Professor Andrew Tan received his training as an orthopaedic surgeon in Singapore and advanced training in the areas of shoulder, knee, sports and arthroscopic surgery at the University of Washington in the United States. He was among the first few doctors in Singapore to obtain the Fellowship in Orthopaedics with the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 2002, when he was then certified as an orthopaedic specialist.
He has been practising as an orthopaedic surgeon at the Singapore General Hospital since his return from the United States in 2003, and is currently Head and Senior Consultant with the Orthopaedic Surgery Department at the hospital, and is Adjunct Professor at the National University of Singapore’s Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Clinical Professor at the Duke-NUS Medical School.
Prof Tan treats patients of all age groups with shoulder, knee and sports-related problems and works with athletes of varying levels, including our national athletes at the Singapore Sports Institute. He was the SGH doctor-in-charge of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games and a member of the Formula 1 SingHealth Medical Team.
He is a strong advocate of holistic and patient-centric care, which he believes is vital in complementing high-quality orthopaedic treatment to produce best outcomes for patients. He is a multiple-time winner of the hospital's Service with a Heart Award.
Apart from his clinical work, Prof Tan is also very actively involved with the teaching of medical students, trainee surgeons as well as overseas doctors. Prof Tan greatly values the importance of passing on one’s knowledge and skills to the next generation of doctors and surgeons. He is a recipient of many teaching awards at both hospital and national levels. For his contributions to education and education leadership over the years, he was awarded the SingHealth Excellence Award for Outstanding Educator in 2017.
He also educates and shares his expertise with orthopaedic surgeons in the region, and travels overseas as an invited speaker to conduct workshops and perform live surgery. He has also mentored many overseas fellows who have gone on to become top surgeons in their home countries.
He is actively involved in orthopaedic clinical research. He believes strongly in the importance of clinical studies leading to excellence in patient care, and has published his surgical techniques and outcomes extensively in major international and regional orthopaedic journals. He has also presented his work worldwide, and is a reviewer of multiple scientific journals.
Prof Tan is also involved in administrative and academic leadership in SingHealth/Duke-NUS, and holds various appointments including Department Head of SGH Orthopaedics, Academic Vice-Chair, Faculty Affairs and Academic Development of SingHealth-DukeNUS Musculoskeletal Sciences Academic Clinical Program and Chair, SingHealth Procedural Safety Workgroup.