Category: Singapuraku

HSA Warns Against Consuming Two Illegal Pain Relief Products

The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has warned the public to steer clear of two illegal pain relief products after one left a consumer hospitalised.

One comes in powder form packed in unlabelled pink sachets. The other drug is a black tablet labelled as a “special effect rheumatism pill” in Mandarin.

The drugs, which claim to treat pain and rheumatism, were sold by a woman in her 60s.

The HSA said on Wednesday that laboratory tests of the products found undeclared potent ingredients, such as dexamethasone – a steroid which should only be used under strict medical supervision.

A woman in her 40s who had consumed the powdered product over a “prolonged period” was hospitalised for delirium, high blood sugar, and electrolyte imbalance in her blood, the HSA said.

She also had suspected Cushing’s syndrome, which is characterised by a round face or “moon face” and upper body obesity with thin limbs.

HSA enforcement officers uncovered the other illegal product after they raided the peddler’s home.

The HSA said that individuals who have been consuming the products should consult a doctor as soon as possible.

Anyone with information on the sale and supply of these two illegal products or other illegal products can contact the HSA’s enforcement branch at 6866 3485 or email:[email protected]

Source: www.straitstimes.com

June 4, 2015
Patrons At Rex Cinema Report Being Bitten And Seeing Bedbugs

It sounds like a scene from a horror movie. Patrons of the Rex Cinema claim they have been leaving with more than just shivers down their spine – after finding themselves covered in bedbugs.

The theatre in Mackenzie Road which shows Bollywood films has admitted to The Straits Times that it has a problem with the bugs – and pest controllers say it may not be the only cinema here to have them.

A group that watched a film at Rex on May 31 told how they began feeling uncomfortable during the two-hour showing.

Hairstylist Srirutiran Mathivanan, 29, said that as the movie was drawing to a close, his friend’s wife began complaining that she felt itchy.

When he turned on his mobile phone’s flashlight, he noticed that her hand was swollen – but that was not all.

“I saw many bedbugs at her feet and when I peeled the seat cushion back, even more came out,” said Mr Mathivanan, who added that he had previously been bitten at the cinema.

His friend, Mr Narasinga Rao Vandasan, 26, felt the incident was “no small matter”.

He said: “I sometimes see children going to the cinema. What if they get bitten? Cinemagoers don’t want to spread this to their friends and family.”

Mr Vandasan said the cinema’s management had previously told him they would clean up the place but the situation has not improved. “I don’t think I’ll go back to the cinema again,” he added.

Student Harini Vee, 20, who visits Rex Cinema once every two months, said: “The hygiene there is quite bad, especially during off-peak hours. It’s not uncommon to see popcorn bits on the floor. But bedbugs sound quite extreme, I wouldn’t have expected it.”

Rex Cinema acknowledged the problem and told The Straits Times it plans to install new seats by the end of next month.

Spokesman Noor Jahan said: “We get about two complaints about bedbugs a week. However, we have procedures in place to deal with them. Pest control conducts regular (cleaning) every week and we go in and clean the place after every show.

“We also offer to change the seats of patrons who complain about bedbugs mid-show, or offer compensation for those who complain after the show. If (Mr Mathivanan) had come to us, we would have offered him the same treatment.”

When contacted, other cinema operators said they have pest-control measures in place.

Shaw Theatres, for example, said all its cinemas are disinfected by specialists every month and no bedbug infestations have been reported.

Bedbug bites are manifested in rows of two or three bites – usually at the ankles or back of the neck. A female bedbug can lay up to 500 eggs in her lifespan of one year.

Mr John Ho, co-founder of Aardwolf Pestkare, recommends that cinemas be treated for bedbugs at least once a month. “Bedbugs are a continuous problem,” he said.

“Once their eggs are laid, there can be an infestation within three months. Bedbugs do not transmit diseases, they are just a source of irritation.”

Source: www.straitstimes.com

June 4, 2015
Measures Are In Place To Prevent MERS Outbreak In Singapore

Local hospitals have been reminded to remain vigilant and to stand ready to screen and isolate individuals suspected to suffer from the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) Coronavirus, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Wednesday (Jun 3).

South Korea has confirmed five more cases of MERS, the Korean health ministry said early on Wednesday, bringing to 30 the total number of cases in the country of the often-deadly illness. All cases of infection in South Korea have been limited to household and hospital contacts among the patients, and all have been linked to the first identified case. Given this, the Health Ministry said there is no evidence of sustained community transmission in South Korea.

MOH revealed in a press release that three categories of patients with clinical signs or symptoms of pneumonia or severe respiratory infection with breathlessness, who travelled to the Middle East in the two weeks before onset, will be referred to any of its public and private hospitals for further evaluation to exclude the infection.

Patients from South Korea, and also those with fever and respiratory illness of any severity who had visited a healthcare facility while in the Middle East or South Korea will also be similarly referred, according to MOH.

Clinics said they will step up their precautionary measures on the Health Ministry’s advice.

“So when the situation gets worse, the Ministry of Health will tell us that we need to be vigilant and more alert about it,” said Dr Philip Koh, family physician at Healthway Tampines Clinic. “Then we will have to don our personal protective equipment, which is our masks, our gloves, and our goggles and basically the clinic will be turned into a pandemic centre of preparedness.”

“What happens is when a patient comes in, who is suspected of having fever, cough and breathlessness, will be attended to by a nurse donned with this personal protective equipment at the entrance,” added Dr Koh.

The Ministry said that temperature screening at air checkpoints for passengers arriving from the Middle East have been in place since May 18 last year. It said that health advisories continue to be in place at the local border checkpoints for travelers coming from and going to areas affected by MERS, and that screening may be ramped up to include passengers arriving from South Korea should evidence of sustained community spread turn up.

SIA HAS PLANS TO MINIMISE DISEASE SPREAD

Also on Wednesday, a Singapore Airlines (SIA) spokesperson assured that the national carrier has measures – “both on the ground and on board” – in place to “minimise the spread of diseases”. These include passenger screening by airport ground personnel.

“If any passenger appears to be unwell, he or she will be asked to see a doctor immediately. We will not carry any passenger whom we believe is a risk to others on board,” the spokesperson told Channel NewsAsia.

SIA added that it has developed standard operating procedures to handle various medical emergencies, including infectious diseases.

The airline said these measures “will be coupled with the health regulations implemented by local authorities”, citing cabin crew basic first-aid training as one of such measures.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 4, 2015
Singapore Travellers Have Stickiest Fingers, After Argentinians

Travellers from Singapore have “sticky fingers”, according to a survey by travel bookings website Hotels.com on guests pilfering items from hotel rooms.

The survey asked some 4,700 participants from 28 countries what they have taken from hotel rooms and never returned, with the exclusion of toiletries, because “everyone takes those”, said Hotels.com.

Seventy-one per cent of Singaporean respondents said they have taken items from their rooms, putting Singapore in second place on a list of nationalities most likely to steal from hotels. In first place was Argentina, with 73 per cent.

On the other end of the spectrum, Colombians were least likely to have taken something, with 69 per cent of participants claiming they have taken “nothing” from hotels.

A representative from Hotels.com said Argentina, Germany, Ireland, Singapore are the only countries that did not have taking “nothing” as their top answer.

But guests were not looting grand works of art or luxury bedsheets, according to the survey, which was conducted from March to April this year. Instead, 52 per cent of travellers brought home slippers, 35 per cent took stationery and 12 per cent took magazines or books.

Commenting on the survey findings, Mr Jacob Tomsky, author of the best-selling Heads in Beds, a account of the ten years he spent in the hotel industry, told the Telegraph: “No respectable hotelier is going to want to pry open your luggage and search for shampoo. We hope you take the amenities. We want you to use them later and think of us.”

Hotels TODAY contacted declined comment. Grand Hyatt Singapore however provided a list of items that guests can keep, including toiletries, slippers, and coffee and tea packets. Items like bath robes, yoga mats and towels on the other hand were for borrowing or purchase.

Mr Jeremy Hau, 22, confessed to keeping hotel room key cards as memorabilia of his travels around the United States. So far, he has collected around 40 key cards. “I want to keep it to remind myself of all the hotels I’ve stayed in so far,” said Mr Hau, who spent the last five months seeing different parts of the US with friends while on his university exchange programme.

Other Singaporeans travellers TODAY interviewed pointed to the “kiasu” mentality. Said teacher Benjamin Wong, 29: “It’s just that mindset that ‘I’m already paying so much, I want to maximise my money’s worth’”. He confessed to once having taken a towel, but only, because he really needed it. “Even for that towel, I was really worried when I was checking out,” he said. “I won’t go through that again.”

Mr Alan Soh, 48, pointed out that there may be an unseen price to these thefts. “If everyone (steals), hotel rates can only go up … someone has to pay, and definitely the hotels are not going to pay for it,” said Mr Soh, who travels twice a month for his work in the trading industry.

Here is a list of the top 10 items stolen from hotels:

1) Towels/Linen
2) Batteries/Light
3) Food/Drinks
4) Cutlery
5) Picture Frames
6) Artwork
7) Curtains
8) Kettle
9) Books
10) Bible

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 4, 2015
Singapore Set To Benefit From Increased Demand For Islamic Financial Services In Asia

Industrial real estate investment trust (REIT) Sabana is the largest Islamic REIT globally, in terms of assets – and it is based in Singapore. Overall, shariah-compliant assets under management here have risen by 22 per cent since 2010, while banking assets have grown by more than 73 per cent. This is expected to grow further, as more Islamic funds in the Gulf seek foreign investment opportunities, particularly in Asia.

Speaking at the 6th World Islamic Banking Conference Asia Summit on Wednesday (Jun 3), Ms Jacqueline Loh, Deputy Managing Director at the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said: “GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) banks have already been expanding their operations in Singapore in recent years to support the deployment of Islamic funds to corporates in the region, through Islamic bank financing, and sukuk issuances.”

She added: “The asset-backed nature of Islamic finance makes sukuk ideal for financing of infrastructure projects and would complement ongoing work by Singapore to enhance the bankability of infrastructure projects in the region and involve more capital market participants.”

Sukuks are securities that are similar to bonds but they comply with the Islamic law. In the past five years, there were 31 sukuk issuances in Singapore – more than in other conventional jurisdictions, with total outstanding issuance reaching a high of S$3.8 billion in 2014, compared to S$440 million in 2009.

Industry participants said growth in this segment can help support the financing needs in the region. In particular, an estimated US$60 billion will be needed annually until 2022 for basic infrastructure projects in Southeast Asia.

Growing infrastructure needs and cross border trade and investments are expected to drive demand for Islamic finance in ASEAN. Observers said markets in the region are well-positioned to meet the rising demand, and stock exchanges are working together to capture these opportunities.

Said Bursa Malaysia chief Tajuddin Atan: “Growth of the global Muslim population coupled with increase of global HNWI have been a factor to the rising demand for Islamic finance services and wealth management. Importantly, the ASEAN region will need to mobilise these funds.

“With this interesting fund size, the developmenSt of ASEAN economies, the infrastructure needs and the cross border activities in trade and finance, the outlook of future demand for Islamic finance industry, to me, remains bright,” he added. “It is expected to almost double or grow by 98 per cent by 2018 to bridge the demand for Islamic finance and to support mobilisation of funds in Southeast Asia alone.”

Mr Tajuddin said this will bring up the question of product innovation, to preserve and grow the wealth of the Asian and ASEAN population: “So what the exchanges of ASEAN have done so far … Malaysia together with SGX, the Singapore stock exchange, and stock exchange of Thailand have collaborated in developing the ASEAN exchanges to facilitate more efficient cross border trading among ASEAN.”

In 2012, the Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand stock exchanges established the ASEAN trading link, to allow investors easier access to each other’s markets.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

June 4, 2015