National Skin Centre Singapore Review

Getting through to an operator at NSC is a real nightmare.
I have called NSC at different times of the day and the response is always the same... all our operators are engaged on the line....etc i have yet to be successful in getting through or an operator answering my call.
The NSC hotline definitely needs to be improved.

Could not be better.. Really great team of professionals..

If I could -10 I would. Was send there to remove a tiny lump but now I have a bigger lump (3x) which itch! In fact the so called doctor kept asking the nurse advise during the extraction so not really surprised.

Dr. Steven Sng is very friendly and thoughtful. Consultation fee is a bit expensive, anyway so far only NSC can save me from terrible conditions.

I called many times to change my appointment. The first time the main line has no reply. Then the appointment lines puts you on hold for 10 minutes before telling you they are busy and cannot pick up. Tell you to record a number, but then drop the call before you can say anything.
The pharmacy is also a mess. It's far worse than any other I've come across in Singapore. Totally inept management or appointments booking system
Edit - someone finally picked up. But they are obviously UNDERSTAFFED for the appointments hotline

Would give 0 stars if I could. Made appointment at 8.30am, made to wait for more than 1.5 hours even after I reached punctually. Doctors are constantly changed.

Absolute disgrace to Singapore's health care system, you are better off seeing a private dermatologist.

Absolutely terrible. The doctors here are only concerned about their research, and patients are lab rats. My doctor, a so called Professor took a photo of my condition for his lecture slides and had no solutions. He billed 420 SGD. Condition was cured by other doctors. A complete hoax.

Extreme inefficient service. Need to wait for very long time to make payment and take the medicine. The staffs at cashier/appointment counter are not doing their job properly. They looked very free, some of them just walking around and talking to each other while many patients are waiting for their queue numbers to be called.

As a teen, I used to visit National Skin Centre. Although their 5-10 minutes consultation was govt-subsidised, had to pay about 30ish or so, service was terrible (grumpy old aunties or doctors who don't give a flying fark) and waiting hours were long.

Heard that their fractional laser cost about 1-2k a session, ridiculously high.

After that, I consulted after private clinics and never looked back.

Contrary to the other reviews, my experience was a good one. I arrived punctually at 2pm for my appointment and was immediately seen by the doctor. The doctor was polite and professional. He was also very knowledgeable and would write down points of discussion. In terms of wait time, I waited longest at the pharmacy, for about 20 minutes. My whole visit took around 1.5 hours.

I have long term acne vulgaris and after multiple visits here, and even switching medications and doctors multiple times, it has not improved at all. Furthermore, some of my acne grew into keloids which are permanent and ugly scars. I've had reoccurring appts for the last few years and possibly longer. However most of it were 5-10min consultations that weren't productive and unnecessary, and each of those came with an astronomical bill. There was even a time where i had to see a female doctor as a replacement and i heard her gossiping with her colleague after because she saw my body and i had a minor infection at that time. Very unprofessional.

For commuters you can take the shuttle bus from Novena MRT. Check schedule on their sit

I'm disheartened to give this place a one star review. The nurses and doctors are all great, don't get me wrong. However, the staff attendants are a real mess when it comes to customer service. I wrote a few feedbacks (to NSC directly) which requested for an explanation on the poor and rude cashiers that checks me out all the time. But after weeks there's still no reply. Most recently, HYAACOB is one u should avoid if possible. I was shouted at and my intelligence was insulted by this cashier during my checkout even though i greeted her and smiled politely. Bottom line: the medical care here is good but the checking out step is really horrible. (PS.NSC won't address your concerns within weeks)

Doctor, receptionists and med tech were all extremely friendly and loving to my kids.

Long waiting time and inefficient process. Came early for my appointment but still needed to wait an extra hour beyond my appointment time. If possible, would have given this 0 stars instead.

Walked-in as a patient. Told by the registering officer that the "wait will take some time." Waited 1.5hrs. Went to check with reception only to be told that the wait could be as long as 3 hours or more.

I understand that walk-in patients are served after fixed appointments. However, you can do a much better job in managing expectations. If I'd had known that I would have to sit here half a day to be seen, I would have made other plans.

Pretty crappy service, NCS.

Excellent nurses and medical assistants/technicians.
Doctors, I am not v sure since I only met 1 junior.
Counter staff, friendly, but they gave me quite a number of issues with billing and administration.

I m an patient suffering from eczema, during my two previous trips to NSC wasn t bad at all, the doctors there are kind. But the wait time is over one hour long which is worser than a Polyclinic appointment. Whelp, sadly i have to take more than one medications and my mom have to pay $300+ for it. Totally not worth a visit, better off seeing a private derm who is much more experienced. Or visit any hospitals like SGH, ect.

I have an insect bite that is causing me allergy. I have to use the cream everyday and if I stop using it, it comes back after a few days. I consultant at other clinic which is not skin specialist. So after two years and it never really goes away I went to NSC , hoping that they could make it goes away completely. But the doctor didn't even check a bit and didn't listen much and just gave me same cream which I have been applying for 2 years and not getting better and told me it could take upto 6 months to 1 year to go away but it already took 2 years. Shouldn't even called themselves skin specialist which doesn't make any difference from non-specialist clinic. Not going back.

Very disappointed with the service we received today. Brought my dad for his first appointment with Dr. Goon. He didn t asked any questions, rushed us though the appointment, barely raised his head when speaking with us, and consultation lasted less than 15 min. Hopefully this is not the standard across NSC.

Said blood test can find allergens, and did not say anything afterwards. The doctor gave me a business card and said that there are any questions that can be sent to the message. The result is that I have not read it, the phone is not answered, it is very bad.

Only worth the wait if you get a good doctor. Pharmacy queue is illogical. They will without doubt cause you to miss the shuttle bus (I kana a few times alr). Even just collecting prescription, make sure you got loads of buffer time. Don't arrange other appointments.

We made an appointment thru the appointment line. And we believe it is already registered in the system. But, on the day we went for our appointment. We were told that we did not call. And the appointment staff asked us when we called and what time. Hence, this is to warn the public, please take not of things like this. Be sure to take note of the time. That was 4 months ago. And the staff insisted that we must know the date and time we called.

Went to NSC today with my hubby for his appointment. I noticed the mask my hubby had on was a little loose on his face. Being concern especially going to such public places, decided to buy some surgical mask from the pharmacy at NSC. To my surprised they do not carry any disposable surgical mask according to a lady attendent that I spoke with.

The attendent was kind enough to give me a new spare disposable mask she have.

Following the normal procedure at the NSC, at the cashier's counter in the pharmacy, I saw some re-usable mask for sale at $7.- each but not a single disposable surgical mask.

Believe in this pandemic period, all health centre should carry a minimal number of disposable surgical mask for sale or for urgent use.

Waited for more than 45 mins to see the doctor despite being on time for our appointment. Had to wait another 40 mins to make payment. And finally waited another 30 mins to collect and pay for the medication. Either they are extremely inefficient or the staff are on go slow action.

Came 10 min earlier than appt time, was seen by the snr consultant right on appt time. Dermatologist had a very detailed discussion with me and being the first visit, the whole consultation took 20 min. Quite a pleasant experience although it is still quite a fairly long wait at the pharmacy. Wide range of products /creams too.

I have a critical enzema last month i had my treatmnt at NSC..I fell much better now.It ok hve to wait.. as long the services and the treatmnt can cure my skin problm.

Guide to visit National Skin Center

1. Set reminder for your appointment.
NSC sms reminder come to me one day before my appointment. Fairly short response time if I want to reschedule. Better to set your own reminder

2. Reach by taxi is easier
Enough road sign to direct the driver to drip off lobby. My taxi uncle and me are going their for the first time, and we had no problem reaching to lobby. If take public transport, it is not so straight forward as it is far from MRT.

3. Food
There is a small cafe near the entrance of NSC, level 1. If opens before 8am. You can find local kaya toast breakfast set or bao. Good place to go if you reach earlier than your appointment time.

4. Scan n register at drop-off lobby
This is different from other hospital. When I reach the drop off lobby, there is stuff directly appoint to scan my IC and get a queue number. Make sure you do that before proceed to level 2 (clinics A-F)

5. Go ahead to register even if you reached earlier
I found out that the clinics actually open slightly earlier than 8am, the official hours. So no worries if you reached earlier. But if your appointment is in the afternoon, there is not need to reach in the morning. As Doctor will see other patients before you. And you may need to wait for Long time. So stick to your own appointment time is the best

Hope this is the helpful.

Lousy in managing appointments. With referral letter cannot walk in must submit an email. Ridiculous arrangement

Registration side was very rude. Long waiting time despite having an appointment. Something NSC really have to improve on.

I've took loads of antibiotics for months n then prescribed me on a different antibiotic with no improvement also. A lady doctor didn't even look at my face condition properly. What kind of consultation is this?! My trust and confidence in the doctors has dropped to a negative. You can't treat every patient the same. What u did is just putting a band aid on the problem. Your practice DO NOT work.

To everyone who is struggling with acne, your gut health is the one u could focus on. Cut down on ur dairy n sugar intake. Sweet drinks n cows milk, remove it from ur diet.
I'm not going back to the nsc. Now i'm trying out on probiotics or supplements.

NSC removed my review and ghosted my email for 10 days even though all i ask for is to have better customer service from cashiers! What about the rude insults that i got from the staff then? sighz

My appointment was 11:15am, I came at 10am hoping to at least be able to immediately see the doctor when my time comes, ended up seeing the doctor at 12pm and the doctor's attitude is bad. I am really disappointed with the service and punctuality of this place.

Doctors are less experience. Can't diagnosed my mom actual skin problems.

Waiting time extremely long, but benefit of the doubt, perhaps Singaporeans have a lot of skin problems. But the call centre was pretty rude as well

Today is my third and hopefully final visit back to National Skin Centre. I understand that it's subsidiary care but the 'care' afforded to patients is less than stellar at best and usually terribly delivered. Appointment was at 0820, and had to wait to 0945 for my number to be called at the cashier and appointment area. Mind you, there is still the pharmacy section after this. I was told that as the doctor I saw was a jr doctor, it had to be approved by a senior. Others who came for 0900 - 0930 appointments were called faster. The staff processing my payment and appointment also had her colleague coming over to disturb her while she was attending to me. Just my luck to have a jr Dr? Maybe. More apparent is their lackadaisical service delivery model which do not have patients at heart.

Doctors are crappy, staff are crappy, waiting time is horrendous. Been here 6months for my acne but the doctors just keep giving me uselss antibiotic and and topicl cream that i tried before alr. Like others said the consultation is very short. Just go private. Can be there for 4 hours just for a 5min consultation. Total waste of time.

Professional service, the doctors are mostly juniors but there will be a senior doctor moving from room to room when needed. Thumbs up!

Waited for doctor for 45 mins. Only get consulted for 5 mins. It seems like she s rushing for lunch ! Now I know why people go to private clinics instead of public. Please lah ! Are you serving the nation ?!!

This place has an efficient way of working. No long waiting times for pretty everywhere I've been here

Call 63506666 to make an appointment. Updated 9 May 2019

Want to make a appointment, told me normally, the appointment is 2 month later. Want to walk in, told me there is no walk in counter. Something need to be done to improve the effectiveness of these institution.

Pleasant experience

On 1/7/19, l accompanied my husband to National Skin Centre for his first appointment referred by the polyclinic .
The building was rather dated, but services rendered by the attending doctor, Dr Amanda Kuan and general staff was good .
I was impressed by the courteous and friendly service of the medical technologist, Mr Syed .
Thank you

Friendly nursing professionals and interns. MOs and SMOs are a much rarer sight. Some what lacking in updated specialist knowledge. Web and phone appointment team(s) are super messy though. Transport available to and from Novena MRT.

Received wrong diagnosis. Wasted my consultation and medicine fees.

Government run skin clinic. Very good specialists over here.

Terrible time schedule planning for the appointment allocation and billing payment.

Came in 30 mins earlier, however waiting more than a hour for those late comers to the clinic whom have missed their appointment timing. After consultation ended, was told to wait at the counter for billing purposes.

Waited for another hour plus which there are no collections of medications or other appointment setting at all. For people whom came later or after the waiting list are pushed behind. What kind of system is this in current Y2020?

Looking at all other feedbacks here, no doubt this is the worst place of all.

Premier Institute but shallow knowledge . Visited for family but felt wasted

I'm visiting with my husband who needs advice on his skin condition. Only after we arrived, I was told that I can't go in with him due to Cov-19 control. There was no holding area for visitor who was being turned down.
Cov-19 control is understandable but what the clinic could do better is giving such notices on its website or remind patient during booking of the appointment. Due to the pouring rain, I just stand at the entrance and wait..probably an hour or two if I'm lucky.

Seriously the pharmacy work flow is horrible. The person that in charge of this department is a great disgrace. I could not believe this is happening here. All reviews were never replied which means National Skin Centre do not give a damn about improving. I took my queue at 335pm and now is 430pm. I waited a good 1 hr just for a tube of cream. Does that even make sense? It looks really stupid on them.

Do NOT go here if you are having very urgent skin issues.

NEVER GO THERE EVER.
TERRIBLE DOCTOR SEEN EVER (Prof. Roy Chan).

i just visited this NSC, and got completed irritated by the so-called Professor or Senior Consultant services.

Last week I went there, did registration, and waited (for an acceptable time).
Then I was called in.
I knocked the door and went in the room, saying hello or normal greetings to the doctor.
BUT, he didn't even look at me or response to me, with nothing but his coldness face (just like someone is owing him a fortune). Then my gut-feeling like "waste of time and money again".

Then he started the normal process, asking me normal questions, but never looked at me, just watching his computer and typing typing. I even didn't explain what is my issue here, so he is typing for what?

And I'm asking him what is my symptom? he mentioned he doesn't know. Guess what, he just dropped me the antibiotics like a GP clinic guy and asked me to come back sometime later. Am i wasting time here for you to do whatever a GP can do? Am i a testing-rat?

All over the diagnosis process, this doctor never told me what is the symptom or how to prevent it from happening again or what should I pay attention to. All the things he did was watching his computer and typing. and he seems very rushing as he just left me with the medicine and say come back later to check up again.

I paid almost $200 consultation fee just for less than 10 minutes useless talk?

I usually come back every 3-6 months for a review for my skin condition.so far the staff i met was friendly and patient.

I had a referral from toa payho polyclinic.i visited the NSC on 14th July 2020 because i i have skin rashes they gave me oral medication and cream which is useless i completed my course for 10days but still the rashes are there. I consulted so called Dr.antony,They had charged me few hundred dollars and gave me a cream which we can buy from watson or any other shops i didn't expect such kind of treatment from NSC i do saw the reviews before i visited but i trusted the name NSC but after my personal experience i really hate NSC from now . And i don't recommend anyone to go NSC.
Note : IF YOU HAVE EXTRA MONEY TO WASTE GO AND VISIT NSC

National Skin Centre

Update on Nov2017

Wait 1 hour to meet doctor. Hear he talk 5m and go to cashier pay 122$. Waste time waste money, and everythings receive is nothings

Terrible. Been here over the years. When I was in my tenage years and when im and adult now. The service gets worst. Came early for an appointment and still waited for 2 hours! Doctors are angsty when the counter lady called and asked her to stop calling like thats rude. Terrible doctor terrible system. Overall, just there cause refered and subsidised.

Patients are not your Guinea pigs. I understand that student nurses are not as experienced as docs/nurses. But if you tried for 4 times attempting to get get blood for blood tests and doc had to volunteer himself (he walked past the students twice to see if they are having difficulties) to get it in the end, really? please don't find it embarrassed to ask other docs/nurses for help! It's about creating an environment where one learns from one another! Thank goodness the doc got it in the end! Kudos

It is speciality skin centre, impressed by the set up and administration

Its really difficult to make an appointment. The earliest dates they give is like a few months away. Working hours are so stringent too.And if you get lucky and make one, the doctors are usually very young people ( could be residents too) . It would be great to see some doctors with experience handling our cases. And everytime it's a new doctor. So there is no sense of familiarity,and the doctors dont know their patients. There is so much room for improvement.

One of the best institution and Hospital,I have visited this great place few years back and I have found this Hospital and Center an excellent service provider which has all the international standards.Congratulations to the management and all the best wishes.

very dispointing, waited for 4 months for an appointment. The Doctor, who actually is a professor, said he didnt know whats wrong with my skin~~200 +dollars plus one day wasted

The coordination after seeing a doctor is really bad & really needs huge improvements.

I was directed to the cashier, whom I waited for 30 to 40mins. After seeing some patients who saw the doctor being served before me, I approached a staff at the counter, who checked & told me that my case was referred to the Pharmacy.

Wasted my time waiting. If I had been more patient, I would have ended up waiting for an even longer time.

Today's lesson taught me never to be patient at government hospitals & clinics!

Came in at 2.20 for an appt at 2.50. Now its 3.40 and I am still waiting. Only redeeming factor is that the phone signal is good enough for me to write this review. Whats the point of appointment timings of you're just not gonna care?

My son, while doing his national service, developed a serious skin condition which warranted 4 visits to the doctors over 2 months with different diagnosis ranging from fungal infection to viral infection to eczema. Instead of getting better, the rashes continued to grow in number and size, covering his entire torso, neck, limps and even the face. Finally, a dr at the poly clinic referred him to the NSC. Unfortunately, just because I m on SHN as I just arrived from Sydney, he was refused treatment when he went there. There was no compassion despite the fact that he needed immediate medical attention as directed by the dr at the poly clinic. His circumstances of being in the army means he has little freedom to take leave nor the flexibility in his schedule. He was practically shoved away by the staff. In the end, I told him to go to Mt Alvernia Hospital and despite their dermatologists being fully booked for the day, he was able to get medical attention immediately. I m shocked and disgusted by the NSC s blatant disregard for a sick person s need for medical attention. Is this how the medical profession should behave in the midst of a pandemic? Shame on you! Thank goodness not all healthcare services providers behave like you. I ve told my family and friends about our experience and rest assured they all share my shock and disgust. I would like this matter to be escalated. We are lucky that we could afford private healthcare. What about those people who are financially disadvantaged, where do you expect them to go to get proper treatment?

(Above message was sent to NSC via Messenger. It was read and ignored. Unbelievable! They don t even deserve one star.)

The receptionist (Rosalia) at clinic A at level 3 was Super rude and unprofessional. We asked for a different nurse as the junior Nurses was not precise and not professional during treatment, she replied that all Nurses are good and we should be lucky that there is even a nurse attending to us... like what does that even mean I m paying for the service so and we keep coming back for treatment as they cannot do their job properly. She could have just said we cannot request for more senior nurse her attitude was so bad, I didn t want to cause a scene so I just walked off but I think the management should look into this. I went there before for another treatment and went making payment this same person was scolding another staff infront of all the customers even insulting her and degrading her the worst part is that the other staff wasn t in the wrong and it s Super unprofessional.

Absolutely the best (for me personally) Skin Center I ever been to. 3 times I had been treated and given consultation (since 2001), and all the time they were very detailed and thorough. Their medication may not work for some but for me it's a miracle. It is very easy to make an appointment even if you're not a citizen like me. For the amount of money I spent on this facility and the result I got, I can easily recommended this place to anyone with acute Eczema/Dermatitis Atopic.

Recommended by polyclinic to go for an appointment at NSC (Which for me is unnecessary because i ve been living with eczema my whole life). An appointment at 3.45pm, reach NSC around 3.20pm. 4.50pm guess what, I m still waiting for the doctor. : ) Such BS.. Whats the effing point for an appointment then?!

Over the years NSC standard has been constantly dropping in my opinion. Some of the "doctors" rush through the whole consultation session in less than 10 minutes. On top of that, their response in replying to my questions are very generic and vague (answers can be found on google). What is the point of going for a consultation and paying $30 for receiving such lousy service whereby I could just skip through the whole "consultation" and buy their topical cream???

P.s: Google did a better job in explaining than SOME of the "doctors".

After getting a referral letter for my son from the normal polyclinic, i received just an SMS stating the date and time, which is a school day morning, without even bother to call us at all.
I called back to explain the timing and they gave me an appointment to wait another 2 mths.
Seeing doc just now is quite fast. Waiting to arrange appointment and paying for service is quite fast. Then we have to go pharmacy to get another waiting number is stupid.....This place need to be better wired up to ensure a better flow and cutting down on timing. Why can't they make the payment to be of one time instead of two?

This specialist skin centre has provided highly professional medical cares to pioneer citizens like myself over the past decade(s). The team of dermatologists are experienced, caring and courteous with highly subsidised prescriptions. Waiting times for consultations are kept within 60 minutes.

I am having thick and become a hard and very black on full area of back neck.

we conducted too many methods to cure but still under improvement only.what is tha causes for these kind of skin allergy

Had my first visit to NSC and my experience was quite good. I went in as a walk in patient with referral letters from gp and hospital and was allowed to see a doctor within the same day. The doctor diagnosed me with contact dermatitis and he was very informative. Looking forward to getting better soon. The itch is torturous.

Very bad experience just getting an appointment. will definitely not go

Thoughtful and very helpful staff - though the wait gets a bit long at times.

Main outpatient specialist dermatology centre of National Healthcare Group. Beside treatments of all form of skin conditions, the centre also provides training for Medical Students postgraduates undertakes research in dermatology and Continuing Medical Education for doctors nurses and paramedical personnels. Conveniently located at neighbourhood heartland of Moulmein walking distance to Novena MRT Tan Tock Seng Hospital Thomson Specialist Skin Centre Oasia Hotel Novena Courtyard by Marriott Singapore Novena Square II Novena Square Velocity with plenty of dinning shopping banking supermarkets library cinemas entertainments groceries sundries postage services and amenities nearby. Friendly cosy comfy welcoming ambience for romantic intimates groups students expats locals visitors and families.

Went NSC with full of hope to cure my acne skin problem. Changed 3 types of medicine, my skin didn't improve at all. Furthermore it has been 10months since i visited. Spend almost $1-$1.5k already and to receive no improvement. Absolutely disappointed.

Edit: Asked doctor am i suppose to continue to take oral med (when it's showing not effect in me for the past 3 months & it has gotten worse) whereas another clinic cleared my skin within 2 months (3 years back). He only responded "i suggest you seek second opinion. Did not respond to my corresponding texts regarding my skin issue. Guess even my doctor also gave up on my skin. Nonetheless, high consultation fee with no results. Disappointed.

Doctors diagnosed with different skin conditions on 2 appointments. There do not get patient to skin tissue test. Do not see much improvement. Best for patients to request for skin tissue test if possible.

Long waiting time. Doctors rush through consult. Honestly, do not know why national skin centre is considered the national dermatologist centre of excellence. Better off seeing a private derm.

Doctors, receptionists and pharmacists are all very nice, friendly, welcoming and understanding

Appointment at 2:30pm, came at 2:30pm left at 6pm. Abysmal waiting time. What is the point of making an appointment then?

What a joke NSC is. Some of the doctors at the hair clinic are unprofessional and incompetent. You spent alot of time and money at the clinic but end results are worst than before. Personally I hope SG medical council evaluate the doctors and service levels at he clinic.

I reached the counter at 1:50 pm. The counter took 8 minutes to give my my queue number, and moved my appointment to 2:45. I only realised after 20 minutes and went to ask her.

She said that she told me that my appointment was at 1:40, but on the envelope that she took, it stated 1:50. When I asked her where the envelope went she said she threw it away. Further more my doctor at ktph said my appointment was at 1:50pm.

I then asked her whether it was okay to put me first as I wasn't late. She was rude and said that I simply missed the timing. She also said that she told me and I acknowledged that I was late. But that wasn't true.

Really bad experience with the rude counter here.

On 30 July 2020 at 3.10pm , I tried to make an appointment with a referral letter from KTPH as advised by KTPH. However, in a call, your staff by the name of SAROJA said that I couldn't do that and ended the call abruptly without informing. We then called KTPH, the KTPH staff said that she couldn't reach your appointment phone line. This is very unprofessional and hope that the management of National Skin Centre can look into this matter.