About ENT Specialist Doctor Barrie Tan

Dr Barrie Tan

Senior Consultant ENT Specialist

MBBS (Singapore), MMed (ENT) (Singapore)
MRCS (Edinburgh, UK), FAMS (Otolaryngology)

With over 20 years of experience in the field of ENT (ear, nose, and throat), Dr Barrie Tan is a leading ENT specialist in Singapore with subspecialised expertise in hearing loss and cochlear implants. He also manages conditions such as snoring, sleep apnea, and nasal or sinus disorders, and performs endoscopic ear surgery. As an experienced and highly skilled ENT doctor, he provides compassionate care for adults and children across a wide range of otolaryngological conditions.

Before establishing his own clinic, the Barrie Tan ENT Head & Neck Surgery centre in Singapore, Dr Tan served as Head of the ENT Department at Singapore General Hospital (SGH), the largest unit of its kind in the country. He was also the Director of the Centre for Hearing and Ear Implants at SGH, where he led numerous surgical programmes and contributed to advancing otolaryngology and hearing implant care throughout the region.

Barrie Tan ENT Head & Neck Surgery’s Vision and Values

At the heart of his medical philosophy, Dr Barrie Tan believes that genuine care begins with empathy and understanding. This belief guides how he connects with his patients, ensuring that each consultation is personal and reassuring. His calm and approachable manner helps patients feel at ease, and his warmth has led many children to affectionately call him “Uncle Dr Barrie”, while adult patients find confidence in his steady and caring presence.

Because Dr Barrie Tan understands that many who visit his ENT clinic might be anxious or unwell, he places great importance on listening carefully and addressing each concern with patience and attention. Not only does this approach build trust, it also enables him to make accurate diagnoses and deliver care that meets each patient’s unique needs.

Beyond his daily clinical work, Dr Barrie Tan remains committed to continuous learning and professional growth. He believes that the field of otolaryngology must evolve alongside advances in modern medicine. To this end, he continually refines his surgical techniques and stays informed of new medical developments, ensuring his patients benefit from the most up-to-date treatments available.

This dedication to medical excellence and compassionate practice forms the foundation of Barrie Tan ENT Head & Neck Surgery. The clinic reflects Dr Barrie Tan’s vision of a respectful and welcoming environment where patients receive timely access to thorough diagnostic testing and are actively involved in decisions about their care. As a specialist, Dr Barrie Tan is committed to providing quality medical care that supports each patient’s overall well-being.

Dr Barrie Tan’s Achievements & Awards

Dr Barrie Tan is a President’s Scholar, having been awarded the prestigious President’s Scholarship by the Public Service Commission in 1994 for his stellar academic achievements and all-rounded performance throughout his school years. This early recognition reflects his lifelong ethos of giving his very best in every endeavour, whether academic, professional, or personal.

Building on this strong foundation, Dr Barrie Tan pursued Medicine at the National University of Singapore (NUS), where he graduated top of his class and received the Gibb’s Gold Medal for First in General Proficiency. He was also the only student in his cohort to be awarded the Dean’s List Award every year, a mark of his consistent excellence and dedication to being the best in whatever he does.

To further advance his expertise, Dr Barrie Tan completed his ENT specialist training in Singapore and was subsequently awarded the Ministry of Health’s Health Manpower Development Plan (HMDP) Award for a year-long subspecialty fellowship. From 2010 to 2011, he trained in Otology, Hearing Implants, Neurotology, and Skull Base Surgery at the Ear Science Institute Australia, one of the region’s best research institutes for ear and hearing disorders.

Leading the ENT Department at SGH

From 2013 to 2019, Dr Barrie Tan served as Head of the Department (HOD) of Otolaryngology (ENT) at SGH. This is the largest and busiest ENT department among all public hospitals in Singapore, managing both paediatric and adult patients and performing the highest number of surgeries each year.

When first appointed, Dr Barrie Tan was the youngest Head in SGH at that time. Over his six-year tenure, he led the department through a period of significant growth, expanding its clinical services and strengthening its reputation across the region. Under his leadership, the department established the signature “SGH ENT Instructional Course Fortnight” programme, which became a regional platform for surgical education and professional collaboration.

During his time as Head, the department also developed several key multidisciplinary teams to better address complex medical conditions. These included the formation of the SingHealth–Duke-NUS Head & Neck Centre, as well as a dedicated multidisciplinary service for giddiness management. Through these initiatives, Dr Barrie Tan fostered collaboration across specialties, ensuring that patients received coordinated, comprehensive, and high-quality care.

Subspecialty in Cochlear Implants

Building on his leadership at SGH, Dr Barrie Tan went on to serve as Director of the Centre for Hearing and Ear Implants from 2012 to 2019. Under his direction, the Centre grew into the largest cochlear implant unit in Singapore, offering the full spectrum of audiological assessments and hearing rehabilitation services. It also performed the highest number of cochlear implant surgeries in a single centre nationwide, setting new standards for clinical outcomes and patient care.

Through this role, Dr Barrie Tan further honed his expertise in complex hearing restoration. Over the course of his career, he has personally performed hundreds of cochlear implant surgeries, earning recognition as one of the region’s most experienced and sought-after surgeons in this field. Beyond his work in Singapore, he has been invited to perform and supervise cochlear implant procedures in countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh, helping to train local teams and advance hearing care across Southeast Asia (SEA) and South Asia.

In keeping with his forward-looking approach to medicine, Dr Barrie Tan remains a strong advocate for surgical innovation and technological progress. He believes that patients should always have access to safe, evidence-based treatments. As an early adopter of advanced surgical hearing implants and modern techniques, he continues to champion the integration of innovation with patient safety and clinical excellence in mind.

In line with this commitment to innovation and patient-centred care, Dr Barrie Tan has been instrumental in introducing new hearing implant technologies to Singapore and the region. During his tenure at SGH, he performed some of the earliest cochlear implant surgeries in SEA, including:

Advanced Bionics 3D Cochlear Implant (2019)
Advanced Bionics Ultra Cochlear Implant (2017)

Beyond cochlear implants, he also pioneered the earliest specialised hearing implant procedures in Singapore, performing the country’s first implantations of:

Cochlear Carina Implant (2014)
Cochlear ATTRACT Bone Anchored Hearing Aid Implant (2015)
Cochlear CI 532 Cochlear Implant (2018)
Advanced Bionics Slim J Cochlear Implant (2018)
Advanced Bionics Ultra 3D Cochlear Implant (2019)

Since establishing the Barrie Tan ENT Head & Neck Surgery centre in 2019, Dr Barrie Tan has continued to advance the field of hearing implant surgery in Singapore. He remains focused on providing patients with access to the latest approved hearing implant technologies within the private healthcare setting. Among his notable milestones, he performed the earliest Vibrant Soundbridge surgery in a private hospital, as well as the first known cochlear implant surgery for paediatric single-sided deafness in a five-year-old child in a country located within ASEAN.

Subspecialty in Endoscopic Ear Surgery

To achieve the best possible outcomes for his patients, Dr Barrie Tan believes in continually improving and innovating his approaches to ENT surgery. Not content with mastering the techniques he acquired during his year-long HMDP Fellowship, he continued to expand his surgical repertoire upon returning to Singapore by actively pursuing advanced hands-on training in specialised procedures. One example of this is the way he developed his expertise in endoscopic ear surgery.

Recognising early on that this modern and minimally invasive ENT surgical technique offered significant advantages for both patients and surgeons, including faster recovery and improved precision, he sought further training and certification through specialised surgical workshops. In 2014, he introduced this form of surgery to patients at SGH, becoming one of the earliest ENT specialists in Singapore to perform endoscopic ear surgery as part of his commitment to quality patient care.

Since introducing the technique at SGH, Dr Barrie Tan has gone on to perform more than 100 endoscopic ear surgeries, applying this approach to a wide range of procedures including:

Endoscopic Myringoplasties and Tympanoplasties
Endoscopic Tympanomastoidectomies
Endoscopic Ossiculoplasties
Endoscopic Laser Stapes Surgery including Stapedectomies
Endoscopic Facial Nerve Decompression surgery

With his growing experience and proficiency, Dr Barrie Tan has become a respected authority on endoscopic ear surgery across the region. He is frequently invited to share his expertise as a lecturer and instructor at endoscopic ear surgery workshops throughout SEA. In addition, he personally organised and directed SGH’s Ear Surgery Instructional Courses in 2017 and 2018, which attracted participants from multiple countries seeking advanced ENT surgical training.

Leadership Positions in ENT

Dr Barrie Tan was the President of the ASEAN Otorhinolaryngological Head & Neck Federation from 2019 to 2021. He was also the President, Society of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Singapore from 2017 to 2019.

These leadership roles allowed him to actively contribute within the local and the regional ENT Specialist fraternities. He believes in giving of his time to grow the impact of these professional organisations to advocate for better patient care and to spearhead the adoption of modern surgical and technological advances in the care of ENT Conditions.

The following is a list of Dr Barrie Tan’s other leadership positions in ENT and Professional Bodies:

Secretary-General, ASEAN Academy of Neuro-Oto-Audiology: 2015-present
Executive Board Member, ASIA-OCEANIA Association of Otolaryngology Societies: 2019-2027
Vice Chairman, Chapter of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology (ENT), College of Surgeons, Academy of Medicine Singapore: 2021-2025
Board member, Chapter of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology (ENT), College of Surgeons, Academy of Medicine Singapore: 2017-2021
Special advisor on Otolaryngology (ENT) to and Member, Civil Aviation Medical Board: 2014-2024
Visiting Consultant (Otolaryngology), Singapore Armed Forces: 2016-2021

Dr Barrie Tan also has a passion in building clinical teams. He founded and developed the new ENT Surgery Department in Sengkang General Hospital. He was the pro-tem Head, Department of Otolaryngology (ENT), Sengkang General Hospital from 2013 to 2018, whilst concurrently being the Head, Department of Otolaryngology (ENT), SGH.

He relished the opportunity to forge a new dynamic team of ENT specialists, audiologists, and nurses and meticulously worked towards providing excellent ENT as well as head and neck surgery services to the community in the northeastern part of Singapore. He remains a Visiting Consultant to the Department of Otolaryngology (ENT), Sengkang General Hospital to this day.

Advancing the Field of ENT

Dr Barrie Tan is an avid teacher, spending much of his time teaching and nurturing the next generation of ENT surgeons.

From 2012 to 2014, he was the Program Director of the largest ENT Residency Program in Singapore, the SingHealth ENT Residency Training Program. He was subsequently appointed as a member of the National ENT Residency Advisory Committee which oversees the three ENT Residency programs in Singapore.

He is also remembered fondly amongst many Singaporean ENT residents for authoring and sharing his 4-volume set of revision notes geared towards helping residents pass their final ENT Exit examinations.

Dr Barrie Tan believes that education of professionals is a vital key to better medicine and has organised several major ENT conferences here in Singapore. He was the Organising President of the 18th ASEAN Otorhinolaryngological Federation Congress held in Singapore from 23 to 25 August 2019, which attracted over 1,000 delegates and believed to be the largest ENT Conference organised in Singapore thus far.

Prior to this, he was also the Conference President of the 6th ASEAN Academy of Neuro-Oto-Audiology (AANOA) Congress held in Singapore in November 2016. He was also the Scientific Program Chairperson of the 7th Asia Pacific Symposium on Cochlear Implants and Related Sciences (APSCI) held in Singapore in December 2009 which also attracted 1,000 delegates.

Dr Barrie Tan’s Ethos of Collaborative Care

Dr Barrie Tan also believes in the power of collaboration. He co-founded the SingHealth-Duke NUS Head and Neck Centre in 2014, when it was the very earliest of its kind (SingHealth Duke-NUS Disease Centre) within SingHealth. From 2014 to 2018, Dr Barrie Tan served as the Deputy Head of the SingHealth-Duke NUS Head and Neck Centre.

In this capacity, he helped to coordinate the development of multidisciplinary head and neck surgery capabilities and care of complex head and neck conditions in the various SingHealth hospitals and institutions. Dr Barrie Tan himself is proficient in the management and surgeries for thyroid nodules, neck lumps, lymph nodes, and saliva gland tumours.

Dr Barrie Tan’s Contributions as a Volunteer

Dr Barrie Tan sets aside time to volunteer his skills both in Singapore and overseas. He volunteers at the Canossian School in Singapore which runs a special education program for children with hearing impairment and who wear hearing devices like hearing aids and cochlear implants. Dr Barrie Tan examines the ears, removes ear wax, and takes care of the ear health issues of the pre-school children in this school and gives talks to parents at the school.

Dr Barrie Tan has also travelled overseas frequently to perform medical mission work in Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Vietnam. He believes in utilising his special ENT and ear surgery skillsets to help communities in need and therefore volunteers his time and effort pro bono on a regular basis.

In the past, Dr Barrie Tan performed ear surgeries like myringoplasties and mastoidectomies in rural communities. In recent years, Dr Barrie Tan has been performing cochlear implant surgeries for deaf Vietnamese children in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City under programs funded by the Hear the World Foundation.