Singapore Archives - Eczema Blues

Dr Hugo with Marcie c — Prof Hugo with Marcie

Many moms have asked who to recommend for their baby’s doctor – whoever we decide on, I feel that the doctor must be specialist in children and have the best interest of the child. It is also very important that we, as parents, be confident and partner with our child’s doctor. This is particularly the case if you’re prescribed oral steroid, you have to trust your doctor and follow through, giving up halfway makes it more difficult to decide on the next treatment step.

So, here’s the list of doctors who see eczema children, take the poll at the end or add in your own in the comments.

1. Prof Hugo Van Bever – My baby’s doctor, Head and Senior Consultant, Division of Paediatric Allergy, Immunology & Rheumatology, at NUH. (Please see below, Dr Lynette Shek is the current Head and Senior Consultant of the department.) He’s from Belgium 🙂 During his consultation, I find that he takes time to understand and form a proper diagnosis; I never told him this, but I was really afraid of bringing my baby to a hospital to get a skin prick test. Borrowed his book ‘Allergic Diseases in Children‘ from the Singapore’s library and felt more assured when I read that he cares deeply for his chronically ill patients.

2015 update: I’ve co-authored “Living with Eczema: Mom Asks, Doc Answers!” book with Prof Hugo. Prof Hugo is also an author of a fiction trilogy, how cool is that!

2. Dr Lee Bee Wah – Consultant Paediatrician and Clinical Paediatric Immunologist/Allergist, The Child and Allergy Clinic, Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre. She’s recommended by my general practitioner whose children have allergies and see Dr Lee. I’m not sure about charges though, my GP told me charges depends on duration of consultation.

3. Dr Liew Woei Kang – Paediatrician, Special Interest in Allergy & Immunology, SBCC Baby & Child Clinic. We’ve met and he’s active in driving initiatives related to allergy children. He also consults in several of Singapore’s hospital with children clinics. Dr Liew is the past president of Asthma Allergy Association in Singapore.

2012 update: We also collaborated to set up Singapore Eczema Fund.

Hospitals with Children Clinic

4. KK Women’s and Children Hospital – They have an allergy specialty that manages eczema, food allergy and intolerance. Adj Assoc Prof Mark Koh is the head of pediatric dermatology. A/Prof Anne Goh Eng Neo is the Head & Senior Consultant. Also have another specialty in rheumatology & immunology, A/Prof Thaschawee (Tash) Arkachaisri is the Head & Senior Consultant.

You can read the notes that I took from an eczema forum with A/P Mark Koh as one of the speakers here.

5. National Skin Centre – They have a Paediatric Dermatology Clinic, and some of the doctors listed here also do visit consultation there.

I facilitate quarterly eczema support group sessions at the NSC, please contact me if you’d like to be on the mailing list.

6. Raffles Children Centre, Raffles Hospital – They have a paediatric medicine specialty, with atopy (allergic conditions) and dermatology sub-specialties.

7. Mt Alvernia Hospital – They have different children clinics within the same hospital, do check first the doctor’s specialty before making appointment. Kinder Clinic is one of the clinics with a branch in Mt Alvernia; they have an paediatric allergy, immunology and rheumatology specialty. Here’s a list of their doctors, with doctors listed for specialties in pediatric allergy, immunology and dermatology should you want to make an appointment.

8. Gleneagles Hospital – Likewise, double-check doctor’s specialty.

9. Polyclinics in Singapore – I think they have doctors who treat eczema, though not specializing in children. For those who don’t mind a longer waiting time, you can go to polyclinic first and get a referral to NUH. As far as I know, the difference between going to NUH straight, or getting a referral, is the latter may be a longer waiting time. The last time I attended an eczema support group session at NUH, I was told that subsidized patients will also have the same doctor to follow-up on their condition. The other doctor, A/Prof Lynette Shek, same dept as Prof Hugo, also has many positive feedback from moms in forums (and she is the current Head and Senior Consultant, Division of Paediatric Allergy, Immunology & Rheumatology, NUH)

A final reminder

Generally, I recommend parents with severe eczema child to see specialists and not just pediatricians or general practitioners. This is particularly so as skin prick/blood test is administered in hospitals. Do note that Changi Hospital, Tan Tock Seng and Singapore General Hospital do not have a children clinics. If your favorite doctor has been left out, do leave their names in the comments!

2017 update: Apart from eczema, Marcie has had various conditions over the years that affect the skin such as shingles, chickenpox, HFMD, impetigo and the latest in 2017 was ringworm (and allergy to ringworm that resulted in rashes all over her body). I realized from the recent experience that a dedicated general practitioner (who is experienced, and actively studies information such as Dermnetnz, can accurately diagnose and formulate the right treatment as well.

2018 update: All links updated

Amazon.com

Allergic Diseases in Children: The Sciences, the Superstition and the Stories

$58.00

Buy

Amazon.com

Living with Eczema : Mom Asks, Doc Answers!

$24.00

Buy

Amazon.com

DARKNESS OF MIND: A trilogy on the art of opera, and murder

$24.34

Buy

Last updated on 24 April, 2024 4:54 pm

We all love a good weekend outing and I’m sure if you are parenting a child with eczema, you would have figured that the stress level can hit sky high if your child is scratching.

First and foremost, you would have to figure out what triggers your child’s itch. For my baby Marcie, it’s the heat and sweat and Marcie’s doctor has told us to keep her fresh all the time. So a cooling place, well ventilated, preferably air conditioned is my top priority. After bringing Marcie out from one month old till now, 17 month old, here are my top 10 cooling places to go.

1. IMM – Apart from free parking for the 1^st 3 hours, the place is huge enough that even on a weekend, the crowd has not ‘crowded out’ the cool air. There are also bookstore, toy stores and children stores with children rides around the mall. The latest addition is a 7-meter tall tree house playground at level 3. Fish & Co and Café Cartel have aircon that is cooling enough and also serve kids meal.

2. Libraries – Here you have to try out which library is cooling enough. For me, Bukit Banjang and Jurong West libraries have strong aircon but Jurong East’s aircon is too warm plus the children section in the basement have quite stale air. One drawback of libraries is that there is no diaper changing area.

3. Tanglin Mall – This mall is not crowded and have many children stores plus an organic shop that also sells baby food. Marcie could even eat in the food court as it is well air-conditioned. From Tanglin mall, you can walk to Forum the Shopping Mall which also has many children stores and Toys R Us.

4. Ikea – Though crowded over the weekend, Ikea has shopping trolleys that have child safety belts. Marcie loves sitting in the trolley so even if it is crowded, she can be distracted enough not to scratch. The dining area is always crowded but fortunately, there is a mini playground to keep Marcie busy.

5. Vivocity – Marcie loves the fountain and we let her play in it once. There is a baby changing area inside the female toilet, located very near to the entrance facing the fountain. The food court is far too stuffy and warm, don’t venture there if your baby itches when hot.

For outdoor places, it really depends on the weather. So far, we have brought Marcie to the following places where she didn’t scratch much.

6. Singapore Zoo – We went on a rainy Saturday and though it’s crowded, Marcie was attracted to the animals and the show and didn’t scratch.

7. Sentosa –

We went on a crowded flower festival event over the Chinese New Year. It turned out well as we took a break in the air-conditioned visitor centre plus let Marcie play with the mist that comes out from the ground. The climb up to the cable car station is torturous though with throngs of people wanting to go up the escalators.

8. Qian Hu Fish Farm – This is cooling since the fish need a cool environment. Everywhere is sheltered and your child will likely be amazed with the range of fish. Some will even follow your finger on the tank and it’s quite fun for Marcie! The canteen can get fairly warm on a hot day though, so don’t plan your meals there.

9. Hay Diaries Goat’s Farm – The goat farm has milking time in the morning when the goats will be brought up a ramp to the milking area where the staff will pump the milk. It’s fascinating to watch and it’s also sheltered with a ceiling fan. Feeding of goats is no longer allowed but you can still walk around to view the goats from a distance.

10. Jacob Ballas Children Garden – There is a little fountain for children to play but it’s not shaded. Though suitable for kids who can walk and climb very well (there is a tree top house), I suggest giving this a miss on a hot day.