Infectious diseases law and severe acute respiratory syndrome – medical and legal responses and implications: the Singapore experience

Abstract

When considering infectious diseases, both the medical and consequent legal perspectives are important elements. With the recent epidemics of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), type A Fujian influenza, tuberculosis, HIV, monkey pox and other communicable diseases, strict regulations on infection control have been developed to reduce the risk of disease transmission. Public health measures have to adapt to new health threats and methods of disease control. A comprehensive infectious disease law is needed to enforce the control measures for an effective implementation The law is an essential tool in medical and public health work to create the necessary social conditions for people to live healthily in a safe environment. Innovative new techniques, namely thermal imaging scanners (which Singapore is the first country in the world to implement it) and close-circuit cameras, have been used in the identification of febrile people and in the surveillance of quarantined persons, respectively. Case-identification (testing and screening), isolation to stop transmission by infected persons, contact tracing as well as vaccination, are some of the control measures to curb the spread of communicable diseases. Good surveillance and effective diagnostic tools can spot disease outbreaks very early. This article discusses both the medical and legal responses including the legal implications of the recent epidemic SARS outbreak in Singapore against the backdrop of the global efforts to control SARS.