Ms Michelle Goh

Michelle’s clinical interests have been shaped by the patients she has cared for throughout her career. She has developed particular depth in paediatric podiatry, podiatric rheumatology and musculoskeletal conditions, while continuing to enjoy the hands-on and practical aspects of general podiatric care.

Paediatric Podiatry
Michelle’s interest in paediatric podiatry has grown significantly since moving into private practice. She sees children across a wide age range, from infants with ingrown toenails to young children with flat feet, in-toeing, toe walking and gait concerns, as well as older children and adolescents with problems such as heel pain and developing bunions.

Her approach is centred on understanding whether a child’s foot structure or gait is actually affecting their comfort, movement or participation. Depending on the child, management may involve reassurance and monitoring, footwear or activity advice, rehabilitation, or customised paediatric foot orthoses such as supramalleolar orthoses.

Having experienced painful flat feet herself, Michelle is particularly conscious of helping families understand when intervention may — or may not — be necessary, while encouraging children to remain positive and confident about movement.

Podiatric Rheumatology
Michelle developed extensive experience in podiatric rheumatology during her six years as Lead Podiatrist at the Singapore General Hospital Autoimmune and Rheumatology Clinic, managing patients with rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and other inflammatory and autoimmune conditions.

She particularly enjoys the complexity and continuity of rheumatology podiatry. Medical treatment for autoimmune disease may be episodic, but living with a chronic condition is not. Michelle values the opportunity to journey with patients as their condition evolves, from periods of active disease to more stable phases, recognising that there is often something that can be done to improve comfort, mobility and quality of life from the feet up.

Her experience includes managing painful foot deformities and altered loading through complex orthotic management, as well as addressing skin and nail problems that may become more difficult to manage in patients with chronic disease, mobility limitations or other barriers to care. She worked closely with rheumatologists and allied health professionals as part of multidisciplinary management and continues to contribute to rheumatology education and outreach.

Musculoskeletal Podiatry and Lower Limb Biomechanics
Michelle enjoys the investigative and problem-solving aspects of musculoskeletal podiatry. Rather than focusing solely on where a patient feels pain, she aims to understand the contributing factors — including biomechanics, tissue loading, activity, footwear and movement patterns — and how these may be interacting.

She provides conservative management for a range of foot and ankle musculoskeletal conditions, tailoring treatment to the individual’s symptoms, activities and goals. Depending on the presentation, this may include education, activity modification, rehabilitation, customised foot orthoses and treatment modalities such as Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy and Electromagnetic Transduction Therapy.

Skin and Nail Conditions
Alongside her main clinical interests, Michelle enjoys the hands-on procedural side of podiatry and manages a broad range of skin and nail conditions, including ingrown toenails, fungal nail infections and warts. Her treatment may range from conservative care to procedures such as partial nail avulsion (PNA), Photodynamic Antimicrobial Therapy (PACT), cryotherapy and wart needling. These skills are particularly valuable when seemingly straightforward problems are complicated by underlying disease, foot deformity, mobility limitations or other barriers to care.

Michelle graduated from Queensland University of Technology with a Bachelor of Podiatry with First Class Honours in 2017, graduating top of her cohort. She was awarded the Ministry of Health Healthcare Merit Scholarship during her undergraduate training and subsequently completed a Master of Public Health at the National University of Singapore.

She is also a Certified Foot Mobilisation and Manipulation Therapy Practitioner, Level II.

Her academic achievements include the Leonard K. Claxton Award for Clinical Studies from the Australian Podiatry Association in 2015 and 2017, and the Philip R. Perlman Prize for Podiatric Radiology in 2015. She has also received service awards recognising her contribution to patient care.

Michelle spent eight years at Singapore General Hospital, progressing from junior podiatrist to senior podiatrist and eventually Team Lead. In this leadership role, she contributed to staff development, manpower planning and clinical mentorship, particularly in musculoskeletal care. Alongside her broader team leadership responsibilities, she served as Lead Podiatrist at the Autoimmune and Rheumatology Clinic from 2020 to 2026, where she managed complex foot problems associated with inflammatory and autoimmune conditions and developed particular depth in rheumatology and musculoskeletal care. This gave her broad experience across podiatric practice while allowing her to develop particular depth in rheumatology and musculoskeletal care.

Her leadership experience later extended into community and population health. As Lead Podiatrist at Tiong Bahru Community Health Centre, she contributed to preventative foot care and community health education. She also developed a referral pathway to help doctors direct patients to the most appropriate podiatry service within the Southeast region of Singapore, with the aim of reducing inappropriate referrals and improving access to timely care.

Following completion of her Master of Public Health, Michelle was appointed Allied Health Division Population Health Deputy Precinct Lead. This broadened her perspective beyond individual clinical care and strengthened her interest in prevention, early intervention and improving healthcare accessibility. Together, these experiences have shaped the way Michelle practises today: combining the depth of specialist clinical experience with a broader understanding of prevention, patient access and the importance of providing the right intervention at the right time.

Michelle has remained involved in professional education, public health and research throughout her career. She has conducted educational sessions for junior doctors undertaking rheumatology rotations and provided continuing education for National Kidney Foundation nurses in 2024 and Diabetes Singapore nurse educators in 2025, with regards to diabetic foot assessment and management.

She was a member of the Rheumatology Podiatry Singapore Interest Group and co-organised its Learning Symposium in 2021. In 2025, she also presented on conservative bunion management in Mandarin at a Singapore General Hospital public forum alongside orthopaedic colleagues. She continues to contribute to public and professional education, including an invitation to speak at the Lupus Association (Singapore) Empowerment Talk in 2026 on Foot Health and Lupus. As part of her Master of Public Health, Michelle was a joint first author of research published in Proceedings of Singapore Healthcare in 2024, examining patients’ perspectives on a programme designed to reduce emergency department use for low-acuity conditions. The project reflects Michelle’s broader interest in patient-centred care and improving how healthcare services are designed around patients’ needs.

Goh WX, Ong RHS, Rebello SA, Goh PSK, Ahmad EA, How CH, Tiruchittampalam M, Oh HC, Lim SHC. Patients’ perspectives on a programme to reduce emergency department use for low acuity conditions. Proceedings of Singapore Healthcare. 2024;33:1–9. DOI: 10.1177/20101058241268494