 2011, establishing a one-stop centre for hand surgery in the region.  

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Fellowship Programme

The Hand and Reconstructive Microsurgery Fellowship program of the National University Hospital, and the National University Health System of Singapore has a long history of training hand surgeons.

Our Fellowship Programme is to prepare our fellows for a career in hand surgery through broad and comprehensive exposure to hand surgery and reconstructive microsurgery, and the programme is run in parallel to the National Hand Surgery Residency Training Programme. As a University Hospital and a trauma centre, our facility offers a unique setting for this specialised training. Fellows receive individualised teaching and supervision in the both the operating room and outpatient clinics, progressively developing independent responsibility for patient care and supervision of residents.

Fellows participate in rotations through various teams, each managing a combination of patients with commoner conditions, as well as subspecialty specific conditions. This approach aims to maximise exposure to a diverse range of patients, diagnoses and treatment philosophies. Fellows are required to do between five and seven stay-in call duties per month. On-call consultant surgeons are available at all times for supervision and mentoring. Our programme fosters a strong academic environment through teaching conferences, journal club sessions, and anatomical dissections of the upper extremity. Fellows also have the opportunity to engage in clinical research and present their findings at national or international meetings.

Eligibility

The Singapore Medical Council (SMC) has clear rules and regulations for the registration of medical doctors for the purposes of clinical training, the requirements for this are clearly outlined on the SMC website

The SMC requirements include (but are not limited to) the following:

Holds a recognised medical degree for Temporary Medical Registration with Singapore Medical Council (SMC)*
Fluency in English and where the medium of instruction for the applicant’s basic medical qualification is not in English, proof of English proficiency in the form of the IELTS, TOEFL or OET is required.
At least 3 years' experience following Housemanship / Internship

Benefits

Complimentary registration in our Department’s Five-day Basic Microsurgery Training Course
Complementary registration at the Annual Hand Surgery Review Course organised by the Singapore Society for Hand Surgery (usually held in the last week of February)
Fourteen days of paid vacation leave in one year
Fellowship Completion Certificate
Reimbursement of the cost of malpractice insurance cover and temporary medical registration
Travel support for presentation of department research at academic meetings

Application

Our fellowship programme is for one year, with up to four fellows selected twice yearly with online interviews conducted twice a year.
Interested applicants, may email us ([email protected]) with the following documents:

Curriculum vitae (with photo attached)
A one-page document that answers the following questions:
- Why is it about hand surgery that interests you?
- Why are you interested in a Hand Surgery Fellowship in Singapore?
- What are your plans after completing fellowship?   
Letters of recommendation (at least two).
-  We especially value the opinion of our previous fellows and letter(s) of recommendation from them

Shortlisted candidates will be contacted based on the submitted documents for an online interview. We encourage applicants to visit us as an Observer (https://www.nuh.com.sg/research-and-education/hands-off-observership) for 1-2 weeks to interact with staff, fellows, and residents, gaining a better understanding of our fellowship programme.
Online interviews are currently conducted online twice a year around May and November, and invitations to interview are sent out several weeks before the interview.

Please send your application to:
Dept of Hand & Reconstructive Microsurgery
National University Hospital, NUHS Tower Block, 
Zone T, Level 11, 1E Kent Ridge Road
Singapore 119228
E-mail: [email protected]

Observership Programme

Foreign doctors may visit our hospital as observers for a maximum period of up to four weeks. Observers have the opportunity to participate in the department's academic activities and accompany clinical staff during ward rounds, outpatient clinics and operating room sessions. It is important to note that observers are not permitted to be involved in direct patient care, make entries in patients' case notes, write prescriptions or scrub in for operative procedures. Their roles are strictly observational.

Observers are responsible for arranging their own board and lodging for the duration of their observership, and there will be no financial commitment or payment from our department or hospital.

Candidates interested in an observership at our department are invited to write to our fellowship coordinator, providing the following information: 

Period of observership including estimated start and end dates
Recent CV with professional qualifications
Reports from two referees 
A recent passport-sized photograph 
Completed  application form and letter of undertaking

Observers are also expected to submit the following documents during the application process before coming to Singapore:

Valid health insurance cover for the duration of their observership
Valid varicella screening and immunisation for chicken pox
Copies of undergraduate and postgraduate medical certificate

Medical Student Elective Programme

We offer medical student electives with durations ranging from one to three months. The objectives of these electives are to provide students with a deeper knowledge of hand surgery and an insight into the life of a hand surgeon. Students participating in the three-month elective programme also have the option to engage in suitable research projects.

We welcome medical students not only from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine but also from other medical schools in Singapore and overseas. Interested candidates can obtain more information and apply for this programme through the Dean's office, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS. (https://medicine.nus.edu.sg/current-students/clinical-electives-programme-for-overseas-visiting-student/)

For further details on participating in electives with our department, please contact our fellowship coordinator for further information ([email protected])

Microsurgery Training Programme

Click here to learn more about our training courses.