Abstract
The COVID-19 outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization on January 30, 2020. Since then, the virus has spread to affect more countries worldwide. During this period, our nuclear medicine department at Singapore General Hospital segregated our staff and patients by time, by space, or both, to minimize contact and prevent spread of the virus. Necessary changes to our clinical practices and stricter infection control measures were also enforced. We share our personal experience in managing a nuclear medicine department during this epidemic.
Highlights
The COVID-19 outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization on January 30, 2020
These cases were was later found to be due to a novel coronavirus [1]
The first patient detected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Singapore was admitted to the Singapore General Hospital on January 23, 2020 [4]
Summary
Previous experience with the severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak in Singapore in 2003 taught us that disease transmission takes place within the hospital. There were designated waiting rooms for inpatients so they would not be in physical contact with outpatients. Patients suspected to have COVID-19 were escorted to this room until further assessment could be done (patients would wear a face mask while those escorting the patients would don personal protective equipment [PPE]) Management decisions, such as whether admission was required, were made with the advice of an infectious disease specialist. Nuclear medicine physicians within Singapore General Hospital were split into 2 teams. Appointments for patients from high-risk countries such as China were postponed when possible. The same expectation applied to staff who returned from high-risk areas During this period, all student internships and clinical postings were suspended to avoid unnecessary exposure. Photograph of isolation room in our nuclear medicine department. Were generally discouraged; many moved to online discussions via video conferencing
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