Cultivating a common value system with CHEER
Care Process & Redesign
Organisational Leadership
National Healthcare Innovation and Productivity Medals
SingHealth
2 February 2026
The CHEER Programme aims to address two of the six major drivers of burnout, 'organizational culture and values' and 'social. Creating a supportive organizational environment and embedding the program's principles into everyday practices were crucial for.
Year Submitted: 2025
Published Date: 02 February 2026
Tags: Care Process ＆ Redesign, Quality Improvement, Workflow Redesign, Organisational Leadership, Human Resource, Staff Engagement, Staff Wellbeing, Organisation Development, Culture Building
About this Content
Aims
The CHEER Programme aims to address two of the six major drivers of burnout, 'organizational culture and values' and 'social support and community at work,' by cultivating a common value system and habits among Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) in SingHealth through education and recruitment of CHEER Champions.
Background
The 2019 Employee Engagement Survey (EES) and Resilience in Academic Medicine (RAM) survey showed that AHPs rated lower satisfaction in areas of communication and working relationships, were at relatively higher risks of emotional exhaustion and depression, and scored the second lowest for empathy. These findings signaled that AHPs are suffering from physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion and were at risk of burnout.
Methods
In 2020, informed by the EES, RAM survey, and FGD results, a team comprising educators and administrators was gathered to form a guiding coalition, with advisory support from the AH Group Director and Deputy Group CEO. Various organizational strategies and educational principles were adopted to design, develop, deliver, and evaluate the CHEER programme.
Results
The EES 2023 results showed significant improvements within the allied health community in SingHealth for the categories of direct supervision, working relationship, and communication, as compared to the 2019 results. Pre- and 3-month post-workshop self-assessment data revealed statistically significant improvement in CHEER-related knowledge and behaviors.
Conclusion
Creating a supportive organizational environment and embedding the program's principles into everyday practices were crucial for ensuring long-term success.
Lessons Learnt
Implementing CHEER provided valuable insights into the process of cultural transformation within a large healthcare organization like SingHealth. Effective leadership was instrumental in encouraging staff buy-in and fostering a positive cultural shift. Regular feedback loops and evaluation mechanisms allowed for ongoing refinement of the program.
Keywords
CHEER, burnout, cultural transformation, leadership, empowerment
Innovators' Details
Innovators' Details
Healthcare Cluster(s) | SingHealth |
Organization(s) Involved | SingHealth |
Platform(s) | National Healthcare Innovation and Productivity Medals |
Healthcare Professional Group(s) | Healthcare Administration, Pharmacy |
Applicable Specialty or Discipline | Allied Health, Healthcare Administrators, Human Resource, Pharmacy |
Project Lead(s) | Yeoh Ting Ting |
Project Member(s) | Sylvia Mun |
Connect with this contributor!
Yeoh Ting Ting - Yeoh.ting.ting@nccs.com.sg
Project Attachment
1034_SingHealth_NHIP_2024_Cultivating_a_common_value_system_with_CHEER.pdf