COVID-19 has peaked in Singapore but doctors watching out for possible surges
Singapore, Jan 6: Doctors in Singapore believe the latest COVID-19 wave has peaked in the country, even as some clinics still face higher than usual patient loads, and doctors are watching out for possible surges in the coming months.
The doctors are seeing cases stabilise, down by around 20 per cent from December, according to a Channel News Asia report on Friday.
However, clinics are already planning for more man power and medication supplies in anticipation of another surge in the months ahead.
Healthway Medical, for instance, now sees an average of 50 to 60 patients come in daily with respiratory infections across its 57 clinics, the report said. COVID-19 and influenza cases make up the bulk of them.
This is around 10 per cent higher than regular patient loads but a slight drop from the peak around Christmas.
"The peak of all the upper respiratory tract infection cases has plateaued. Majority of people have already returned from travelling," CNA quoted head of primary care at Healthway Medical Group Dr John Cheng as saying.
"Most of our clinics actually had enough buffer for all the acute and upper respiratory tract infections to cater for a sudden surge of patient numbers," he said.
"For the end of the year, there will definitely be a surge. And then, most of the time, during festive seasons, during holidays - with more and more people interacting, more travellers (travelling) in and out - we will be expecting some surges during those periods," he said.
OneCare Medical is also seeing cases stabilise across its 38 clinics. It said cases are less likely to go up significantly again in the near term.
"We feel that the ARI (Acute Respiratory Infection) has already peaked, so we should see the numbers stabilise and probably slowly come down over the next few weeks, back to the usual baseline numbers," CNA quoted CEO of OneCare Medical Dr Jimmy Chew as saying.
"Of course, if the weather continues to be quite cold, and there continues to be a lot of circulating strains of ARI pathogens, then perhaps we might still see the numbers being sustained," he said.
"With Chinese New Year coming up (February 10), there will still be ongoing gatherings. And of course there are still some travellers travelling, especially those who want to take advantage of the off-peak season," said Chew.
"There might still probably be a bit of infectious diseases still ongoing. But of course, hopefully, we have already seen the peak of ARI cases, so that we will observe a downward trend in the coming weeks," he said.
"I think we need to keep a close surveillance of the situation. So, medication wise, we tend to stock up more prior to the expectation of this peak," said Dr Daniel Soong, medical director at Unihealth Clinic, was quoted as saying by CNA.
"If we notice that there is an increase in cases and caseloads, we might deploy more manpower in our clinic to ease off the waiting time for the patients," Soong said.
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India progressing under PM Modi, Karnataka heading towards decline: Union Minister Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru (PTI): Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy has said while India is moving steadily towards becoming the world’s third-largest economic power under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, Karnataka is heading in the opposite direction under the Congress government.
Speaking at a programme to mark the 101st birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, along with the Atal Award presentation and Good Governance Day celebrations, the JD(S) leader said Karnataka was once a model state for governance and development.
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“Karnataka was once synonymous with exemplary governance. It had adopted an outstanding development model and emerged as a leader for the entire nation. But under the Congress government’s administration, all these distinctions have been lost, and the State is now moving in the opposite direction,” Kumaraswamy said.
He alleged that the current dispensation has completely damaged the education sector, noting that Karnataka was once a frontrunner in education.
“Karnataka, which once ranked first in good governance, has reached such a state today. Frivolous politics is being played in a good State. Administration across all departments; including health, education, agriculture and revenue has deteriorated. People must now seriously introspect,” he said.
Asserting that the era of good governance must return, Kumaraswamy said people are fed up with the misgovernance of this government.
Bengaluru, once the IT-BT capital and a hub of education and technology, has seen its infrastructure completely deteriorate, he said.
"The state government lacks the mindset to accept even well-intentioned and expert advice. It has developed a culture of speaking irresponsibly even about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.”
Noting that the state has all the potential and capacity to move forward, the union minister said, “At a time when India is stepping forward to become the world’s third-largest economic power under Modi government, one wonders in which direction Karnataka is heading? It is moving backwards and sliding into decline.”
Remembering Vajpayee as “Ajatashatru”, a leader without enemies who rendered long and distinguished service to the nation, Kumaraswamy said leaders like Vajpayee are rare today.
“His contributions as External Affairs Minister, Leader of the Opposition and Prime Minister were immense. He was a visionary leader who took the BJP from just two seats to 170 seats in Parliament,” he added.
Expressing concern over growing unrest, he said, “Karnataka must once again become a garden of peace for all communities. There is unrest in society. When one looks at what is happening within families, it causes anxiety. While technology is advancing and economic strength is increasing, there is fear even in turning on the television in the morning. There is no peace of mind for anyone. It is for this reason that I have advocated teaching the Bhagavad Gita at the school level. Unfortunately, politics is being unnecessarily mixed into this issue."
