COVID-19: First patient to test positive in IMH cluster admitted on 19 April
SINGAPORE – The first patient who tested positive in the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) cluster was admitted to a ward there on 19 April.
In a statement issued after the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced that it is a COVID-19 cluster on Thursday (30 April), IMH said that the first patient is a 64-year-old male patient who was subsequently moved to an isolation ward on 27 April when he developed fever and cough. He was also given a swab test.
The man tested positive on 28 April and is currently being treated at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID).
“As a precautionary measure, IMH tested all remaining 34 patients staying in the same ward as well as staff who were caring for the patients in the ward. Three patients tested positive on 29 April. The three patients are 49, 32 and 24 years old and were admitted to IMH on 16, 18 and 20 April 2020 respectively,” IMH added. “As their symptoms are mild, they are currently being cared for at IMH in an isolation ward.”
Contact tracing for close contacts of these patients is ongoing. The remaining 31 patients who tested negative will continue to be monitored closely.
IMH said it is managing the situation in consultation with MOH and NCID.
As an additional precaution, IMH said it will be testing more inpatients and staff in the coming weeks. “This proactive and aggressive testing is to enable us to detect possible asymptomatic cases so that early steps can be taken to minimise further spread,” IMH said.
Precautionary measures have already been put in place at IMH since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak in Singapore.
Measures for staff include twice-daily temperature taking, wearing of appropriate Personal Protection Equipment at work and split team or modular work arrangements where feasible. Staff are regularly reminded not to come to work if they are unwell and to seek medical advice promptly. They also practice safe distancing and strict hand hygiene.
Inpatients’ temperatures are monitored twice a day and nurses look out for signs of any illness, particularly typical COVID-19 symptoms. “We also provide patient education to help patients understand the Covid-19 situation and the importance of personal hygiene and infection control,” IMH said.
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