A Café With A Deeper Purpose: SKH and EPL Open The Daily Dose @ SKH Staff Lounge

Where staff wellbeing and inclusive employment meet in the heart of a working hospital

SINGAPORE, 12 June 2026 - Between shifts, a nurse steps into a café tucked within Sengkang General Hospital (SKH) and is greeted by a barista who prepares her drink with quiet pride. Behind the counter stands a person with special needs, not just filling a role, but building a career and finding real purpose through meaningful employment. What begins as a simple transaction becomes something far greater over time. Staff remember names and offer something no job description can capture: the genuine affirmation that they are good at what they do. 

Today, SKH and registered charity Extra•Ordinary People (EPL) launched The Daily Dose, a new café within the SKH Staff Lounge operated by social enterprise MamaNa Kitchen, offering an inclusive employment space for individuals with special needs. Through real, sustained roles taking orders, preparing drinks and engaging with the hospital community, The Daily Dose is more than just a café. It reflects SKH's commitment to embedding inclusion, dignity and wellbeing into the everyday rhythm of hospital life.

A space built with purpose

"People who spend their days caring for others deserve a space where they too can pause and feel cared for," said Professor Teo Eng Kiong, Chief Executive Officer, Sengkang General Hospital. "But I also wanted this to be more than just a nice lounge. We have staff who give so much every day, and we have people in our community who have special needs but are talented and ready, who just need the right opportunity, so why not bring all of that together?”.

That spirit of connection has already made itself felt. “When one of the clients brought my order to the table, I told him he had done a great job and gave him a thumbs up. His whole face lit up, and that genuine happiness stayed with me. It reminded me that we do not need grand gestures to make a difference. Sometimes all it takes is a kind word and a smile, and that is something every one of us can give.” 

The space itself was shaped by the people it was built for. EPL organised a design thinking workshop with SKH staff to shape the rest area and café experience, and a parent of one of EPL's clients, an interior designer by profession, volunteered his time to design the space.

Real employment, real impact

For EPL, the café is an extension of their mission made visible in everyday life, a functioning space with real customers, real expectations, and real relationships, where EPL's clients build confidence and skills through the work itself. At its heart is a simple but powerful belief: that every person has strengths, talents and the potential to contribute meaningfully to society. The Daily Dose puts that belief into practice, giving individuals with special needs the opportunity to develop skills, gain confidence and participate actively in the community, not in a sheltered setting, but in the middle of a busy, working hospital.

It is a belief that SKH has not just endorsed, but acted on. "There are many organisations that say they believe in inclusion. Fewer are willing to roll up their sleeves and actually make it happen. SKH did,” said Mr Ivan Chin, CEO of EPL. “There are moments that stay with you. A pair of hands carefully setting a drink on the table, steady and sure. A face that breaks into a smile when the customer says thank you. A conversation that starts with an order and turns into something warmer. These are the moments you cannot script. To most, they are ordinary moments. To the person living them, they are anything but.”

The impact of those moments extends well beyond the individuals involved. Beyond employment, the partnership also fosters greater understanding, acceptance and social inclusion among SKH staff and visitors, who are able to experience firsthand the value that individuals of all abilities bring to the workplace. It is a demonstration of how healthcare institutions and community organisations can work together to create environments where compassion, dignity and respect are not just stated values, but lived ones.

Inclusion as everyday life

That lived experience of inclusion was at the heart of the opening ceremony. Guest-of-Honour Mayor Denise Phua, Adviser to The Purple Parade, Singapore's largest movement celebrating the abilities of persons with disabilities, brought that message home as she officiated the opening, affirming that The Daily Dose is not just a café, but a portrait of what genuine inclusion looks like in everyday life.

"People sometimes ask me: what does an inclusive society actually look like?" said Ms Phua. "Honestly, I think it looks a lot like this. A café. A conversation. Someone remembering your favourite drink. People interacting naturally, comfortably, respectfully. It is built quietly, through everyday interactions, through kindness and compassion expressed in simple ways that make people feel seen, valued and included."

Three organisations. One shared purpose.

The Daily Dose did not come together by chance. It was built on three commitments: SKH's belief that a hospital can be a place of opportunity, EPL's unwavering dedication to their clients with special needs, and MamaNa Kitchen's resolve to make inclusion not a one-off gesture, but a daily practice. Together, they have shown that inclusion does not require a special occasion or a separate space. It can live in the heart of a busy hospital, in the middle of an ordinary working day, in the simple act of one person making a drink for another. Not just a café, but a glimpse of the society we are capable of building together.

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About Sengkang General Hospital

Sengkang General Hospital (SKH) plays a vital role in providing quality and accessible care to better serve the healthcare needs in North-Eastern Singapore. Offering a wide spectrum of specialist clinics and co-located with Sengkang Community Hospital, we are a part of the integrated hospital campus delivering multi-disciplinary and patient-centric care covering all major healthcare disciplines.

Reflecting on our mission of achieving better health together, SKH's team of doctors, nurses, and allied health professionals practise multi-disciplinary and team-based care. Patients who need longer-term rehabilitative care can be seamlessly transferred from the general hospital to the community hospital to receive the appropriate care during their recovery. We also work together with polyclinics, general practitioners, and other healthcare providers to ensure timely and appropriate access to specialist care for acute and complex cases.

Enabling residents in the northeast access to national specialty services nearer their homes, SKH has collaborated with KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, National Cancer Centre Singapore, National Dental Centre Singapore, National Heart Centre Singapore, and Singapore National Eye Centre, to set up satellite clinics within the hospital’s Medical Centre. For more information, visit https://www.skh.com.sg/.

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About Extraordinary People Limited

Extraordinary People Limited (EPL) is a registered charity and Institution of Public Character in Singapore. We support persons with diverse needs and their families through centre-based and community-driven programmes spanning engagement, independent living, and vocational pathways that include the visual and performing arts. Our work is grounded in the belief that inclusion is best built through shared experiences, where individuals are recognised for their strengths and contributions.

For media queries, please contact:

Ms Farah Rahman
Senior Assistant Manager, Communications
Sengkang General Hospital
DID: 6930 4475 | HP: 9686 7159
Email: farahliyana.rahman@skh.com.sg

Ms Rossana Chen
Director, Operations
Extraordinary People Limited
Main Line: 6286 5088 | HP: 9694 8261
Email: rossanachen@extraordinarypeople.sg

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