COVID-19 has been around for just a couple of months and it has already affected almost everyone in the world.
As of now, over 13.6 million people have been infected, and more than 586,150 people have died because of it.
And the situation in Singapore isn’t looking too great either.
Yes, our numbers have dropped significantly from before we started the circuit breaker, and most of our cases are of foreign workers in dormitories, but that doesn’t mean that the rest of Singapore is completely safe yet.
Did you know that Singapore has actually done over one million COVID-19 tests on about 520,000 people?
And just between 6 and 13 July alone, the Ministry of Health (MOH) reported that about 143,000 swabs were tested.
COVID-19 Testing
I’m sure you would have known that testing is one of the key strategies that we have to attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19, simply because early detection can be allowed.
When a person is found to be infected, authorities can immediately ring-fence the cases before they infect someone else.
Yes, like how people were joking about Yishun previously.
Except, we all know that Yishun’s actually a pretty good place to live in lah.
In June, our Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said that Singapore was enhancing its testing capacity so that 40,000 tests can be conducted in a day by the next half of the year.
As such, four regional screening centres have been opened at the Old Police Academy, The Float @ Marina Bay, Bukit Gombak Sports Hall, and Bishan Sports Hall.
It seems that the fifth centre will be opened at 7 Bedok North Street 2, which is what’s previously known as the Sepak Takraw Sports Hall.
Currently, not everyone in Singapore is being summoned to go for testing. That’s just not Singapore’s key strategy.
However, many target groups like the elderly and healthcare workers have actively been sent for screening.
Patients with acute respiratory infections have also been tested at a rate of 600 swabs a day last month. But the criteria to get swabbed has been revised for this month and will include such patients who are 13 and older.
On 25 June, MOH also noted its plans to ensure all front-line staff who interact with travellers as Singapore reopens its borders get tested as well.
Testing Rate Is Among The Highest
I’m sure it would probably come as a surprise to know that as of 13 July, Singapore has conducted about 177,000 tests per million population.
And this is the third-highest rate in the world and the highest rate among Asean nations.
According to the global statistics site Worldometer, the country with the highest rate in the world is Denmark, with 217,013 tests conducted per million, followed by the United Kingdom, with 180,712 tests conducted per million.
While the United States has a total of 44 million tests conducted, their rate is only at 132,993 tests conducted per million.
If we take a look at our neighbouring countries, you’ll probably be surprised too.
Malaysia’s testing rate is most likely about 26,264 tests per million, and Indonesia’s rate is about 4,011 tests per million despite being one of the countries in the region to have been impacted the most.
Authorities Moving In “A Lot Faster”
National Development Minister Lawrence Wong, who co-chairs the multi-ministry task force to battle against COVID-19 here, started the month off with a speech saying that our authorities are now moving in “a lot faster” when a person is discovered to be infected with COVID-19.
He said, “(When) we know that there is a case, we immediately go in to identify a larger group that potentially might be close contacts, and we quickly test them and isolate any potentially infected persons. That’s the new way of operating in this phase because of our increased capabilities in testing and tracing.”
He also said that more people should be prepared to be notified when a case is found and more people will be sent for testing so that we can attempt to curb the spread of the virus.
It was evident how fast authorities moved when Block 111 Tampines Street 11 became a cluster and everyone in the households in that block, including their visitors, were tested immediately.
However, Mr Wong noted, “While we have this enhanced testing and tracing capability, I think we should not take it for granted that this system is foolproof and we can catch every single case. We should not push the system to its limits; we should not be taking unnecessary risks.”
While we are in phase 2 right now and we can finally go out to shop and eat, albeit with social distancing, we should still be alert and more observant. The virus hasn’t gone away yet and we should still play our part in ensuring that our personal hygiene is maintained.
Stay safe, everyone. We wouldn’t want another circuit breaker, right?
Now that you’re done knowing our home’s testing capabilities, it’s time to learn about making your home WiFi powderful like 5G:
Watch this for a complete summary of what REALLY happened to Qoo10, and why it's like a K-drama:
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