Ms Tham Chui Mun, whose childhood ambition was to be a nurse, faces tough choices every day.

The 49-year-old's job as a senior nurse manager at Tan Tock Seng Hospital's Emergency Department - one of the busiest among Singapore's restructured hospitals - means that she looks at trauma, sickness and death in the eye daily.

Her duties include staffing the emergency floor with a mix of experienced and new nurses so that the experienced ones can guide the younger ones, making patient rounds and ensuring the department is kept spick and span.

Her brisk manner has stood her in good stead, especially during the 2003 Sars epidemic. She did not catch the Sars virus but was on the frontline - screening and caring for suspected Sars patients.

Ms Tham, who is married with three children, said: 'Like everyone else, I was a little worried about what would happen to me. But I felt safer in the hospital than outside because our infection control was very strict and well done.'

She added: 'We had strong senior management support and we worked closely with the doctors. What also encouraged us was the public support.'

Ms Tham, a 23-year veteran who has worked in medical, surgical and neurological wards, likes her work in the fast-paced emergency department.

'It's very dynamic. You're faced with people from all walks of life, and we don't know what's happened to them. Both knowledge and instinct is very important,' she said.

Asked if there has been a patient who has stayed on her mind, she mentioned a six-year-old leukaemia patient with whom she had developed a special rapport.

She said: 'The girl's grandmother said she had asked if I could go see her after work. My own grandmother was ill during that period so I didn't go.' The little girl eventually died.

'I didn't expect her to pass away so quickly. If I could go back in time, I'd have fulfilled her dying wish.'

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times on Aug 14, 2008.