Chen Su Lan opens an anti-opium clinic

On 8 May 1933, an anti-opium clinic was opened at 137 Kampong Java Road under the management of Chen Su Lan, a medical doctor and then president of the Singapore Anti-Opium Society, who devoted his time and efforts treating opium addicts.^[1]

Chen campaigned tirelessly against the sale and use of opium in Malaya. In his address titled “The Opium Problem in British Malaya” to the Rotary Conference in Penang in 1934, Chen highlighted that opium addiction was a serious health concern in Malaya, afflicting one in 10 adults, with the working class the most severely affected.^[2]

To establish the anti-opium clinic, a fundraising campaign was held from February to July 1933. Chen also requested from the colonial government for an annual support of $20,000 or a dollar-for-dollar match of the funds raised by the clinic. The government agreed to contribute a dollar for each dollar subscribed, capped at $10,000, for a period of six months. The clinic, which operated entirely on public support, managed to raise $13,781.77 in its first year of establishment. This amount comprised contributions from churches, Chinese associations as well as a one-time government grant of about $9,211.^[3]

The clinic was located in a spacious and cool two-storey compound house that was once the residence of a rich Chinese merchant. It was fitted with modern sanitation, and provided outpatient services as well as inpatient facilities with 100 beds. It was managed by Chen on a voluntary basis as clinic director, and was staffed by two medical officers, a superintendent, two dresser-dispensers, a nurse, three clerks, three attendants, two dhobis (laundry men), a gardener and a security guard.^[4]

Male and female inpatients were housed separately at the clinic. All inpatients were provided with a bed, mat, bug-proof pillow, face and bath towels, slippers, mug, basin and a set of clothes free-of-charge. However, patients could pay a one-time fee of $5 to $10 for better sleep materials, while wealthy patients could pay $2 a day for furnished rooms. Each patient was also charged 20 cents daily for three meals served to them in a spacious dining hall. The more affluent could pay 20 cents extra for better food, while poor patients were not charged for meals. The meals ensured that the patients’ dietary needs were met for good health and quick recovery.^[5]

At the end of 1933, Chen reported that 1,011 patients comprising 930 males and 81 females had been treated;^[6] one year later, the number had increased to 2,000. By 1935, 3,200 addicts had been cured since the clinic opened.^[7]

The clinic was closed in 1938 due to lack of funds, as donations from the Chinese community in Singapore were diverted to fund the war relief efforts in China.^[8]

References
1. The anti-opium clinic. (1934, May 14). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Cheah J. S. (2005). The first graduates in 1910. Annals Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 34(6), 22C. Call no.: RSING 610.5 AMSAAM.
2. Chen S. L. (1935). The opium problem in British Malaya (pp. 1, 5) [Microfilm: NL 7461]. Singapore: Singapore Anti-Opium Society; Complete suppression of opium smoking advocated. (1934, November 27). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
3. Opium addicts in Singapore. (1934, November 19). The Straits Times, p. 12. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Chen, S. L. (1934). Opium is a deadly poison: An ad interim report: May 8th to December 1933 (n.p.). Singapore: Singapore Anti-Opium Society. Not available in NLB holdings.
4. Chen, 1934, n.p.
5. Chen, 1934, n.p; Anti-opium clinic overcrowded. (1935, October 21). The Straits Times, p. 13. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
6. Chen, 1934, n.p.
7. Anti-opium clinic. (1935, November 12). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
8. Anti-opium clinic has closed down. (1938, August 11). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), p. 9. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.