New healthcare system launched for those living in eastern S’pore

Residents in the eastern part of Singapore can look forward to new healthcare programmes which will ensure ongoing patient treatment even after they are discharged from the hospital.

Known as the Eastern Health Alliance (EH Alliance), this new system launched by Health Minister Gan Kim Yong on Friday was the result of a partnership of four health service providers.

They include the Changi General Hospital (CGH), SingHealth Polyclinics, St. Andrew’s Community Hospital and The Salvation Army Peacehaven Nursing Home.

Chairman of EH Alliance Gerard Ee noted that its aim is to detect and prevent chronic diseases, and to educate and support patients and caregivers on health management.

“Ultimately we aim to deliver quality care that is seamless and that empowers patients and caregivers to manage their health well for as long as possible,” he said, adding that particular focus would be given to care for the elderly.

Under this new system, is a pilot rehabilitative care programme called “Grace Corner” which looks at assisting patients from CGH with debilitating hip fractures or who require “low-intensity rehabilitation” to regain physical mobility.

Chief executive officer of EH Alliance and CGH T. K. Udairam said there will be more emphasis on educating patients and caregivers on physiotherapy exercises to ensure the latter are mentally prepared when they take over the task of caring for their family members.

The programme targets to have around 80 per cent of its residents ready to return home within three months.

Meanwhile, CGH said it will extend its transitional care initiative – first introduced in April last year – to orthopedic patients early next year.

The programme which became a full-fledged service in February this year comprises a team which includes doctors, nurses and social workers to stabilize and rehabilitate patients with unstable medical conditions such as heart failure for up to three months after they are discharged.

Another key initiative is the health management unit which employs nurses who are trained to provide follow-up care and monitor patients between their medical visits.

Targeting those with chronic or long-term diseases such as diabetes and stroke, the process involves calling up patients and educating them on how to stay healthy and look out for signs of deterioration.

First started in June last year, the pilot programme focused solely on diabetic patients, and it notched improvements in their conditions with reduction in blood pressure and lipid control. In addition, the re-admission rate of patients on this programme is lower compared to those on standard therapy.

As part of the new system, the initiative will be expanded to include patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and those suffering from heart failure.

EH Alliance will also set up a second community health care centre following the success of its first which was set in Tampines back in August last year. Then, the centre had roped in around 179 general practitioners, with 63 per cent of them located within 5km of the facility.

Under this programme, GPs can refer patients to the centre for services such as digital diabetic eyes screening and diabetic foot screening.

The centre has served more than 1,100 patients to date with one in five eye screenings requiring further evaluation while one in 10 who went for foot screenings had medium to high risk of developing foot complications.

Touching on this new model, Gan said that while the country’s healthcare system may evolve to meet future challenges, the healthcare provider’s responsibility towards patients cannot end when they are discharged.

“For example, elderly patients are more likely to have multiple chronic ailments that require ongoing treatment and monitoring, and would appreciate being cared for by a doctor in the community rather than in the hospital,” he said.