Singapore ― A video of an over-crowded area at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) went viral on WhatsApp messenger and social media on Thursday (Sept 23).
A woman at the hospital took a short clip of the number of beds and patients waiting in an open area. She wrote that TTSH carpark was converted into either a ward or a waiting area.
Rows of patients are seen in the video with beds all over the open area. A marking on one of the chairs in the video indicates that the hospital the video was taken at is Tan Tock Seng.
The video, which has garnered several hundred shares on Facebook, shows a large hall filled with about thirty hospitals beds, neatly spaced apart.
The video comes as no surprise because Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) has extended its emergency department to create more room for screening as part of Covid-19 measures.
The hospital said in a Facebook post on Monday night (Sept 20) that patients arriving by car or taxi to the Centre for Geriatric Medicine or emergency department should note that the carpark nearest to the emergency department is partially closed.
“We are extending our emergency department to create more screening space as part of our safe Covid-19 ramp-up efforts,” added TTSH.
Responding to media queries, TTSH has since clarified that the area is their extended Emergency Department (ED) where patients are screened and tested. They had set it up to screen and test patients — it does not serve as a medical ward. Instead, the area is a ‘checkpoint’ of sorts, directing patients to where they ought to receive medical treatment or undergo isolation. / TISG