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SINGAPORE – Lee Ah Mooi Old Age Home had a brush with Covid-19 twice this year, but the two incidents couldn’t have been more different.
In March, it became the first nursing home to report a case of coronavirus at its Thomson Road branch. At its peak, there were 14 infected residents, four of whom later died.
The house manager, Mr. Then Kim Yuan, who was working from home at the time, said that with all staff and residents in quarantine, it was a difficult situation to handle.
Then, in August, a former household staff member tested positive after returning home to the Philippines. Although that person was asymptomatic, samples were taken from 90 staff members and residents of the Silat branch of the house, where the person was from. Nobody tested positive.
This time, armed with the lessons learned from March, the house processes went smoother, Then said.
When the first case was identified on March 31, he said business continuity plans were thrown out the window as all staff were in quarantine.
Mr. Then said: “It was a completely new experience for all of us at that time. Any workflow process of our emergency preparedness exercises that we had previously formulated with the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Integrated Care Agency (AIC) really couldn’t work.
“I had to identify my priorities at the time: health and safety, continuity of service, and being in contact with the residents’ family members.”
She received hundreds of phone calls from anxious family members and worked around the clock to communicate with authorities.
And after the resident tested positive, representatives from the Ministry of Health and AIC visited the house and stayed until 4 am. They returned again at 7 in the morning the next day.
It was an overwhelming period not only for residents but also for staff members, who felt physically and mentally drained.
The infected residents were kept at Singapore General Hospital and the National Center for Infectious Diseases, and the home had to take calls from the two health institutions to obtain the residents’ medical records and other information.
In hindsight, Then said shared electronic medical records would have helped, but the push toward digitization took a backseat after the healthcare sector faced several incidents of cyber attacks in recent years.
“I hope that in the future we will go in that direction because having those records in times of pandemic would be very useful,” said Mr. Then.
There were also other stressors, such as the eviction of part of the staff by the owner.
Then said she made sure to provide her support in any way possible, as there were concerns that staff would be blamed for bringing the virus to the nursing home.
Counselors from the nursing home also reached out to staff and held self-care workshops. Government support, such as a $ 500 allowance for workers who were transferred to designated lodging or hotels, also helped, Mr. Then said.
In August, when a former staff member tested positive, things were handled differently, Then said. For example, within two hours of notifying the authorities, a teleconference was arranged and instructions were given.
He said: “We can really see how far we’ve come – the procedures and protocols were so seamless. It was different from the March episode, when we had to find a way forward, try to adapt solutions, and approach things the way they came.”
Then he said he found he could take a step back in August as his team was able to handle the incident and put his revised business continuity plan in place.
Beyond the pandemic, the home plans to explore more digital solutions, such as remote monitoring, that will be useful for residents with higher care needs.
You are also merging your vital signs monitoring system with your electronic medical records, which will improve efficiency.
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