Breaking boundaries, transforming healthcare: Highlights from SCI-PhI Day

On a captivating morning on the 4^th of May, the air of excitement enveloped the hallway of the Shaw Foundation House, where participants sparked an electrifying atmosphere through their eager exchange of insights and discoveries that will have a positive impact on the research world. The occasion? “SCI-PhI Day”, a momentous event that commemorated the hard work of our Year 3 Pharmacy students in their PR4191 SCI-PhI Project course. PR4191 Student-led Collaborative Innovative Pharmacy Inquiry (the acronym spells SCI-PhI) Project is a year-long project course undertaken by Year 3 BPharm undergraduates where they work in groups to conduct research on 3 different sub-topics and ultimately innovate, integrate and propose how their findings can be used to solve real-world problems, ranging from COVID-19 to infectious diseases, cancers and even formulations.

On SCI-PhI Day, students displayed their findings from their SCI-PhI projects to 300 esteemed guests, including the Chief Pharmacist, Cluster Directors, and members of the Pharmaceutical Society of Singapore through posters and group presentations.

We had the honour of hearing from our two guest keynote lecturers, Professor Alan Lau (Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Director of International Clinical Pharmacy Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) College of Pharmacy) and Dr. Jiang Sizun (Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School and BIDMC). Their captivating keynote lectures have definitely fostered a deep connection with the audience on that day. It served as a reminder that we should continuously be adaptable, creative, and innovative. Research is not a solo endeavour but a shared journey, where fostering professional relationships can lead to transformative discoveries and advancements in healthcare. Thank you, Professor Alan Lau and Dr. Jiang Sizun!

Professor Alan Lau (left) and Dr. Jiang Sizun (right) enlightening the audience with their authentic sharing and inspiring experiences.
Photos taken by Jannah Pua (Class of ‘24).

In addition, we were privileged to witness the captivating project presentations of the Top 5 student teams, who brilliantly showcased their research findings and eagerly engaged in an enlightening Q&A session with the audience. Team 5A (A bug’s life: understanding, detecting, treating and managing antimicrobial resistance), Team 3B (Bridging the Digital Health Gap: Evaluating the Uptake of Digital Interventions in the Management of Cardiovascular and Neurological Conditions), and Team 9B (PROCEED), whose projects exhibited a deep commitment to improving the health of the Singapore community won the top three Challenge prizes. Besides student presentations, the symposium also featured a thrilling poster competition, where both the esteemed judging panel and the engaged audience cast their votes for the most captivating SCI-PhI posters. Team 5B (To slow down the rate of AMR by improving diagnostic certainty through developing a sensitive supramolecular sensor, increasing diversity of antibiotic treatment options and targeting factors leading to overprescription of antibiotics) and Team 8A (Drug design, formulation and delivery innovations that lead to better therapeutic outcomes and patient compliance) won the judges’ and audience’s choice prize, respectively, for their exceptional creativity and presentation skills. Congratulations to all these exceptional teams for their remarkable achievements!

As we bid adieu to this sensational event, let us carry forward the inspiration and valuable lessons we have gained from that day, and apply them to our daily lives. SCI-PhI Day was not only a joyous celebration of the inauguration of a new course in the Department of Pharmacy but also a catalyst that reignited our collective spirit. It served as a powerful reminder that each one of us possess untapped potential within ourselves, waiting to be discovered. Once we uncover that potential, we have the ability to break through boundaries and empower ourselves to shape a brighter future.

To conclude, read excerpts below by some of our students as they reflect on this remarkable occasion and share their memorable moments, unique perspectives, and the lasting inspiration that SCI-PhI has ignited within them.

Click on the students’ name to view the full-length reflections on their LinkedIn profiles.

“Being my first time working in a cross functional team, it was challenging at first to find the balance of focusing on my own project while trying not to hyperfocus since integration of each pair/ trio projects was our end goal. However, with consistent and open communication across each subgroup, we were able to ensure everyone was on the same page and for our group to progress together.”

“In the real world, there are often different ways of achieving the same outcome. Unforeseen situations might surface, and we have to pivot. Hence, be comfortable with uncertainty. There is no “right” or “wrong”, there is only the "most appropriate" for a given context and intention. Amidst all the “mess”, we should remain clear on the project's end goal, evaluate the benefits, risks and assumptions, look for answers independently and even pick up new skills along the way.”

“My personal 1-year journey in this program was fraught with challenges, disappointments, and constraints. I have experienced childhood-like fascination when learning new lab equipment, satisfaction when finding positive data, and immense despair when said data turned out to be negative…Although the process was arduous, nothing compares to standing in front of our poster and savouring the fruits of our labour.”

Article by Lennon Goh Zhi En (Year 2 Pharmacy student) and Nicole Sankar (Year 3 Pharmacy student)

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