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Otolaryngology Residency Programme

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About the Programme

Otolaryngology or ENT (ear, nose, and throat) specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the head and neck. 

Just as the name implies, our future ENT specialists should be a good listener to their patients (ear), be able to communicate well (throat) and be ready to sniff out opportunities to develop the specialty (nose). 

If you value teamwork, ethics, have good interpersonal skills, a sense of humanity and empathy, and enjoy life-long learning, you will fit right in at otolaryngology. 

Our Subspecialty Areas:

  • Head and Neck Surgery
  • Laryngology
  • Otology/Neuro-otology
  • Paediatric Otorhinolaryngology
  • Rhinology/Allergy
  • Sleep Apnea Surgery 

Why Choose Otolaryngology?

Balance and Longevity of Specialty

Otolaryngology offers a good balance of medical work and surgical exposure. Many of the conditions you see as an Otorhinolaryngologist are managed in a clinic setting, using medicines and simple procedural work. The longevity of ENT practice means that you can still enjoy immense satisfaction in your work after you retire from active surgical practice.

Surgical Mastery from Multiple Subspecialties

No other surgical specialty trains you to be competent in as many surgical techniques and skill sets as ENT does. 

Otological and Skull Base Surgery uses operating microsopes and surgical hearing implants; Rhinology exposes you to endoscopic work; Head and Neck Surgery requires knowledge in open surgery and Robotic Surgery; while Laryngology calls for fine tissue handling skills and the use of laser. Sleep Surgery is currently pioneering the use of Surgical Robots. 

Give Patients a Better Quality of Life

ENT deals directly with three senses out of the body’s five senses. As an ENT physician, you can help children who are born deaf to hear with surgical hearing implants. Give patients with smell and taste disorders the right remedies to help them restore these precious senses. We help give voices back to patients who have lost them. Besides giving patients a better quality of life, your work in Head and Neck Surgical Oncology can help save and prolong lives. Airway surgical work saves lives in emergency settings.

Many Opportunities for Cross-Specialty Collaborations

Few surgical disciplines allows you to be as plugged in to the wider fraternity of medicine as ENT. We interact with Endocrinologists in the care of thyroid and parathyroid disorders. We work closely with the Neurosurgeons on Skull Base tumours. We team up with medical and radiation oncologists in Head and Neck cancer surgery. And we also collaborate with Neurologists and Internal Medicine physicians in the management of giddiness.


Your Career Prospects & Development

The Resident who has completed the programme can expect to progressively advance through the ranks of Associate Consultant, Consultant and Senior Consultant. We believe in an individualised approach designed to help to maximise the potential of each Resident. That’s why, at each level, there will be opportunities to embark on different career tracks, depending on your passion, abilities and aspirations. These include Clinical, Research, Education and Administrative tracks – either alone or in combination. 

  1.  Clinical

There will be opportunities for further training in subspecialty areas such as Otology/neuro-otology, Head & Neck Surgery, Rhinology. Laryngology, Sleep Surgery and Paediatric ORL. This will culminate with a stint in a top overseas centre. On return, they join the ranks of SingHealth’s existing pool of subspecialty experts. 

  1. Research

There exists a solid research infrastructure within SingHealth. These include the SGH Division of Research, SingHealth’s Office of Research and the Academic Research Institute, as well as the recently established Surgery Academic Clinical Programme which provide execution administration and academic research support respectively, with clinician-researchers recognised by appropriate academic titles.

  1. Education

Similarly, medical education assumes an important role in Academic Medicine where Clinician-Educators are nurtured and groomed by the Education Institute.

  1. Administration

For suitable individuals with a passion and talent for administrative duties, they can possibly be groomed to assume Headship of the Department or other Hospital level/Cluster level leadership roles.