Shawn Ambrose, Author at Goody Feed

Singapore - taking kiasiness to the next level since 1965. You know that kid in school who always sat at the front of the class and who did extra homework every single day? You found him annoying, but he topped the class in every exam and teachers always praised him. Singapore during the Covid-19 outbreak has been a bit like this kid; we're being as kiasu as possible to ensure we don't end up like other countries with thousands of infections and deaths. Yes, if there's one thing that sets apart from other countries, it's that we're incredibly kiasu and kiasi well-prepared. Reason Why Some COVID-19 Patients Will be Housed in Chalets Instead of Hospital When it was announced that Covid-19 patients who still have the virus and are recovering will be moved to chalets, people started scratching their heads. Is having a staycation one of the novel treatments for the disease? Well, you should know by now that even if the authorities implement a new measure during the Covid-19 pandemic that seems strange or unnecessary, there's probably a good reason for it. The Ministry of Health (MOH) announced yesterday that it had set up a Community Isolation Facility at D'Resort NTUC in Pasir Ris which can accommodate 500 people. Covid-19 patients who are recovering will be moved to this facility where they will continue to be isolated. Reader: Are there any voluntary quarantines available at this facility? These patients will also receive medical attention even though they are "clinically well enough to be discharged from medical care." MOH said that the facility is modelled after existing Government Quarantine Facilities, though the staff there would observe "a higher baseline level of infection control". The cost of isolation in the community isolation facility will be borne by the Government. Free stay at a chalet? Damn, that's not bad at all. But why the move? Are hospitals running out of capacity or something? Not quite. Preparing for a Surge Remember what I said about Singapore being extra kiasi? Well, this measure, along with a host of other measures, are preemptive steps that we're taking to prepare for a potential spike in cases in the future. We're essentially trying to flatten the curve that everyone is talking about. Image: Science Alert You see, how this pandemic progresses depends on us. If we don't take the necessary precautions early on, we could have a high number of cases in a short period of time. This is the steep curve. Image: LiveScience But if we manage to slow down the rate of infection, the same number of people will get infected, but over a longer period of time. This is important because our healthcare systems cannot cope with a quick influx of many cases at one moment in time. If our healthcare systems are overwhelmed, more patients will die because there won’t’ be enough intensive care beds or ventilators to keep them alive. This is why we're moving Covid-19 patients who are recovering to other facilities, so we can free up beds and equipment in case there's a spike in the future. In other words, prepare for that steep curve that other countries are trying to flatten. "As the number of Covid-19 cases rises across the world, we expect the number of cases in Singapore to increase. Therefore, we are taking steps to increase our healthcare capacity," said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong. As you know, 49 patients were moved to private hospitals on Monday (23 March) to free up capacity at public hospitals for the more seriously ill Covid-19 patients. This makes sense, doesn't it? Otherwise, doctors here might face the horrific dilemma that many doctors in Italy are encountering: having to decide who lives and who dies because of a lack of medical equipment. Yes, we're kiasu AF, but it's certainly paying off during this pandemic. Saving lives even before they're dying.

Shawn Ambrose

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