Did you know Singapore’s first public hospital, the Singapore General Hospital (SGH), started off as little more than a wooden shed? Or that Singapore’s first X-ray equipment arrived on our shores merely two years after Roentgen’s discovery of X-rays in 1895?

Did you know the Bowyer Block was named after Dr John Herbert Bowyer, the Chief Medical Officer of Singapore’s first General Hospital?
Situated at the iconic Bowyer Block within the grounds of SGH, the SGH Museum is home to some of the most valuable medical records and antiquated equipment of Singapore’s medical history. Divided into sections such as The First Hospital, Hospital Under Siege, Growth And Modernisation and Windows To Our Past, the SGH Museum does a fantastic job of presenting the hospital’s history of more than 180 years in a clear and explicable manner.
Having signed up for a special guided tour facilitated by the Museum, I was enthralled by the many fascinating stories the grand dame has to share of the millions who have passed through her doors.

SGH had its beginnings in 1821, when the first General Hospital was located near the Singapore River before finally settling at Sepoy Lines at Outram Road in 1882. The modern history of SGH began in 1926 with the construction of the Bowyer, Stanley and Norris Blocks. The blocks were initially known as the Upper, Middle and Lower Blocks. After the war in 1946, they were renamed Bowyer, Stanley and Norris, in memory of the three officers who were closely associated with Singapore’s hospitals before the war. Today, only the Bowyer Block with its distinctive clock tower remains. In 2005, the Bowyer Block became home to the SGH Museum.

Learn more about SGH during the Japanese Occupation and pay tribute to the hospital staff who selflessly tended to the sick and war casualties.

Get acquainted with the many great doctors who have dedicated their lives to SGH. Amongst them is Professor Benjamin Sheares, more commonly known as Singapore’s former President between 1971 and 1981.

Did you know Singapore’s first kidney dialysis machine, then known as an Artificial Kidney Machine or Twin Coil Korff Machine, was purchased at $12,000, as a donation by the late philanthropist Dato Lee Kong Chian?

Particularly significant to the development of medical specialties in Singapore was the first X-ray machine, dating back to the 1930s.

Also on display is an early dentist chair. The SGH’s School of Dentistry was inaugurated in 1927 and was the first dental school to be established in a British colony in the East, beginning with just three students and two teaching staff.

Arsenic Pills, 1972. Collected by Dr Tay Chong Hai
In July 1973, acute and chronic arsenic poison in asthmatic patients taking Chinese herbal pills called “Sin Lak” (“God’s given strength” in Chinese) led to a public outcry against unchecked poisons among Chinese herbal preparations. The case resulted in four deaths. Most suffered from skin lesions, nervous complications, liver and blood disorders, and even abortions.

Midwife’s Bag, 1930s. Donated by Ms Babara Tang.
Unknown to many, a Midwives Ordinance was passed in 1917 to ensure that all unqualified midwives had to be under supervision in order to practise.

Many of you would remember the successful separation of conjoined twins, Ganga and Jamuna Shrestha, on 10 April 2001. Born in Kathmandu, Ganga and Jamuna were joined at the top of their heads in opposite directions. The multi-disciplinary team of specialists at SGH scored a historic world’s first for the successful separation.

The grandparents of Ganga and Jamuna had this crane cradle made and sent from India to SGH as a memento of the successful surgery. The cradle was specially designed for the twin girls to sleep alongside each other after the separation. This was especially significant since the original cradle used to carry the twins from Nepal to Singapore was elongated in size.

Senior citizens enjoying a free guided tour of SGH Museum – one of the many activities organised for the young-at-heart as part of Explore Singapore! 2007.

Kudos to the SGH Museum for having done such a brilliant job of presenting the history of SGH in such a fun and educational manner!

The SGH Museum’s Free Guided Tours is part of Explore Singapore! which happens from 10 November 2007 to 31 December 2007. For more information on