Upskilling and reskilling to help in the Covid-19 fight

Having an open mind is helping Mr Tan Chun Shiong tide through the pandemic.

Speaking to The New Paper, the 41-year-old said: "People should be flexible in their choices in this period of time and open to opportunities in life."

Mr Tan recently attended the RNA Virus Molecular-based Testing-Training programme at Temasek Polytechnic (TP), which was developed by TP and NTUC's Employment and Employability Institute (e2i).

"The course is a good refresher of what I learnt so many years ago when I pursued a Bachelor of Science at the University of Leicester," said Mr Tan, who was previously involved in sales of medical devices and genomic tools.

The two-week course covers the basic knowledge and skills needed to work in a molecular diagnostic laboratory for virus detection.

After a week of blended learning, participants are attached to a molecular diagnostic laboratory for five days for practical hands-on learning.

For fresh graduate S. Vinodini, 24, the course was a time to upskill and beef up her resume.

She said: "I just finished my degree in biomedical science and I was thinking about what's next.

"I thought taking short courses will be helpful for my employment."

The SkillsFuture Credit-approved course, which started on Sept 14, has received 75 participants.

TP hopes to train a total of 240 people this month.

Medical technologist Nur Zafirah Hizam, 23, who joined Parkway Laboratory Services three months ago, hopes the course which the company sent her for can be the start of her career, while also allowing her to give back to the community.

The spirit of giving back is important as the work in test laboratories, despite being unseen by the public, is a crucial fight against Covid-19.

"My motivation is that someone has to do it," said Mr Tan.

The course curriculum developed by staff from TP's School of Applied Science also serves a purpose beyond the battle against Covid-19.

Dr Daniel Tan, CEO Parkway Health Laboratory, said: "The course will lay a good foundation for people interested in charting new careers as laboratory technicians, as well as existing staff looking to refresh their skills and pick up the latest detection techniques."