Increase in locally transmitted COVID-19 cases and clusters in Singapore
By Michelle Lim
Singapore’s focus is now on locally transmitted cases, said Minister Lawrence Wong, co-chair of the country’s multi-ministry COVID-19 taskforce at a press conference on March 31, as he urged Singaporeans to do their part and comply with safe distancing measures.
Following the first wave of initial cases from China and the second wave of imported cases from returnees coming back to Singapore, the country is now seeing a new wave of locally transmitted cases.
“…Particularly worrying are the unlinked cases. We have an excellent contact tracing team, and they are going all out to trace down each and every new case, identify the links and to ringfence the cluster,” said Wong.
The country reported 47 new cases of COVID-19 infection on March 31, bringing the total number to 926. Of the confirmed cases, 31 were local cases with 13 linked to previous cases or clusters. 16 were imported cases, with eight that had travelled to the United Kingdom.
In an update to parliament on March 25, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said that the United Kingdom, US and Indonesia were the top three sources of imported cases. The map below shows the top 15 countries that infected cases had travelled to.
Gan added that Singapore had “slowed the local spread thus far through a three-pronged approach: first, reducing importation; second, detecting and isolating cases early; and third, emphasising social responsibility and good personal hygiene habits.”
A calibrated approach
Singapore has adopted a calibrated approach by proactively updating its response to the COVID-19 pandemic depending on the changing situation. It has progressively tightened border controls and travel restrictions to reduce the risk of importation. Since March 26, Singapore residents returning from the US and UK serve a mandatory 14-day Stay-Home Notice at dedicated facilities like hotels to reduce the risk of potential transmission to their family members.
And with signs of increasing community spread — 17 local clusters were reported in Singapore as at March 31 — the government is further emphasising safe distancing and other measures to try to slow down the inflection rate and flatten the curve. The map below shows the location of the clusters, and the larger the circle, the more cases in that cluster.
The government has also given safe distancing measures legal force. From March 27, people who breach their stay-home notice, or who intentionally sit down, or queue less than 1m away from another person in a public place can be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to six months, or both.
Managing healthcare capacity
And as the COVID-19 pandemic increasingly strains health systems in many countries, Singapore has been adjusting how it manages its healthcare capacity.
Past experiences have guided the country in managing the current pandemic. During the 2003 SARS, patients were treated at one dedicated acute care hospital, Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Today, all public hospitals are equipped to handle COVID-19 cases.
However, most of Singapore’s COVID-19 patients are treated at the 330-bed National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID). Opened in September 2019, the hospital has 124 negative pressure rooms and was purpose built after the SARS outbreak to manage infectious outbreaks in Singapore. The map below shows the hospitals handling COVID-19 cases and their total case volumes.
To ensure sufficient buffer capacity in the healthcare system, well and stable COVID-19 patients are being quarantined at private or community care facilities from March 20 instead of the public hospitals so as to free up critical hospital resources for the seriously ill, said Health Minister Gan in parliament on March 25.
260 cases who were clinically well but still tested positive for COVID-19 have been transferred to Concord International Hospital, Mount Elizabeth Hospital, Gleneagles Hospital and the Community Isolation Facility at D’Resort NTUC for isolation and care, according to the Health Ministry’s daily update on March 31.
A total of 240 cases have fully recovered and have been discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities as at March 31. Three have died from complications due to COVID-19 infection.
