Serious Many Pappys don't like OngYK..not Team player.

[jw5]

OYK wishes everyone a safe, healthy and happy CNY.

Wishing you and your family a safe, healthy and Happy #ChineseNewYear!
祝福大家在虎年里，虎虎生威，虎气冲天，有个平安和健康的新年！
A special shout out to our healthcare workers — who continue to hold the fort at our healthcare facilities throughout the pandemic, everyday, without fail.
Besides frontline staff, many others work quietly behind the scenes to deliver care for every patient.
To all our #HealthcareHeroes, our #EverydayHeroes, thank you and have a good year ahead!
Music credit: Mediacorp

 

[jw5]

from straitstimes.com:

New Outram Community Hospital officially opened​

SINGAPORE - After two years in operation - during which it helped to bolster Singapore's hospital bed capacity when Covid-19 cases surged - the Outram Community Hospital (OCH) was officially opened on Monday (Jan 24).

It is part of a $4 billion, 20-year revamp of buildings on the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) campus, and occupies six floors in the new SingHealth Tower, also officially opened on Monday.

"Every building that comes online brings with it new infrastructure... and more importantly, our opportunity to transform care," said SingHealth chief executive Ivy Ng at the opening ceremony.

"The more complex care becomes, the more simple it has to be for patients to navigate through our system."

The new National Cancer Centre Singapore is slated to open later this year as part of the revamp, with SGH's Emergency Medicine Building to start operations from 2024.

This will be followed by the SGH Elective Care Centre and National Dental Centre Singapore in 2027, with a second phase involving the addition of a new SGH Complex and improved road network.

These developments are part of the Government's continuous investment in public infrastructure, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, who attended the event in person.


"Beyond the investment of resources, the entire project requires very meticulous planning and execution. For example, services and roads need to be carefully shifted so as not to disrupt operations in one of the busiest and oldest hospitals in Singapore," he said.

The new 545-bed community hospital will look after patients who no longer need the acute care provided by a general hospital, but are not well enough to return home.

These include those who have undergone knee replacements, or had hip fractures or strokes. They can also include Covid-19 patients who have recovered from the virus but are elderly and frail, with existing medical conditions that require rehabilitation.

To help in their recovery, OCH has a special facility set up to mimic a two-room flat, allowing patients to practise performing daily activities.

The community hospital also takes in patients who require palliative care and those with dementia.

Also housed in the 19-storey SingHealth Tower are SGH's administrative and logistics staff, as well as the hospital's central kitchen and sterile supplies unit - from which food and medical supplies are delivered to the rest of the complex via a network of underground tunnels.

These are the "silent workers in the background", Mr Ong said, adding: "They are essential to any organisation... However, in this age of social media and round-the-clock running of the publicity machinery, we can easily forget their vital contribution, until something goes wrong."

 

[jw5]

from straitstimes.com:

Stick to the rules; stay at home if you are even mildly unwell: Ong Ye Kung​

SINGAPORE - Stick to the rules and don't visit anyone if you are feeling under the weather - even if it is just a sore throat and you have tested negative for Covid-19.

Urging Singaporeans to exercise caution ahead of next week's Chinese New Year celebrations, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said at a dialogue on Friday (Jan 28): "As long as you are not well - whether you test negative or not - don't go out."

This is because antigen rapid tests can throw up false negatives, the minister said.

"And if you get tested again and it turns up positive after you have visited people, it is already too late."

Mr Ong added that people should take an antigen rapid test before visiting seniors, unvaccinated people or the immunocompromised, and reiterated that the current permitted group size for social gatherings is five, saying: “Don’t break the rules – you can get fined.”

The dialogue between Mr Ong, Professor Leo Yee Sin, executive director of the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, and Professor Wang Linfa, an expert on emerging infectious diseases at Duke-NUS Medical School, was part of the launch of a Chinese-language book on Singapore's battle with the coronavirus written by Lianhe Zaobao journalists.

Singapore saw 5,554 Covid-19 cases on Friday, the vast majority of which were local infections.

There are currently 636 people in hospital, 46 of whom require supplemental oxygen and 10 need intensive care.

"Omicron is less severe than Delta, but we cannot let our guard down because the variant is highly transmissible," Mr Ong said. "If many people get infected, there will still be a large number of people who will require hospitalisation."

Covid Warriors: The Singapore Way will go on sale at bookstores for $25, beginning in February.

 

[jw5]

OYK looks forward to a good year ahead.

Ong Ye Kung​

12 hrs ·
My Division has grown and fortunately very well served by coffee shops, heartland malls and eating places. They kept our volunteers and me very busy in the run up to CNY, distributing oranges and extending our well wishes to merchants, stall workers and patrons. The public holidays may be over, but we can all look forward to a good year ahead.
#MakeSembawangSpecial

 

[jw5]

OYK greets an uncle.

 

[jw5]

OYK does a fistbump greeting.

 

[jw5]

OYK interrupts a meal.

 

[jw5]

OYK distributes oranges.

 

[jw5]

OYK greets a ponytail uncle.

 

[jw5]

OYK goes to market.

 

[jw5]

OYK distributing goodies.

 

[jw5]

OYK distributes oranges.

 

[jw5]

from straitstimes.com:

Three areas to watch as Singapore battles Omicron: Ong Ye Kung​

SINGAPORE - As Singapore tackles the Omicron wave, three areas loom large in the Health Ministry's assessment of the situation, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung.

These are: the country's intensive care unit (ICU) capacity, hospitalisation rates and the impact of the highly infectious variant on the country's manpower resources.

Over the weekend, ICU numbers fell slightly from 13 to nine patients, the minister said. Although a couple of Omicron patients require intensive care, none needed to be intubated.


"So we keep our fingers crossed that the ICU situation will remain stable," said Mr Ong, who was speaking at the opening of the new Outram Community Hospital on Monday (Jan 24).

On hospitalisation, Mr Ong reiterated that about 1.3 per cent of Omicron cases are hospitalised, with 0.3 per cent requiring oxygen supplementation.

And those who do require additional oxygen generally do not need it for long, with the maximum so far being five days.

"The numbers have been creeping up - both the absolute numbers as well as the percentages," Mr Ong said. "Every 0.1 per cent occupies a lot more beds, as we all know."


Lastly, there is the potential impact on manpower.

The authorities have previously warned that many people coming down with the variant at the same time could lead to service disruptions "from time to time", as people call in sick.

Mr Ong said he is most worried about this, noting that Singapore has changed its protocols so people can now come out of isolation after seven days, rather than 10 days - or even earlier if their conditions allow for it.

"It is not so much that the beds are filling up so fast, but the fact that our manpower is isolated, because of infection or as close contacts," he added.

He also thanked healthcare workers for their hard work over the past two years, adding: "We have another challenge ahead of us because of the Omicron wave.

"It is a different wave but notwithstanding that, we know that as the wave peaks - and in the coming weeks it will - it will assert pressure again on our healthcare system."

 

[jw5]

OYK cautiously approaches home visits.

Ong Ye Kung​

11 hrs ·
As we cautiously approach home visits, we are kept apart by a grilled gate, and spoke from a distance. But spirits among residents are generally optimistic. And through their smiles and laughters, they have told me how they enjoy being a part of #Sembawang.
Stay safe everyone, as we stand united against COVID-19!
#MakeSembawangSpecial

 

[jw5]

Chiobu very happy to meet OYK.

 

[jw5]

Little girl wants to shake OYK's hand.

 

[jw5]

Family of four waves at OYK.

 

[jw5]

Little girl waves at OYK.

 

[jw5]

OYK wishes everyone Happy 人日 (rén rì).

Ong Ye Kung​

13 hrs ·
Happy 人日 (rén rì), or the 7th day of Chinese New Year, otherwise known as everyone’s birthday.
This is a pineapple we have at home. It’s from Sri Lanka, and I thought it’s such a beautiful fruit. Thought I will ‘share’ with everyone and wish you a 旺(prosperous) year ahead!

 

[jw5]

from straitstimes.com:

Children aged 5 to 11 currently have highest Covid-19 infection rate here: Ong Ye Kung​

SINGAPORE - Children aged 5 to 11 currently have the highest rate of Covid-19 infection here, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said on Tuesday (Feb 8).

Speaking at the Singapore Health Quality Service Awards 2022, which was held at the Singapore General Hospital Campus, Mr Ong, who was guest of honour, said that while hospitals may not currently be stressed in the same way as during the Delta wave, there is a need to ensure there are sufficient paediatric beds.

This is because the Omicron variant is more likely to infect children than the Delta variant, he added.

The infection rate for children aged 5 to 11 is currently about 67 per 100,000 population, said Mr Ong.

Those aged 12 to 19 have the next highest infection rate, at about 55 per 100,000.

"This is quite different as compared to during the Delta wave, which mostly infected older adults," the minister said.

He added that the current infection rate among older age groups is lower, but did not give further details.

"With more children and young people getting infected, severe cases are inevitable and we need to ensure that there are sufficient beds for them," he said, adding that public and private hospitals are standing up more such beds, while Covid-19 treatment facilities are also converting more beds for children and their caregivers.

One such facility is Connect@Changi at Expo, where 660 beds are being prepared.

Fortunately, said Mr Ong, hospitalisation of children due to Covid-19 is often precautionary in nature, with short stays of about two to three days.

"Notwithstanding, it is important to get them vaccinated to protect them against the risk of severe illness should they get infected," he added.

Mr Ong emphasised that vaccines and booster shots continue to make a significant difference to the clinical outcomes of infected individuals.

He first noted that currently, 0.3 per cent of patients, whether young or old, infected with the Omicron variant need oxygen supplementation or care in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Then, citing the example of seniors, Mr Ong said that while on average, 1.8 per cent of those aged 60 and up who are infected with Omicron required oxygen supplementation or ICU care, this varies depending on vaccination status.

For seniors who have taken their booster, said Mr Ong, this figure drops to 1 per cent or less. This rises to around 4 per cent for those fully vaccinated with no booster.

But for those who are not fully vaccinated, the rate of such severe illness is about 10 per cent.

A senior above 60 who is not fully vaccinated is 10 times as likely to fall severely sick when infected with Omicron compared with a senior who has taken the booster shot, said Mr Ong.

“And that is why vaccination and boosters, especially among seniors, continue to be our key priority,” he added.