During the National University Hospital (NUH) Quality Convention held on 5 October 2004 , three undergraduates from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) were awarded with certificates of appreciation for their contribution towards quality improvement in healthcare.

As part of the fulfillment of their B.Eng. (Industrial & Systems Engineering) degree curriculum, the three undergraduates from the Department's first batch of students, Boo See Yang , Sim Tze Wei and Tan Xiao Hui, carried out their systems design project with NUH from January to April, 2004. The Systems Design Project module is a nessential module carried out over a period of two semesters. It provides an opportunity for students to work as a team on an actual industry problem. It gives the students a broader scope of applying Industrial Engineering concepts rather than concentrating on one particular subject area .

The NUH project's objective was to study and recommend the number of nurses and support st aff which would effectively cope with the workload in Emergency Medicine Department (EMD) to meet the performance me a sures set by the Ministry of Health and NUH.

NUH supervisors of the project commented as follows:

"All three students were quick learners and were able to grasp the operations of EMD within a few days of orientation. They were highly independent and resourceful with minimal supervision from our staff. The trio also displayed remarkable team spirit and integrated very well with our staff. In terms of methodology, the team had a structured approach to the problem and was responsive to the needs and constraints of the service.

They possess high analytical skills which allow them to critically size a situation and present alternatives to the problem. Their good presentation skills have enabled them to put a cross the project succinctly to our senior management.

Over all the project was completed on time and sets the foundation for a more in-depth review of the workflow and processes in EMD at NUH."

The success of this project has since paved the way for another two systems design projects with NUH. This is yet another attestation to the ability of the ISE Department's students in applying what they have learnt in the classrooms to the industry. Other systems design projects which have been carried out with other companies have also received good comment.