Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service

Regulatory requirements

When is an Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service licence needed?

You will require an Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service licence if you:

1. Provide any surgical procedure, or other procedure that is performed with the administration of anaesthetics, to an individual who, at the start of the procedure, is not assessed by a medical practitioner or dentist to require accommodation for the purposes of receiving medical observation or care for a period exceeding 12 hours after the individual is admitted for the procedure.

2. Provide any ancillary healthcare service*.

*An ”ancillary healthcare service” means any of the following that is carried out from the time the individual is admitted for the procedure until the individual leaves the premises, and that is incidental to the procedure:

• The examination of the individual’s body or mind

• The conduct of any simple in vitro diagnostic test on the individual;

• The conduct of ultrasound imaging on the individual;

• The assessment of the individual’s health;

• The observation and diagnosis of, and intervention in, the individual’s health condition;

• The treatment of the individual for any condition, disability, disease, disorder or injury;

• The provision of medical care or dental care to the individual;

For the legal definition of an Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service, please refer to the First Schedule of the Act.

Applicable Specified Services and Mode of Service Delivery

The only allowable Mode of Service Delivery for Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service is permanent premises. The following Specified Services are offered under the Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service:

• Collaborative Prescribing Service

• Liposuction

• Proton Beam Therapy

• Radiation Oncology & Radiation Therapy

The allowable Mode of Service Delivery for Specified Services offered under Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service is permanent premises.

Requirements to be a Clinical Governance Officer

An individual must be in good standing and fulfil all of the criteria below to be appointed as a Clinical Governance Officer (CGO).

1. If the licensee only provides dental procedures, for an individual to fulfil the requirements to be a CGO, he or she must:

   • Reside in Singapore during his or her appointment as a CGO

   • Be a fully registered dentist with the Singapore Dental Council (SDC) and hold a valid practising certificate

   • Be registered as a specialist under the Dental Registration Act, OR Have at least 5 years of full‑time work experience within a period of 10 years providing dental surgical services on behalf of a relevant healthcare provider*.

2. If the licensee provides (a) only non-dental procedures or (b) both dental and non-dental procedures, for an individual to fulfil the requirements to be a CGO, he or she must:

   • Reside in Singapore during his or her appointment as a CGO

   • Be a fully registered medical practitioner with the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) and hold a valid practising certificate

   • Be registered as a specialist under the Medical Registration Act, OR Have at least 5 years of full‑time work experience within a period of 10 years providing surgical services on behalf of a relevant healthcare provider*.

For further details on the qualifications, skills and competencies of a CGO, please refer to Regulation 12 of the Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service Regulations.

*A “relevant healthcare provider” means:

• a person who is licensed to provide an Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service;

• a person who is licensed to provide an acute hospital service;

• a person who was licensed under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act 1980 to use any premises as a private hospital; or

• a person who was, under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act 1980 —

  • licensed to use any premises as a medical clinic; and

  • approved to provide ambulatory surgery at those premises

3. For an individual to fulfil the suitability qualifications to be a CGO, he or she must not:

   • Have any of the following convictions, unless it is a spent conviction:

     • An offence involving fraud or dishonesty;

     • An offence under the HCSA, the PHMCA or any applicable Acts listed in the Annex A of the Code of Practice [PDF, 439KB];

     • An offence specified in the Third Schedule to the Registration of Criminals Act; or

     • Any other offence involving abuse, ill treatment, assault, or physical violence

   • Have a pending charge for an offence involving abuse, ill treatment, assault or physical violence

   • Be an undischarged bankrupt

   • Have had his or her healthcare professional registration(s) under MOH cancelled, removed, or suspended

   • Have been a director or manager of a healthcare service provider that had its registration or licence suspended, cancelled, or revoked

   • Have had his or her accreditation or approval to participate in MOH-administered public schemes revoked or suspended

   • Lack capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2008.

For further details on the suitability requirements for a Key Office Holder, please refer to the Code of Practice [PDF, 439KB].

Licence fee

For Ambulatory Surgical Centre Service, the applicable licence fee is $850.

If you provide Specified Services (SS), an additional SS approval fee will apply. The SS approval fee applicable depends on the SS category (i.e., “simple” or “complex” SS).

If you offer two simple SSes or two complex SSes, you can pay a bundled fee instead.