By Dhaliwal, Balbindar Kaur written on 05-Aug-2003
National Library Board Singapore

Comments on article: InfopediaTalk

Nalla Tan, (b. 1923, Ipoh, Perak - ), nee Navarednam, is a well-known physiotherapist, counsellor and educator in sexual matters in Singapore. She was also the first woman in Southeast Asia to be awarded the Fellow of the Faculty of Community Medicine from the Faculty of Medicine of the Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom.

Education
Nalla Tan was educated in the Methodist Girls' School in Ipoh, and received her MBBS from the Singapore campus of the University of Malaya in 1952.

Career
1960s : Principal of Eusoff College.
1970s : Associate Professor in Department of Social Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, National University of Singapore. Spoke for rights of women.
1978 to 1981 : Wrote 'You', a column in The Sunday Times, and other articles in New Nation and the Singapore Monitor.
1992 : Held a one-woman art exhibition.
She was founder member and Vice-President of the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE), and has been a member of the Advisory Board of the Singapore Salvation Army.

Awards
1978 : Outstanding Woman of the Year, from the Business and Professional Women's Association.
1984 : Friend of Labour, award from the National Trades Union Congress.
1990 : Second prize for the story, What you asked, in the Asiaweek Short Story Competition.

Family
Husband: Tan Joo Liang, a physician whom (m.1952). She was widowed in 1975.
Children: Three children, Ying Hui, Ying Jien, and Ying Hsien.

Publications
Beyond your navel. (1977). Singapore: Federal Publications.
(Call number: RSING 301.4315 TAN)

The collected poems of Nalla Tan. (1998). Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call number: RSING 821 Tan)

Emerald autumn and other poems. (1976). Singapore: [N. Tan].
(Call number: RSING 828.995957 TAN)

The gift and other poems. (1978). Singapore: Federal Publications. 
(Call number: RSING 828.995957 TAN)

Hearts and crosses. (1989). Singapore: Heinemann Asia.
(Call number: RSING TAN)

Nalla on Sunday. (1985). Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call number: RSING 070.442 TAN)

You need to know. (1985). Singapore: Federal Publications.
(Call number: RSING 301.41 TAN)

Equality for women is not enough. (1985). Executive Life, 2, 19.

Organ transplants: must I say no? (1986). Law Society Journal, 3, (3), 21-23.

[Review of] Lim, Su Min. 101 questions and answers about sex. (1986). Singapore Book World, 17, (1), 77-78.

Children and play. (1984). Motherhood and childcare, F, Mr, 4-7.

[Review of] Our heritage and beyond: a collection of essays on Singapore: its past, present and future. (1983). Singapore Book World, 14, 76-77.

Time and mood (poem). (1983). Focus, 19-20.

[Review of] Saw, Swee Hock and Wong, Aline K. Youths in Singapore. (1982). Singapore Book World, 13, (39-40).

Some aspects of euthanasia. (1982). Singapore Scientist, 8, (3), 11-13.

Bagaimana bayi dilahirkan. (1977). Harapan, 9, (1), 14-15.

Tan, N., & Lee, J. (1978). Birth weights of Singapore infants. Annual Report of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 7, 16-20.

How babies are born. (1977). Prospect, 9, (1), 28-29.

Singapore women and International Women's Year - 1975. (1974). Nanyang Youth Leadership and Training Institute Journal, 7, (9), 107-112.

Social medicine in urban settings. (1973). Annual Report of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, Supplement, 3, 73-74.

The Role of women in nation building. (1972). Nanyang Youth Leadership and Training Institute Journal, 61-66.

Intake of foods containing proteins of high biological value in families of low income groups in Singapore. (1970). Singapore Medical Journal, 11, 130-137.



Author
Balbindar Kaur Dhaliwal



References 
Goh, H. L. (1990, April). Caring and creating. Singapore Tatler, 8, 91: 58.

National Book Development Council of Singapore. (2003). Nalla Tan, nee Navarednam. Retrieved June 5, 2003, from www.nbdcs.org.sg/writers/TanNalla.htm

Mukherjee, D. (n.d.). The Collected Poems of Nalla Tan. Retrieved June 6, 2003, from The South Asian Women's NETwork (SAWNET)'s Web site: //www.sawnet.org/books/reviews.php?The+Collected+Poems+of+Nalla+Tan

World Methodist Evangelism Institute (n.d.). History of Institute. Retrieved June 5, 2003, from www.wmei.ws/history.htm 



The information in this article is valid as at 2003 and correct as far as we can ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.