Every breath we take is automatic, until it isn’t. For patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), breathing can become the hardest thing to do. That’s when respiratory therapists step in. Working quietly behind the scenes, they manage ventilators, support life-saving procedures, and ensure that oxygen continues to flow to those who need it most. Whether it’s during emergency resuscitations, intubations, or weaning from ventilatory support, respiratory therapists are vital members of the multidisciplinary team that keeps the most vulnerable patients alive.

For Silea Tan, a Senior Respiratory Therapist at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital (NTFGH), this role goes far beyond technical skill. It requires teamwork, precision, and compassion. Her career has taken her from the high-intensity environment of the ICU to the strategic halls of the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) Strategic Planning Division (SPD), where she also serves as a Senior Health Policy Analyst (SHPA). Her story illustrates how dedication to patient care can grow into leadership that shapes the nation’s healthcare landscape.

The Call of Care

Silea’s journey into healthcare began with an unexpected twist. “I actually enrolled in SMU Law school post-A-Levels,” she said. “But I quickly realised that I preferred a work environment that relied on teamwork and collaboration to achieve a greater good for the sake of those who could not help themselves, and hence started looking into healthcare options.”

That realisation led her to explore healthcare, where she stumbled upon Respiratory Therapy (RT) — a niche yet vital field in critical care. “I chanced upon RT when looking at the list of allied health professions under the healthcare scholarships administered by MOH Holdings (MOHH),” she explained. “It stood out to me the most as a chance to work in a front-line critical care setting in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), where the stakes are high, but the highly skilled team would work together to contribute their unique expertise, to make the (sometimes) life-or-death difference for patients when they are at their sickest and most vulnerable.”

Finding Her Footing

To pursue her chosen field, Silea took up the Healthcare Merit Award offered by MOHH. The scholarship supported her studies in Health Sciences (Respiratory Therapy) at The Ohio State University (OSU) in the United States of America (USA).

“There are no local RT programmes and the USA had some of the top RT programmes internationally,” she highlighted. “Hence taking up the scholarship was a great option to pursue a unique career with financial support.”

Throughout her studies, she received guidance from scholarship officers and early exposure to her assigned healthcare cluster — providing reassurance about career stability and future employment. “It was comforting to know that we were assigned to a healthcare cluster early on — it gave us a sense of job security and the opportunity to meet the teams we would be working with after graduation,” she elaborated.

The hands-on nature of her studies equipped her well for clinical life. “The RT course at OSU had a strong emphasis on clinical practice and rotations,” she recalled. “We started shadowing in the hospital from the first week of RT classes, eventually ramping up to lower levels of supervision until we were entrusted to work independently in our last year. It trained my critical thinking skills and ability to stay calm even in the most unexpected situations.”

Living alone overseas also helped her mature quickly. “It was a unique experience that helped shape my growth and resilience to solve problems independently and to take personal setbacks in stride,” she added.

At the Frontlines of Care

Today, as a Senior Respiratory Therapist at NTFGH, Silea plays a crucial role in the ICU team, ensuring patients receive optimal ventilatory care. “We work 12-hour shifts from 7am to 7pm or vice versa,” she explained. “We start our day receiving handover from colleagues on the previous shift, then performing patient assessments and ventilator checks, starting from our sickest patients with the highest care needs.”

Her work demands constant coordination and precision. “We join in rounds with the ICU doctors, nurses and pharmacists to provide our inputs and share suggestions. It’s an interactive environment where every member of the team is empowered to speak up and all inputs are considered collectively.”

The job is especially demanding during emergencies. “During emergency responses such as Code Blue activations, the respiratory therapists along with ICU doctors and nurses are the key responders,” she shared. “While it may appear chaotic from the outside, there is an internal calm that comes from every member being locked in and focused on achieving the goal.”

For Silea, teamwork is the bedrock of success. “In the midst of the chaos and pressure, knowing we have the support of the ICU team is really what allows us to stay focused and driven,” she emphasised.

From ICU to Policy: A Broader Perspective

Silea’s dedication to continuous learning led her from the wards to the world of healthcare policy. “I started my rotations first in the Allied Health Division in NTFGH, where I supported work across all Allied Health departments in the institution,” she explained. That experience sparked her interest in how policy decisions affect care delivery at scale.

This curiosity eventually led her to serve as a SHPA. “In this role, I contribute to long-term strategic planning for Singapore’s healthcare system, engaging with stakeholders such as healthcare clusters, MOHH, subsidiaries, and statutory boards to support policy implementation and monitoring,” she explained.

Balancing both roles has been deeply fulfilling. Splitting her time between the ICU and policy work, Silea spends four days a week at MOH and one day on RT shifts. “I feel that my time in each setting energises me for the other,” she said. “While my RT work is hands-on and almost second nature to me, I get to ‘activate’ a different part of my brain and thinking processes through my MOH work.”

Words of Encouragement

For students considering a career in healthcare, Silea’s advice is simple yet powerful. “Go for it! It may seem daunting as it may seem like a very high-stakes, high-pressure environment, but the work is extremely rewarding and every member of the team is supported to practice at the top of their license,” she encouraged.

She also highlights the importance of curiosity and adaptability in a constantly evolving field. “No matter which area you choose to go into, the only guarantee is that the work will never stagnate as long as you remain curious and open-minded in return,” she added.