Can afford to lose $260B in 8 months, but no money to buy more ambulances. This is the consequence! Now wanna blame Sporns again!
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Ambulance hotline abused
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->The dedicated ambulance hotline for possible Influenza A (H1N1) cases has logged almost 1,400 calls so far, but six in 10 were pranks.
Releasing this figure to The Sunday Times, the Health Ministry (MOH) stressed that the 993 number should not be abused as it can affect access to those in need.
Since it was introduced on Thursday, 1,378 calls have been made to it. At least 800 were pranks. People are supposed to call the hotline only if they have developed flu-like symptoms after returning from countries affected by the new flu.
Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan reiterated this on the sidelines of an event at Hougang Stadium last night.
'Don't abuse 993. 993 is only for those with recent travel history. So if you have been in Singapore for the last umpteen number of years and suddenly have flu, please go to your polyclinic and GP by yourself. Don't use 993,' he said.
MOH did not say how many trips have been made so far by the 993 ambulances, owned by private operator Civic. Its medics ferry people suspected of having the new flu virus from homes, clinics and the airport to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for screening. They will be taken to the hospital's Communicable Disease Centre if required.
The 993 hotline was first set up during the 2003 Sars outbreak. It got an average of 1,000 calls a day. About one in five was from those who thought they had Sars, while the bulk of calls were Sars-linked enquiries. A handful were pranks.
The ambulances were used to ensure that those affected were screened as quickly as possible to minimise the risk of infecting others while taking public transport.
It also frees up the emergency ambulances under the Singapore Civil Defence Force so they can attend to their usual 995 caseload.
Under the law, those who make nuisance calls to emergency numbers like 995 and 999 can be fined or jailed up to a year, or both.
Teh Joo Lin
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Ambulance hotline abused
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->The dedicated ambulance hotline for possible Influenza A (H1N1) cases has logged almost 1,400 calls so far, but six in 10 were pranks.
Releasing this figure to The Sunday Times, the Health Ministry (MOH) stressed that the 993 number should not be abused as it can affect access to those in need.
Since it was introduced on Thursday, 1,378 calls have been made to it. At least 800 were pranks. People are supposed to call the hotline only if they have developed flu-like symptoms after returning from countries affected by the new flu.
Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan reiterated this on the sidelines of an event at Hougang Stadium last night.
'Don't abuse 993. 993 is only for those with recent travel history. So if you have been in Singapore for the last umpteen number of years and suddenly have flu, please go to your polyclinic and GP by yourself. Don't use 993,' he said.
MOH did not say how many trips have been made so far by the 993 ambulances, owned by private operator Civic. Its medics ferry people suspected of having the new flu virus from homes, clinics and the airport to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for screening. They will be taken to the hospital's Communicable Disease Centre if required.
The 993 hotline was first set up during the 2003 Sars outbreak. It got an average of 1,000 calls a day. About one in five was from those who thought they had Sars, while the bulk of calls were Sars-linked enquiries. A handful were pranks.
The ambulances were used to ensure that those affected were screened as quickly as possible to minimise the risk of infecting others while taking public transport.
It also frees up the emergency ambulances under the Singapore Civil Defence Force so they can attend to their usual 995 caseload.
Under the law, those who make nuisance calls to emergency numbers like 995 and 999 can be fined or jailed up to a year, or both.
Teh Joo Lin
