Dr. Bhavani Sriram – 2019 SG Silent Hero

1 September 2019 • 3 mins read

Dr. Bhavani Sriram
Hearts of Humanity Category Winner – 2019
Nominated by: –

Many persons with disabilities (PwDs) today are underserved medically because doctors have great difficulty communicating with them, either due to intellectual disabilities (ID) or other mental health issues. Some also suffer from autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In addition, being in an unfamiliar place may be an unsettling experience to many of them, causing them to have meltdowns.

It can take a doctor up to 1.5 hours to diagnose the health issues of a PwD (compared to 10 minutes for a typical person).

This poses a challenge for PwDs in getting proper treatment at a polyclinic or from a general practitioner. Some PwDs are also not diagnosed as disabled, which prevents them from receiving the relevant services that they need.

Dr Bhavani Sriram is a volunteer doctor with MINDS and she has been helping to diagnose patients with suspected ID and ASD. She is also frequently approached by various public agencies to help ID and ASD patients. A former staff of Kandang Kerbau Hospital, she also has experience working with Down Syndrome children.

As a MINDS volunteer, Dr Bhavani does not draw a salary. But she has seen over 240 patients over the past two years and has also made 40 home visits. Most of them are PwDs with moderate-to-severe ID and ASD.

Besides providing voluntary medical care to PwDs, Dr Bhavani has been instrumental in encouraging specialists in eye care, hearing and dental services to provide assessments and treatment to MINDS clients. Her voluntary services have been highly appreciated by the caregivers, patients and families that she serves, as well as the community at large.

Dr Bhavani is currently also working with MINDS to develop a national healthcare framework to help patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Profile Video

Dr. Bhavani Sriram was nominated for the “Hearts of Humanity” Category for the SSH Awards 2019. She was the selected winner and received award from Guest of Honour: Mr. Desmond Lee –Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister in the Ministry of National Development, at Shangri-La Hotel on 31st August 2019.

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Other 2019 Silent Heroes

Jeremy Tong – Inspiring Youth Category Winner
Aminur Rasyid Mohamed Anwar – Inspiring Youth Category Winner
Yoke Mooi, Rowena Leong – Pioneer of Promise Category Winner
Foo Say Thye – Oustanding Adult Category Winner

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Singapore Silent Heroes

The Silent Heroes Award Presentation is an annual ceremony organised by CAS – Civilians Association (Singapore). The aim of the award is to recognise ordinary, everyday Singaporeans and permanent residents for their extraordinary humanity and compassion towards people, causes, and missions.