Dr Tan Hak Koon

[jolu2212]

May I know if anyone have any experience with Dr Tan Hak Koon in SGH? My friend recommaned me to him. But my in laws and friend recommend me to go to TCM instead of a public hospital.

Not very sure if i should change gynae or just stick to Dr Tan Hak Koon. I'm also afraid that good gynae for TCM will be expensive.

 

[ting1977]

Hi, my gynae is Prof Tan and my EDD is 10 Oct. I was referred to him 3 years ago when I had a right ovarian cyst. He did the ops to removed my cyst and I find his stitching skills not bad. My recovery was good too. As for my pregnancy checks with him, he don't speak a lot but he will tell you the impt things to note. The only setback of having him is you may not be able to reach him as easy as private gynae. SGH does not have package for prenatal check ups so it may not be necessary cheaper than TMC.

 

[Mrs leenyl]

I would strongly recommend him as ur gynae dr as i find dr tan is a responsibile dr. Although he is a man of few words, but if u have any concerns u can ask him str away n he would give u ur ans. Best part, waiting time to see him is alway on the dot, unless he had any e op to do then it will delay.

For me, jus go to the gynae dr that u r comfortable with.

 

[jolu2212]

Thanks for the replies! Just went to see him for the second time. He really speak very little. But yes, he will answer all questions if I ask any. I'm quite comfortable with him actually and I do agree with the waiting time. I asked him about the packages and like what ting1977 said, he don't have a package. He did explain that it is just a package gimmick and paying individually for each session is better?? Just that my in laws and friend will question me why will I choose SGH. I think they still think that private hospital will be a better choice.. Oh well, I think I'll just stick with Dr Tan since we are quite comfortable with him )) thanks ladies!! )

 

[Mrs leenyl]

Np. I believe that u must be comfortable with the dr that u'r seeing. Cos i entercounter some junior dr very yaya papaya. But Dr tan is actually head of o&g in sgh, but he is soft n will be concern abt my well being when i see him for my miscarriage. I will rem got one idioit o&g junior dr( sorry i have to use that word) refuse to see me in even when i claimed that i have large clot comin out. Nth was done for me n i was sent hm. I feel unsafe n text dr tan, he ask to see me nxt day n check for me. His clinic is oso pack at time, yet he still can squeeze in for me. So im actually feel im in safe hand.

 

[coachy0203]

@Mrs leenyl. Just curious, how can you text him? I was with dr Chua at sgh but he never gave me his hp no.

 

[Mrs leenyl]

I ask for him hp no before im due so that i wan him to deliver n stitch for me. Thus i jus save his no in my hp. But so far i only text him twice when im due n my miscarriage.

 

[coachy0203]

@Mrs leenyl oh thats very nice of him. I delivered at sgh in mar but my experience wasnt very good. How about yours?

 

[grumpet]

Hi, I saw Dr Tan recently and also many yrs ago. He will write his phone number on the appt card, same no. on my old card. I noticed that, even though I am not preggers yet. He was very caring and friendly, talk more now... I think, lol. Fast appt time. no need to wait too long.

 

[sgmother_13]

Dr Tan was my gynae for 2 kids, so I clearly thought highly of him. I'm in a family of doctors, so the primary consideration was whether medical outcomes would be good (rather than things like do you get photos, what are the package rates, etc.). On this criterion, Dr Tan is universally known within the medical circles as being the best: complex cases across the island get sent to him, and if C-sections are needed he completes them in 15 mins (very fast) - which means very low complication rates and better outcomes for both mother and baby. All doctors can deliver a baby when things are straightforward, but Dr Tan can calmly manage a situation when complications arise - so he is the clear choice for many many doctors' babies.

That said, I've recommended him to a few friends outside the medical circle and they switched for their second kids. They felt that childbirth was special, and that SGH didn't give the "frills" - eg they wanted to cut the umbilical cord and it wasn't automatically offered to them. So Prof Tan won't work for everyone - it depends on whether you weight medical outcomes or customer service more.

 

[grumpet]

Dr Tan was my gynae for 2 kids, so I clearly thought highly of him. I'm in a family of doctors, so the primary consideration was whether medical outcomes would be good (rather than things like do you get photos, what are the package rates, etc.). On this criterion, Dr Tan is universally known within the medical circles as being the best: complex cases across the island get sent to him, and if C-sections are needed he completes them in 15 mins (very fast) - which means very low complication rates and better outcomes for both mother and baby. All doctors can deliver a baby when things are straightforward, but Dr Tan can calmly manage a situation when complications arise - so he is the clear choice for many many doctors' babies.

That said, I've recommended him to a few friends outside the medical circle and they switched for their second kids. They felt that childbirth was special, and that SGH didn't give the "frills" - eg they wanted to cut the umbilical cord and it wasn't automatically offered to them. So Prof Tan won't work for everyone - it depends on whether you weight medical outcomes or customer service more.

Thanks for sharing . is Prof Tan/ SGH pro natural birth? only if unable then will C-section be recommended. He is certainly one of the best, I think.

I remember reading water-birth at NUH, but there are complications for that too that could arise.

 

[sgmother_13]

Thanks for sharing . is Prof Tan/ SGH pro natural birth? only if unable then will C-section be recommended. He is certainly one of the best, I think.

I remember reading water-birth at NUH, but there are complications for that too that could arise.

Yup, natural first because complications are fewer with vaginal births than with C-sections (when everything is normal). For their own families, doctors will never advocate planned C-sections as the first line (vs Hollywood)! Prof Tan follows this standard protocol and advises this too.

That said, there are points of decision-making where doctors differ in how risk taking they are, e.g. Baby overdue - how long would you wait to induce (and if induction fails, do a c-section), water broken - how long would you wait before you say that you can't do a vaginal birth anymore because it's unsafe? In the extreme cases (e.g. clear signs of baby distress) everyone will flip to a c-section, and in the absence of any complications everyone will advocate vaginal birth. In the middle doctors differ in their advice or how long they're willing to wait - it's just based on how risk taking they are and how they've assessed the situation. In these cases, Prof Tan is slightly more risk averse and will advocate induction/c-section to avoid medical complications (whereas I know some doctors who are very willing to let a baby be overdue for up to a week before any action).

 

[grumpet]

@sgmother_13 thanks for sharing

 

[night_owl_mum]

Dr Tan was my gynae for 2 kids, so I clearly thought highly of him. I'm in a family of doctors, so the primary consideration was whether medical outcomes would be good (rather than things like do you get photos, what are the package rates, etc.). On this criterion, Dr Tan is universally known within the medical circles as being the best: complex cases across the island get sent to him, and if C-sections are needed he completes them in 15 mins (very fast) - which means very low complication rates and better outcomes for both mother and baby. All doctors can deliver a baby when things are straightforward, but Dr Tan can calmly manage a situation when complications arise - so he is the clear choice for many many doctors' babies.

That said, I've recommended him to a few friends outside the medical circle and they switched for their second kids. They felt that childbirth was special, and that SGH didn't give the "frills" - eg they wanted to cut the umbilical cord and it wasn't automatically offered to them. So Prof Tan won't work for everyone - it depends on whether you weight medical outcomes or customer service more.

Prof Tan Hak Koon is super efficient, but not the best doc. Because he is fast, he overlooks things. His consultation is also chop-chop, wham bam, end of consultation. In fact, he has overlooked things (careless!) I'm speaking from personal experiences.

 

[night_owl_mum]

There was another incident that i want to share. I was scheduled for Csec and i requested my hub to be in the operating theatre to witness. Dr Tan hak koon refused to allow him to enter, citing he may bring in germs. Then during a Csec, he allowed a group of med students (mind you, a group!) gather in the room to watch the csec procedure. I'm a private patient, no consent was seeked from me. I don't mind the students watching cos they have to train future doctors . But please don't reject my request with a lame reason. Double standards -DrTan Hak Koon !