SINGAPORE: A community isolation facility at the Singapore Expo and MAX Atria will be operational from Friday (Apr 10), the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.

This comes a day after Singapore saw 287 new COVID-19 cases, the largest spike in numbers to date. The national tally is now at 1,910, with many of the new cases linked to foreign worker dormitories.





The new community care facility will initially have one hall catering to about 480 patients, Health Minister Mr Gan Kim Yong said speaking at a press briefing on Thursday.

It will "progressively expand" as the demand goes up and number of cases increase, he added.

The first of such facilities was initially set up in D’Resort NTUC in Pasir Ris, which can take in about 500 people.





A Community Isolation Facility for COVID-19 patients at The Singapore EXPO & MAX Atria.

Signs outside The Singapore EXPO & MAX Atria, where a Community Isolation Facility for COVID-19 patients has been set up.

The facility at the Singapore Expo will house two types of patients – recovering patients and "early patients".



Recovering patients, Mr Gan said, are the ones who have been to hospital and have "more or less recovered" from the infection, but may still have the virus in them.

"We need to keep them and watch them and monitor them," he said, adding this group of patients will be sent to either the Singapore Expo or another similar facility at D’Resort NTUC in Pasir Ris.



Early patients, Mr Gan explained, comprise confirmed COVID-19 cases who are mostly "quite well". Some of these patients will be sent directly to community care facilities without having to go to the hospital first.

"Many of them are actually quite well - they do not require extensive medical treatment.

"Most of them will recover over a period of time and we just need to monitor them, make sure they are well and take care of them," he said.

These two groups of patients will be sent to the Singapore Expo over the next few days.



A cubicle at a community care facility for COVID-19 patients at The Singapore EXPO & MAX Atria. (Photo: MOH)

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