Doctors at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the National University Hospital (NUH) call him the uber pharmacist.

One even told Mind Your Body that Mr Yeoh Siang Fei (left), 42, "has saved our hides" on occasion.

To the mild-mannered critical care pharmacist, it's "all in a day's work".

"I am no superman," he said. "In critical care, the members of the team - nurses, doctors and pharmacists - work for the betterment of the patient."

But as the principal pharmacist with the hospital, he thinks of himself as a decathlete, competing in 10 events in the Olympics, "while my colleagues are competing in single events," he said, smiling.

Pharmacy services in critical care have expanded dramatically and they now include assisting doctors in making decisions about drug therapy, providing information on how the body reacts to a drug, monitoring patients for how safe and effective a drug is, and offering drug education to doctors, nurses and patients.

What makes it more complex is that for patients in intensive care, there is a thin line between life and death - usually with two or more organs being compromised, he added.

"It is a job that brings together all the knowledge of drug therapy in the state of both chronic and acute diseases. Just bear in mind that the severity of both these conditions is at its peak," he said. Furthermore, these patients are either in a coma or terribly sick and unable to swallow medicines, so more than nine out of 10 intensive care patients get their drugs through injection. Mr Yeoh started out in 1996 in the marketing department of a pharmaceutical company.

"When I was in Vietnam, I realised the drugs that could help the people were priced beyond their financial means," he said. It was not a difficult decision to quit. Joining NUH 3 1/2 years ago, Mr Yeoh was assigned to the ICU, where he works with a team of critical care professionals. Dr Sophia Ang, a senior consultant with the hospital's department of anaesthesia, said: "The doctors in ICU  are most grateful for Siang Fei's tremendous dedication and depth of knowledge which has enhanced the safety and quality of care for our  patients."

It's all about respecting others and their expertise. Said Mr Yeoh: "There is no belittling anyone or dismissing anyone's existence. Everyone is there to offer his or her best to help the patient."

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