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Tag: MOH

  • Diabetes In Singapore: Here Are Facts Based On What The Government Has Documented

    Diabetes In Singapore: Here Are Facts Based On What The Government Has Documented

    DIABETES IN SINGAPORE – AS REPORTED & DOCUMENTED

    Following up from my last post (Thanks everyone for the colourful comments! It was a cracker to read! Didn’t think such a post would have gathered such traction), here are the facts based on what the government has documented.

    This time, I’ll use 2013 statistics (2016/2017 statistics last I checked weren’t ready yet).

    ‘The majority of adults with self-reported diabetes were men (53.3%) and almost two-thirds (65.2%) were Chinese. More than three-quarters (81.2%) had an educational level of secondary/GCE O/N level and below. Slightly more than half (54.8%) were not working. One-quarter (26.3%) of these self reported diabetic adults resided in HDB 1-3 room flats.

    The mean age of onset of diabetes reported by these diabetic adults was 50 years old. The mean duration of diabetics reported was 11 years. Four in five (80.9%) were currently on oral hypoglycemic agents.’

    ‘One in five (19.3%) of the adults with self-reported diabetes were obese.’

    ‘Almost two-thirds (65.3%) of the adults with self-reported diabetes did not participate in any physical activity during leisure time, compared with 48.3% of the general population.

    Top reasons for not doing so were:
    1 – No time due to work or family commitments (36.3%)
    2 – Too old (19.6%)
    3 – Poor health (18.4%)’

    Okay, so why did diabetes made it to NDR 2017? This is probably why.

    ‘The Ministry of Health (MOH) has declared war on diabetes to stem a healthcare threat that is costing the Government more than $1 billion annually.

    This figure could rise to $2.5 billion in 2050 after taking into account both medical costs as well as indirect costs such as loss of productivity and premature mortality.’

    So much so that a ‘Diabetes Prevention & Care Task Force’ has been setup.

    ‘In Singapore, one out of 9 people aged 18 to 69 has diabetes. That’s about 11.3% of our population or more than 400,000 people!’

    Since diabetes is primarily a self-managed condition, what can we do especially if you are prone to it?

    As a person who is prone to diabetes based on family condition, I am also particularly concerned and worried about my own health. So, for the past year I’ve been tracking my health status using a simple mobile app available on both Android and Apple, Tactio Health.

    Hopefully this will be helpful for you as well. Diabetes is a sucker of an illness. My late grandmother suffered from it, my dad is keeping it under control and I certainly hope that I can manage by staying healthy through regular exercise and eating healthy.

    But I admit that eating healthy isn’t easy in Singapore, I find myself eating fast food more often than I should. But I guess, that’s how life in Singapore is. We’re so busy working trying to make ends meet that we don’t have enough time to exercise and if we do have time, we would rather spend it with our family members.

    Perhaps, we can incorporate exercise as part of family activities and hopefully, we can keep diabetes under control, one family at a time.

    https://www.moh.gov.sg/…/national-population-health-survey-…

    https://www.singstat.gov.sg/…/pub…/health/ssnsep16-pg5-9.pdf

    https://www.reach.gov.sg/…/multipronged-approach-in-battle-…

    https://www.moh.gov.sg/…/P…/Annex%20B%20-%20TF%20Members.pdf

    http://www.diabetes.org.sg/

     

    Source: Abdillah Zamzuri

  • Khoo Teck Puat Hospital: Sister Is Not Family, Get Out Of A&E Room

    Khoo Teck Puat Hospital: Sister Is Not Family, Get Out Of A&E Room

    Dear A.S.S. Editors

    Here’s the story about my terrible experience at KTPH. My Brother was rushed to the A&E at KTPH due to high fever, severe vomiting and chest pains. We arrived at the Hospital at 4am. While waiting, my Father asked the nurse “around what time can my Son see the doctor?” And the nurse simply glared at him and walked away.

    My Brother was still vomiting non stop and had hyperpehia due to severe pains. Did X-ray and blood test. Doctors couldn’t diagnose the problem and suspect that it is food poisoning and said that maybe can be discharged at 4pm.

    At 9am, my Brother was finally warded to the EDTU and put on IV drip. My brother’s right hands were ice cold so we asked the nurse, and the nurse said “you touch my hand, my hand also very cold.” laughed and left. So we had no idea what was going on and we waited patiently for the results.

    Finally at around 5pm, results came out. Doctor say it might be food poisoning but it cannot be confirmed. What? Then, proceeded to say that his white blood count is too high and have to do blood test again. Cannot be discharged and have to stay until tomorrow morning for further observation.

    At around 8pm the doctor said that the test results are out, the blood count has been reduced slightly but not enough to be discharged. And the x-ray shows that my Brother’s left shoulder is dislocated and have to do second x-ray. What?

    Brother was then wheeled to do the second x-ray and then the x-ray was cancelled because another doctor said it wasn’t necessary because it is just “flexible joints” and my Brother can be discharged. And that we had to wait 1 hour to get the MC and the discharge summary.

    While waiting, A&E patient relation associate Mohd Yusof came in and suddenly asked my Mother if she’s the parent. Then he asked me “who are you?” I said I’m the Sister. He said “Sister is not family, you get out” So I said “huh? Sister is family. We are waiting for him to be discharged, he will be discharged soon.” And he said “no, Sister is not family, you get out. doctor can just talk to the Mother”

    So I had to wait outside because apparently “Sister is not family” at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. Absolutely ridiculous. Terrible terrible experience at KTPH and will never go back again.

    Upset Family Member
    A.S.S. Contributor

     

    Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com

  • MOH Reviewing Protocol Of Isolating Suspected Zika Cases

    MOH Reviewing Protocol Of Isolating Suspected Zika Cases

    Patients suspected of having Zika may be sent home to await their test results instead of being isolated in hospitals. The review of the Health Ministry’s protocal is based on observations that 80 per cent of Zika patients do not show any symptoms.

     

    Source: ChannelNewsAsia

  • MOH: 50% Of Zika Cases Involve Foreign Nationals

    MOH: 50% Of Zika Cases Involve Foreign Nationals

    Half of the Zika cases in Singapore are foreigners who live or work here, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday (Sept 1).

    Out of 115 cases, 57 are foreigners. The largest group is 23 people from China, followed by 15 from India and 10 from Bangladesh. Six cases are Malaysians, and one case each from Indonesia, Myanmar and Taiwan.

    “All had mild illness. Most have recovered while the rest are recovering well,” said the MOH spokesperson.

    Earlier on Sunday (Aug 28), the MOH said that 36 foreign workers at a construction site at 60 Sims Drive had been infected.

    The ministry announced Singapore’s first case of locally-transmitted Zika on Saturday, involving a 47-year-old Malaysian woman who lived in Block 102 Aljunied Crescent.

    Meanwhile, Malaysia reported its first Zika case on Thursday, involving a 58-year-old woman who visited her daughter in Singapore on Aug 19. Her daughter, a resident in Paya Lebar which has seen Zika cases, was confirmed as being infected with the mosquito-borne virus on Aug 30.

    In Singapore, efforts to contain Zika’s spread continued on Thursday morning with thermal fogging operations observed in the areas surrounding Aljunied Crescent and Bedok North Ave 3, which has emerged as a potential cluster after three confirmed cases were reported. Health and environment officers were also spotted lifting drain covers to check for any breeding sites.

    Residents in Bedok who spoke to TODAY on Thursday were largely unruffled by the latest development.

    “Life still goes on… It’s just a pity that the virus has hit our island and spread like wildfire,” said Mr Stephen Gomez, 61, a resident at Blk 402 Bedok North Ave 3.

    Housewife Madam Zhao Hai Ying, 27, said she would take more precautions by checking if her two young children had any mosquito bites. “But you can’t be so (fixated) on this, we just have to be a little more careful,” she added.

    Office manager Sally Lim, 43, said that Zika was not “as serious” as SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), and that there was “nothing to be worried about”.

    However, she noted that some of her relatives who had originally intended to visit her this weekend at her home in Bedok had decided to cancel the visit.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Diabetes: The Rice You Eat Is Worse Than Sugary Drinks

    Diabetes: The Rice You Eat Is Worse Than Sugary Drinks

    The health authorities have identified one of their top concerns as they wage war on diabetes: white rice. It is even more potent than sweet soda drinks in causing the disease.

    Sharing his battle plan to reduce the risk of diabetes, Health Promotion Board chief executive Zee Yoong Kang said that obesity and sugary drinks are the major causes of the condition in the West.

    But Asians are more predisposed to diabetes than Caucasians, so people do not have to be obese to be at risk. Starchy white rice can overload their bodies with blood sugar and heighten their risk of diabetes.

    Mr Zee is armed with data. A meta- analysis of four major studies, involving more than 350,000 people followed for four to 20 years, by the Harvard School of Public Health – published in the British Medical Journal – threw up some sobering findings.

    One, it showed each plate of white rice eaten in a day – on a regular basis – raises the risk of diabetes by 11 per cent in the overall population.

    Two, it showed that while Asians, like the Chinese, had four servings a day of cooked rice, Americans and Australians ate just five a week.

    But Mr Zee does not plan to ask Singaporeans to stop eating rice, a popular feature of meals here. What he would like is to see more people turn to healthier varieties.

    Long grain white rice is also better than short grain when it comes to how it spikes blood sugar – a rise in sugar levels causes the pancreas to produce more insulin, and frequent spikes can lead to diabetes.

    He would also like people to try adding 20 per cent of brown rice to their white rice. This amount is enough to reduce their risk of diabetes by 16 per cent.”There is no need to fully replace what they now eat. Just increase the quantity of whole grain and brown rice.”

    Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said last month that this disease is already costing the country more than $1 billion a year. Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure and amputations in Singapore.

    Dr Stanley Liew, a diabetes expert at Raffles Hospital, advised people to eat less rice. He added that most junk food and sodas are just as bad and should be discouraged.

     

    Source: www.straitstimes.com