http://m.todayonline.com/singapore/pm-lee-thanks-scdf-officers-professionalism-attending-mr-heng
PM thanks SCDF for attending to Heng, shares new details about incident
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BY
LOH CHEE KONG, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
PUBLISHED: 7:35 PM, MAY 14, 2016UPDATED: 8:21 PM, MAY 14, 2016
SINGAPORE - Thanking four Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officers for their roles in attending to Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat after he collapsed on Thursday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday (May 14) praised their "professionalism and sense of mission". *
In a letter to SCDF Commissioner Eric Yap, Mr Lee also revealed that Minister of State (Education, and Communications and Information) Janil Puthucheary, who is a*pediatrician, played a key part in resuscitating Mr Heng after he collapsed during a Cabinet meeting at Istana on Thursday evening. *
Mr Lee said that when Mr Heng collapsed at 5.34pm on Thursday, his Cabinet colleagues called 995 immediately and the SCDF team - comprising SSG Janice Lee Yi Ping, SSG Mohd Imran Abdul Samad, CPL Ian Lok Yu Hern and Paramedic Trainee Sheena Chiang Yanpin - responded within seven minutes. "When they entered the Cabinet room, Dr Janil Puthucheary was already resuscitating Mr Heng using the bag and mask resuscitation kit that the security team had on hand," Mr Lee wrote. With Dr Janil already "managing (Mr Heng) with the appropriate equipment, the SCDF team supported Dr Janil and performed other tasks as per protocol - recording what happened and monitoring the vitals.*
Mr Lee said that SSG Lee, who is a paramedic, observed that Dr Janil was "deviating from the paramedic SOP (standard operating procedures)" and asked him if he was bagging Mr Heng too fast. "Dr Janil shared his presumptive diagnosis and explained that he was hyper-ventilating (Mr Heng) to relieve pressure on the brain and reduce the swelling," Mr Lee said. "Being satisfied with the explanation, she continued to support Dr Janil in maintaining and securing the airway of (Mr Heng), including assisting him in inserting a laryngeal mask."
The SCDF team then took the lead and transferred Mr Heng into the ambulance to be conveyed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, with Dr Janil supporting them along the way. "My colleagues and I observed how (the SCDF team) kept their cool and were in control throughout the incident, working as a team with Dr Janil. Each knew their roles, and all had the presence of mind to stay completely focused on the patient," Mr Lee said. *
He added: "It is never easy to attend to a resuscitation, and the active involvement of a clinician already on scene can make it more difficult. (The SCDF team) was highly competent and professional, unfazed by their surroundings or the presence of the ministers. They asserted themselves where necessary and played an important role in stabilising the patient."*
Mr Lee ended his letter to Commissioner Yap by calling the four officers "a credit to the SCDF". "They reflected the professionalism and sense of mission that they display daily as they go about their duties to protect and save lives and property for a safe and secure Singapore," the Prime Minister said.*
Separately, Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan wrote on Facebook: "The SCDF team were highly professional and completely unfazed by the pressure of the situation in Cabinet room that fateful day.
"We appreciated SSG Janice Lee's willingness to question Janil. It shows that we are a society that doesn't allow protocol or rank to get in the way of performance."
He also credited Dr Janil Puthucheary for saving Mr Heng's life.
"Janil deserves full credit for saving Heng Swee Keat's life. I believe those precious early minutes made all the difference."
On Friday, Mr Lee said Mr Heng was in stable condition and would remain in intensive care for some time. President Tony Tan said on Saturday that he and his wife Mary visited Mr Heng in the*evening.
"We saw Swee Keat and spoke to his wife and children. We are relieved to know that Swee Keat’s condition is stable, and he is being well cared for by his family members and the medical staff at the Intensive Care Unit," Dr Tan said. "We will continue to keep Swee Keat and his family in our thoughts and prayers, and wish Swee Keat a speedy and full recovery."
*
PM thanks SCDF for attending to Heng, shares new details about incident
AP file photo
View all 1 comments
BY
LOH CHEE KONG, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
PUBLISHED: 7:35 PM, MAY 14, 2016UPDATED: 8:21 PM, MAY 14, 2016
SINGAPORE - Thanking four Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officers for their roles in attending to Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat after he collapsed on Thursday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday (May 14) praised their "professionalism and sense of mission". *
In a letter to SCDF Commissioner Eric Yap, Mr Lee also revealed that Minister of State (Education, and Communications and Information) Janil Puthucheary, who is a*pediatrician, played a key part in resuscitating Mr Heng after he collapsed during a Cabinet meeting at Istana on Thursday evening. *
Mr Lee said that when Mr Heng collapsed at 5.34pm on Thursday, his Cabinet colleagues called 995 immediately and the SCDF team - comprising SSG Janice Lee Yi Ping, SSG Mohd Imran Abdul Samad, CPL Ian Lok Yu Hern and Paramedic Trainee Sheena Chiang Yanpin - responded within seven minutes. "When they entered the Cabinet room, Dr Janil Puthucheary was already resuscitating Mr Heng using the bag and mask resuscitation kit that the security team had on hand," Mr Lee wrote. With Dr Janil already "managing (Mr Heng) with the appropriate equipment, the SCDF team supported Dr Janil and performed other tasks as per protocol - recording what happened and monitoring the vitals.*
Mr Lee said that SSG Lee, who is a paramedic, observed that Dr Janil was "deviating from the paramedic SOP (standard operating procedures)" and asked him if he was bagging Mr Heng too fast. "Dr Janil shared his presumptive diagnosis and explained that he was hyper-ventilating (Mr Heng) to relieve pressure on the brain and reduce the swelling," Mr Lee said. "Being satisfied with the explanation, she continued to support Dr Janil in maintaining and securing the airway of (Mr Heng), including assisting him in inserting a laryngeal mask."
The SCDF team then took the lead and transferred Mr Heng into the ambulance to be conveyed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, with Dr Janil supporting them along the way. "My colleagues and I observed how (the SCDF team) kept their cool and were in control throughout the incident, working as a team with Dr Janil. Each knew their roles, and all had the presence of mind to stay completely focused on the patient," Mr Lee said. *
He added: "It is never easy to attend to a resuscitation, and the active involvement of a clinician already on scene can make it more difficult. (The SCDF team) was highly competent and professional, unfazed by their surroundings or the presence of the ministers. They asserted themselves where necessary and played an important role in stabilising the patient."*
Mr Lee ended his letter to Commissioner Yap by calling the four officers "a credit to the SCDF". "They reflected the professionalism and sense of mission that they display daily as they go about their duties to protect and save lives and property for a safe and secure Singapore," the Prime Minister said.*
Separately, Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan wrote on Facebook: "The SCDF team were highly professional and completely unfazed by the pressure of the situation in Cabinet room that fateful day.
"We appreciated SSG Janice Lee's willingness to question Janil. It shows that we are a society that doesn't allow protocol or rank to get in the way of performance."
He also credited Dr Janil Puthucheary for saving Mr Heng's life.
"Janil deserves full credit for saving Heng Swee Keat's life. I believe those precious early minutes made all the difference."
On Friday, Mr Lee said Mr Heng was in stable condition and would remain in intensive care for some time. President Tony Tan said on Saturday that he and his wife Mary visited Mr Heng in the*evening.
"We saw Swee Keat and spoke to his wife and children. We are relieved to know that Swee Keat’s condition is stable, and he is being well cared for by his family members and the medical staff at the Intensive Care Unit," Dr Tan said. "We will continue to keep Swee Keat and his family in our thoughts and prayers, and wish Swee Keat a speedy and full recovery."
*
