Singapore clinic ‘experiment’ demonstrates a potential path towards democratization of longevity medicine.
Nestled in the densely populated streets of Singapore, a longevity clinic with a difference is quietly conducting its work. At a glance, Bartley Clinic appears to offer many of the diagnostic and prevention services offered by high-end, concierge clinics around the world, but it’s doing so in a primary care setting.
The brainchild of Dr Hisham Badaruddin, Bartley Clinic is a general practice doctor’s office that also offers longevity medicine. Essentially an experiment, the clinic was established to explore if longevity medicine could be delivered in a more affordable, hybrid model, and to explore potential routes towards delivering it on a large scale.
Longevity.Technology: Singapore has long been regarded as one of the most advanced locations in the world when it comes to longevity, so it’s perhaps no surprise to find the city-state playing host to an innovative initiative like Bartley Clinic. We sat down recently with Dr Hisham to learn more about the clinic’s experiences so far.
Having worked in preventive medicine and public health for the vast majority of his 29-year career as a doctor, Hisham recently made the shift into longevity medicine when he helped set up Singapore’s first private longevity clinic.
“While I was there, I started to think that this longevity science, although it’s still very niche and very embryonic, should be used to help many more people,” he says.
It was this simple idea led him to open Bartley Clinic in September 2023.
“The clinic is actually an experiment where I try and infuse primary care with longevity,” he says. “It’s a bit different, because a lot of the longevity clinics are targeting high net worth individuals – the rich and famous. And that’s understandable, because all the testing and the diagnostics and everything else is expensive. But at Bartley Clinic I try and keep things affordable, so that it can be accessed by more people.”
Reducing the cost of longevity medicine
While many longevity clinics will highlight the comprehensive diagnostics and biomarker analysis they offer to clients, Hisham takes a different approach.
“Sure, you can spend tens of thousands of dollars doing all the most advanced diagnostics available, but this is never going to be an option for someone who isn’t a high net worth individual,” he says, explaining that Bartley Clinic is focused on a core number of biomarkers that still deliver valuable insights into a patient’s health trajectory.
The clinic’s most expensive longevity package still comes in under US $1,000, offering two consultation sessions, centered around a biomarker analysis including a full blood analysis, cardiac health, metabolic health, hormone levels, organ functions such as kidney and liver, tumour markers, bone health, iron profile, and thyroid function. Lower cost options looking at fewer biomarkers are also available.
For Hisham, the consultation sessions are key.
“For me, this is not just about the biomarkers or the genetics or the diagnostics – it’s about you as a person,” he says. “It’s not just about decreasing your cholesterol levels – we still do that if it needs to be done – but it’s really about looking at how we can prevent it from increasing in the first place. So, I focus on you as a person, as a human being who is influenced by your environment, by your work, by your family, and the stresses in life and your lifestyle. And the starting point is basically sitting down for about an hour and getting to know you.”
Partnerships are key
After the initial consultation, the patient undergoes testing and then returns for the second consultation, which includes a personalised analysis of the information gathered from the consult, the biomarker data, and data from body measurements. Then comes the key part of the process – recommendations for next steps, spanning areas such as sleep, exercise, nutrition, supplements, and stress management, all of which are highly focused on the patient’s immediate goals.
“I look at what the focus or the concern of the patient is, and then we zone in on that,” says Hisham. “We don’t try to fix everything at once – we do it stepwise so things fall into place. If you are going to live longer and healthier, you have time to spread things out, and that’s how you cut down the cost as well.”
Cost savings are a top priority in this experiment, so rather than have a lot of expensive equipment on-site, Bartley Clinic has partnerships with other providers, if and when a patient requires additional services.
“We can do things like epigenetics, DEXA scans, VO2 max, diagnostic imaging, cold plunges, red light therapy – I’ve got partners that do all those things,” says Hisham. “That can mean that the patient journey is a bit more fragmented, but that’s the price of a lower cost version of longevity medicine. You can’t have it both ways.”
Generating data and revenue
Having opened the doors of Bartley Clinic just over a year ago, Hisham has seen his practice grow from zero to over 2,000 patients – 60% of whom are regular primary care patients. This, he says, is another key element of his business model.
“With 2,000 patients, I am generating both data and revenue,” explains Hisham, adding that some of his primary care patients have also now become longevity medicine clients. “A lot of longevity clinics are struggling with the same challenge of trying to find patients, because they’re all focused on the same small group: high net worth individuals. I do have some of those clients as well, but my focus is much more on the middle classes.”
Hisham is also refreshingly honest and open about the challenges he faces.
“One thing I’ve learned in this experiment is that primary care doesn’t have time for one-hour consults,” he says. “So, if we really want to democratize this, then we’re going to need other tools to help – technology is a must.”
“I’m looking for people who can help me realize this dream of democratizing longevity medicine, whether that’s an investor, a clinical partner, or a technology partner. When it comes to partners, the most important thing for me right now is, how they can add value to what I’m doing, not just the amount of funding.”
So, having run Bartley Clinic for a year now, does Hisham feel that he’s making progress?
“I’m glad I started this experiment – I wasn’t quite sure when I started whether it would work or not,” he says. “But, for me, the main thing was to show that democratizing longevity medicine can be done. And I think I’m doing that. In fact, next month, I’ll be opening my second branch in a more central and unique location in the middle of Singapore.”
“It’s still a work in progress. It’s not perfect yet, but hopefully next year it will be.”
