Committee of Supply 2024 debate, Day 5: Jamus Lim on hospital and polyclinic capacity
There is a dire need to relieve not only Singapore’s capacity shortfalls in the short run, but also any projected long-run need, said MP Jamus Lim. Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday (Mar 5), he pointed out that the planned expansion of Alexandra Hospital and Woodlands Health Campus is likely to only fix the current shortfall but remains insufficient as the population grows and ages. He said this comes down to the willingness to sacrifice short-run efficiency by accepting a certain amount of redundancy in the interim. He suggested ramping up urgent care offerings as an intermediate option, as well as improving the incentives for transition care at home, perhaps with cash incentives paid directly to patients using savings that would otherwise go towards hospitalisation expenses.
There is a dire need to relieve not only Singapore’s capacity shortfalls in the short run, but also any projected long-run need, said MP Jamus Lim. Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday (Mar 5), he pointed out that the planned expansion of Alexandra Hospital and Woodlands Health Campus is likely to only fix the current shortfall but remains insufficient as the population grows and ages. He said this comes down to the willingness to sacrifice short-run efficiency by accepting a certain amount of redundancy in the interim. He suggested ramping up urgent care offerings as an intermediate option, as well as improving the incentives for transition care at home, perhaps with cash incentives paid directly to patients using savings that would otherwise go towards hospitalisation expenses.
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