NAVY Colonel John Wong Chee Meng is not your typical career military man - he is also a doctor.

True, he stands ramrod straight and looks lean and fit.

But when you meet the 44-year-old, he sets you immediately at ease with the even, gentle tones of a physician with refined bedside manners.

Except that this psychiatrist has learnt to apply his clinical knowledge not just in the wards, but also outdoors in the field and underwater, or what he calls the 'austere environment'.

From Sunday, Col Wong will wear a rear admiral (one star) epaulette, the Navy's equivalent of a brigadier-general.

Reflecting on his 18-year career during an interview, the newly promoted Chief of Medical Corps admits it has been 'quite an interesting one' that marries 'two realms of professionalism'.

'The reason I chose to join the force was a very simple one. I wanted to be a psychiatrist and I also wanted to be an SAF officer,' he said.

As his career progressed, the commander, who at one point was the head of the Military Medicine Institute's Psychological Care Centre, also branched into other areas of medicine.

When the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) decided to develop a submarine capability, Col Wong jumped at the opportunity to involve himself 'meaningfully' in the development of submarine medicine capabilities.

That was in the mid-1990s.

To this end, he trained to become a qualified diving physician, acquiring the skills to treat illnesses and accidents that can happen to those operating underwater.

As the armed forces' most senior doctor, Col Wong is responsible for setting the direction of medical policies and plans affecting both the Defence Ministry and the SAF.

This includes the provision of quality health care for troops and investigating how technology can improve human performance in combat situations.

'I am very passionate about what I am doing now, but at heart I am also a very passionate clinician,' he said.

So, despite his 'many administrative and military appointments and responsibilities', he still tries to make time to practise, he said.

And the doctor in him showed through naturally when The Straits Times accompanied him on a visit to observe military doctors-to-be in training.

'After exercises, make sure everyone drinks enough fluid,' he was overheard as saying.