Dr Halina Talib

Deputy Director (Medical Policy) Assurance, Care & Engagement (ACE) Group Ministry of Manpower

Dr Halina Talib is a Deputy Director, Medical Policy, in the Assurance, Care and Engagement (ACE) division of Ministry of Manpower. She leads the development and implementation of healthcare policies and systems for migrant workers and oversees the public health, surveillance, and outbreak response for dormitory-residing migrant workers. She also leads a Clinical Quality and Audit team and oversees an ACE Nursing Team to ensure migrant workers’ access to quality and affordable primary care that enables good health outcomes. Dr Halina graduated from NUS School of Medicine in 1995 and has had more than 2 decades of clinical experience working as a solo medical practitioner and at a well-established Voluntary Welfare Organization before fully pivoting to Occupational Health and policy work. In her past role, she has managed employee health for the Southeast Asia hub of Dow Chemicals, a Fortune 500 US-based multinational corporation, before coming over to join MOM’s fight against Covid-19 in 2020. She is a proud parent of 2 young adults and a teenager, and is a history enthusiast, especially in human civilisation and Islamic history. In her spare time, she can be found pottering in her garden, baking in her kitchen or flying out of the country in search of mountains, lakes, ruins and museums.

Caring for Migrant Workers - “Joining Hands, Building Bonds’

To address migrant worker health determinants and care gaps, healthcare provision for migrant workers underwent a radical transformation since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, aimed at improving the accessibility and affordability of primary and preventive health services, and strengthening public health surveillance. This presentation focuses on the policy considerations and implementation of an innovative primary care system and its financing model that is dedicated for migrant workers, using a ‘public-private-people’ partnership approach. An overview of the system’s performance, successes and challenges will further highlight the need for an effective and collaborative partnership amongst key stakeholders within the migrant worker ecosystem.