A man with symptoms of pneumonia in Simei has been taken to hospital for observation after he visited Raffles Medical clinic at Eastpoint Mall.

Ambulance called after man visited clinic in Eastpoint

A statement by Eastpoint Mall said that they had been notified by Raffles Medical, at 9.30am on Jan. 23, that a patient needed an escort to the mall's ambulance pick up point.

Lianhe Zaobao quoted Raffles Medical as stating that the man showed symptoms of pneumonia and was sent to Tan Tock Seng hospital.

A video of the incident circulating on Twitter showed a man being carried into the ambulance by medical staff wearing masks, gloves and gowns.

Several non-medical staff wearing masks were also spotted at the scene.

https://twitter.com/imihsann/status/1220383064016076801

Mall disinfected afterwards

When contacted by Mothership on the matter, Eastpoint Mall added that the "affected areas" were immediately disinfected afterwards.

Additionally, the mall is currently conducting temperature checks twice a day on staff and contractors as a precaution.

It also added that designated routes have been put in place to escort such patients from clinics within the mall, and that the man in question was escorted along one such route.

Here is Eastpoint Mall's statement in full:

"We have been monitoring the development of the Novel Coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan closely, and have put in place appropriate precautionary measures. Eastpoint Mall has identified designated routes to escort suspected patients with symptoms as they leave clinics located within the mall. We have also ensured the usage of personal protective equipment while setting up or cleaning affected areas, increased the frequency of cleaning and deployed hand sanitizers at common areas such as customer service, toilets and the fire command centres. At about 9.30am on 23 January, we were notified by Raffles Medical, a clinic at Eastpoint Mall, that a suspected patient required an escort to the ambulance pick up point via the mall's designated route. The affected areas were immediately disinfected. At present, we are conducting twice daily temperature checks for mall management staff, and Contractors. We have advised staff and tenants to remain vigilant, practice good hygiene, and to immediately seek medical attention should they exhibit any symptoms associated with the Novel Coronavirus.”

Separately, in response to Mothership's queries, a spokesperson from Raffles Medical Group stated:

"The patient is a Singaporean who visited the Raffles Medical clinic at Eastpoint Mall on 23 January 2020. An ambulance was activated and the patient was sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for further investigation. The clinic has been disinfected. In addition, the building management of Eastpoint Mall has disinfected the area outside the clinic and exit route. All our frontline staff are trained in infection control and have followed the Ministry of Health (MOH) protocol in response to such situations. We will continue to work with MOH closely to monitor the situation regarding the latest updates and protocol to respond appropriately."

Top image collage from @imihsann Twitter