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SINGAPORE: It may not be long before Singapore sees a sustained community spread of the H1N1 flu.
On Friday authorities confirmed what may be three locally transmitted H1N1 cases, bringing the number of possible community cases to four.
It also brings Singapore closer to the mitigation phase of coping with the infection.
This means resources will be focused on caring for those who are ill, instead of the current strategy of quarantining potential and confirmed patients.
And as Singapore changes tack in dealing with the flu, community doctors - the general practitioners or GPs - will play a bigger role in tackling the virus.
GPs treat an estimated 78 per cent of the population here.
So far, close to 1,000 clinics have signed on with the Health Ministry to diagnose and treat H1N1 flu patients. They are known as Pandemic Preparedness Clinics.
But only half meet the criteria - that is, they have been trained to deal with a flu pandemic, and have Internet access.
Experts say the lack of Internet access will hinder the ministry's pandemic response plan.
Dr Chong Yeh Woei, president of Singapore Medical Association, said: "The broadband connection is necessary for them to check the system; there will be a health-stats system to check if the patient had already been prescribed Tamiflu in the last few days. I think this is to prevent doctor-hopping; we certainly don't want patients moving from clinic to clinic, picking up boxes of Tamiflu."
One of the issues of getting wired is cost, and Dr Chong said this is for the ministry and GPs to work out between themselves.
Flu clinics can be identified through special decals. A full list is also available at the ministry's website.
But will patients know where to go?
That is why experts say that more can be done to publicise where these clinics are and that eventually all 1,400 GP clinics should be included in the response plan. But for now, Dr Chong said 500 is adequate.
He also said that if a suspected H1N1 case shows up at his GP only to discover that it is not a flu clinic, the doctor should still be equipped to handle the case.
Dr Chong also noted that not all GPs would want to sign on as a flu clinic. These include those in aesthetic clinics which do not often see patients with common illnesses.
The Pandemic Preparedness Clinics, or flu clinics, need to have separate waiting areas for flu patients. A triage area will also need to be set up for the nurse to determine if the patient has H1N1 flu.
All this means there could be a potential strain on existing resources at these GP clinics, many of which hire few staff, mostly on a part-time basis.
- CNA/ir
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