Abstract
The recent coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was declared as a public health emergency by the World Health Organisation on 30th January 2020, and has now affected more than 100 countries. Healthcare institutions and governments worldwide have raced to contain the disease, albeit to varying degrees of success. Containment strategies adopted range from complete lockdowns to remaining open with public advisories regarding social distancing. However, general principles adopted by most countries remain the same, mainly to avoid gatherings in large numbers and limit social interactions to curb the spread of disease. In Singapore, this disease had a very different progression. The first wave of the disease started with the confirmation of the first COVID-19 positive patient in Singapore on 23rd January 2020. Initially, the daily number of confirmed cases were low and manageable. With a rise in unlinked cases, the Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (DORSCON) status was raised from yellow to orange. New cluster outbreaks in foreign worker dormitories led to the rampant spread of disease, with daily spikes of COVID-19 cases. As of 7th June 2020, we have a total of 37,910 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infections, the highest in Southeast Asia, 12,999 active cases and a manageable mortality count of 25 deaths. This details our unique method for dealing with a pandemic, including a brief demographic of trauma patients during this period. We were able to conserve sufficient resources to ensure that our essential services can still continue. Moving on, we have to ensure the continued protection of our population, especially the vulnerable groups such as the elderly and the immunocompromised, as we reopen.
Highlights
The recent coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was declared as a public health emergency by the World Health Organisation on 30th January 2020, and has affected more than 100 countries
With a rise in unlinked cases, the Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (DORSCON) status was raised from yellow to orange
New cluster outbreaks in foreign worker dormitories led to the rampant spread of disease, with daily spikes of COVID-19 cases
Summary
The recent coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was declared as a public health emergency by the World Health Organisation on 30th January 2020, and has affected more than 100 countries. In the initial stages, day surgeries were allowed to continue, a practice adopted in other healthcare institutions in Singapore as well[8] This was because these patients would be discharged within 23 hours of their hospital admission, not requiring a significant increase in hospital resources or beds. Swabs were done within 72 hours of planned discharge to ensure that the patient was confirmed COVID-19 negative These measures were set in place to prevent more foreign worker clusters. From January to April 2020, there have been 402 trauma cases having undergone surgery in Changi General Hospital These patients include those with multiple and complex injuries requiring multiple operations. Our mortality rates may not be comparable to other countries as well in view of the younger age group of COVID-19 patents
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