Tan Tock Seng Hospital to demolish 8 pavilion wards built during 1907-1931, keep 1 as heritage marker

Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) will be demolishing eight out of nine of its remaining pavilion wards, retaining only one to serve as a heritage marker.

These wards are located at the end of Jalan Tan Tock Seng, near Bassein Road.

According to The Straits Times, the wards will be demolished to make way for a "new four-storey interim healthcare facility".

What are pavilion wards?

The pavilion wards were built between 1907 and 1931, and were part of the main buildings of TTSH when it first moved to its current Balestier Hill location in 1909.

The single-storey wards were also known as the Nightingale wards, after Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

Each of the wards had a long central aisle for patient supervision, as well as good ventilation and lighting to reduce infection and aid in recovery.

The wards housed tuberculosis and dysentery patients.

However, they were gradually phased out from 1999 after TTSH's current main building was opened.

Some of them were later used by Ren Ci Nursing Home until 2017.

The blocks near Akyab Road, also known as Lower Pavilion Wards, were demolished and replaced by the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID), while four blocks that were also part of the row in Jalan Tan Tock Seng, which were Upper Pavilion Wards, were torn down to make way for the Integrated Care Hub.

Remaining ward will be refurbished

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and Ministry of Health (MOH) told ST that the retained pavilion ward will be "refurbished and integrated with the future development of the site to better serve patients".

Redevelopment of the other eight wards

ST reported that the authorities have said the redevelopment of the other eight wards would help facilitate development plans within Healthcity Novena.

This is done in a bid to meet the increasing healthcare needs.

The 17-hectare Healthcity Novena is a dynamic healthcare precinct and comprises various institutions such as TTSH, Ren Ci Hospital and Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine.

It first launched in 2013 and has been developing steadily in phases.

Heritage advocates want retained block conserved

Singapore Heritage Society president Fauzy Ismail told ST that if the block is not granted conservation status, it will be vulnerable to future redevelopment pressures.

In 2012, three other old TTSH ward blocks were conserved as part of Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital in Serangoon Road, which was TTSH's old site.

The retained pavilion ward could be used for public education, conservation advocates noted.

Fauzy added that it could be an extension of the existing TTSH Heritage Museum, but has to be embedded meaningfully within the broader narrative of Singapore's medical history, allowing people to understand why the site matters.

MOH and URA said some buildings in Singapore General Hospital and Alexandra Hospital have already been conserved and "contribute to our medical history and represent the evolution of healthcare in Singapore", ST reported.

Appreciation of current working environment

According to ST, agencies have said heritage considerations are part of the plans for Healthcity Novena.

Some buildings that have been granted conservation status include the former Nurses' Quarters in Mandalay Road, as well as two old bungalows in Moulmein Road that are now the National Tuberculosis Care Centre and Tuberculosis Contact Clinic.

In URA's Draft Master Plan, which was unveiled on Jun. 25, it was announced that URA has developed a "new thematic narrative framework covering key pillars of Singapore's history and development as an independent nation".

These themes include the economy, housing, social and defence.

This will refine the way URA assesses the significance of buildings.

Top photo via National Heritage Board/Facebook