She came to Singapore as a dialysis nurse for two years but stayed for 30 – now 70, she has no plans to retire

Women

Student protests in Myanmar derailed Daw Mi Mi’s academic ambitions and led her to nursing, where she survived a hospital fire and spent 17 years working in the operating theatre. She later moved to Singapore to become a dialysis nurse, caring for thousands of kidney patients here.

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09 Nov 2026 06:38AM

It is 10.30am and assistant nurse clinician Daw Mi Mi is in the middle of her eight-and-a-half-hour shift at Alexandra Hospital.

Mi Mi is 70 years old – six years past Singapore’s statutory retirement age of 64. At a time when many are winding down, she is still caring for kidney failure patients, many of whom are younger than her.

What began as a two-year placement when she first arrived in 1996 from Myanmar turned into a 30-year career in Singapore.

In 1974, Mi Mi was a high-achieving second-year chemistry undergraduate in Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar) who hoped to become a lecturer. A death derailed her plan.

That November, U Thant, a highly respected Burmese diplomat who had served as the third secretary-general of the United Nations, died in New York. When he was denied a state funeral, students took to the streets of Rangoon to protest and universities were shut for months.

Forced to stop school, Mi Mi moved to the Shan State near the Thai border, where a nursing school was still open.

Although nursing never crossed her mind, Mi Mi figured doing something was better than nothing. So she enrolled in a nursing diploma course.

During her first year in the course, Mi Mi began work at the state hospital.

“This was an era when everybody was scared to go to hospital. Patients were afraid that if they went in, they would never come out. Many elderly patients from nearby villages were distressed, depressed and worried about finances,” Mi Mi told CNA Women.

Mi Mi held their hands, patiently explained medical treatments to them and reassured them. Many became attached to the young woman, requesting for her whenever they needed a blood test or intravenous infusion.

And Mi Mi, in turn, grew attached to her patients. So much so that when universities reopened, she decided to give up chemistry for nursing.

LEARNING UNDER INTENSE PRESSURE

In her last year of nursing school, Mi Mi survived a hospital fire.

The hospital relied on a fuel-powered generator for electricity, and a hospital staff member had to top up the petrol. But he refuelled it by candlelight rather than using a torch, and the generator’s fuel tank exploded into flames, Mi Mi said.

She recalled the chaos that ensued – patients fleeing from their second-storey ward with intravenous drips still attached to their arms, and blood dripping everywhere.

Patients who just undergone operations could not flee on their own. So, with shaky knees, Mi Mi and her colleagues carried them down the stairs on stretchers, making several trips.

After graduating in 1978, Mi Mi honed her skills in the high-stakes environment of the operation theatre, assisting surgeons with general surgery and emergencies.

“There were car accidents, a football field stage collapse, and a water tank rupture that sent cement crashing into people who were there to carry water or wash dishes,” she said.

In some cases, 10 to 12 injured patients might arrive at once, some with fractured hips, broken ribs or uncontrolled bleeding.

Mi Mi’s job was to stay one step ahead of the surgeons, anticipating and providing the instruments. “You need to be very fast because everything can change in a split second,” she added.

AN UNEXPECTED TALENT

After 17 years in Myanmar’s operating theatres, Mi Mi chanced upon a National Kidney Foundation advertisement recruiting dialysis nurses for Singapore.

Mi Mi had never used a dialysis machine before – there were few such machines in Myanmar at that time, she said. But eager to get some overseas work experience, she decided to try for a two-year nursing placement.

When Mi Mi arrived in 1996, she did not speak much English, much less understand Singlish. Despite the language barrier, she quickly became one of the most sought-after dialysis nurses at her centre. This was because she had a skill that transcended language.

When the kidneys can no longer remove waste and excess water from the blood, a haemodialysis machine can act as an artificial kidney. A surgeon connects an artery to a vein to supply high-volume blood flow, and during dialysis, nurses insert two needles at different points along the vein – one to draw blood into the machine and the other to return filtered blood to the body.

The challenge is that every patient’s vein is different. Some veins are deep beneath the skin, curved, narrow or difficult to locate. Moreover, newly surgically prepared veins may not have enlarged and strengthened sufficiently for needling, Mi Mi said.

Needling can be painful and requires considerable skill. Nurses must understand the patient’s blood vessels and blood flow to insert the needles effectively. Unsuccessful attempts can cause pain, bruising and anxiety.

Having worked in an operating theatre for 17 years, Mi Mi was experienced in inserting needles into difficult-to-access veins, such as those of critically ill patients and newborn babies, often under intense time pressure.

She quickly became one of her centre’s go-to nurses whenever a needling attempt was unsuccessful. Sometimes, she would even be called back during her break to help with challenging cases.

Her needling skills became well-known at her centre, and she stayed for another two years after her first contract ended. And in 2000, when Mi Mi was about to return to Myanmar, two nursing friends recommended her for a dialysis nursing role at a private hospital.

There, Mi Mi treated many wealthy and influential patients, including a famous Indian actor who reserved the entire VIP suite.

She also performed dialysis for a patient suspected of having severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and had to be isolated in the hospital after the procedure. The compassionate nurse was covering for a fellow nurse whose husband had just undergone a kidney transplant and was more vulnerable to infections.

HOW TWO YEARS BECAME 30

In 2009, after 13 years of working in Singapore, Mi Mi became a citizen. In 2013, wanting to contribute to the country, she left the private hospital to join National University Hospital (NUH).

Many patients became friends. During the pandemic, Mi Mi was part of a team that helped a pregnant woman undergo haemodialysis six times a week for several months to prevent the build-up of waste products in her blood and excess fluids in her body, improving her chances of a healthy pregnancy. The mother later brought her baby girl back for a visit.

Recognising her skill and dedication, NUH asked Mi Mi to continue working beyond the retirement age of 64, part of National University Health System’s initiative to retain nurses beyond retirement and strengthen workforce sustainability.

At the age of 68, she moved to Alexandra Hospital to help set up its new outpatient peritoneal dialysis service. The procedure involves introducing dialysis fluid into the abdomen through a tube to remove waste and excess water. Unlike haemodialysis, which is usually carried out at a dialysis centre or hospital, peritoneal dialysis can be performed at home after training.

Mi Mi counsels patients on the treatment, trains them to perform it safely at home, mentors other nurses and provides advice for more complex cases.

As long as she is physically and mentally fit, she said she does not intend to retire.

“I don’t feel tired at all. For me, nursing is a lifelong calling, not just a job,” said Mi Mi, who is single and lives with her niece.

“Every evening, I meditate and pray for my patients. I am grateful to have the opportunity to continue to help them,” she said.

CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg.

Source: CNA/pc