Life is full of uncertainty. If we are equipped with the knowledge on how to handle emergency cases, we will be calm when it happen. Now, what to do when you have a medical emergency in Singapore?
Ambulance Service
If you have a medical emergency in Singapore, the telephone number to call is 995. This line is operated by the Singapore Civil Defence. If you cannot remember the number you can always call the police hotline at 999 but you might waste precious minutes being passed from one operator to another. For other non-emergency cases, refer to this list of contacts.
What To Say To The Civil Defence Operator
Try to stay calm when you are on the phone with the emergency line operator. You must try your best to provide the following information to help get the ambulance to your location in the shortest time possible.
Information 1: Your name and contact. Provide them your name and contact number so that the ambulance crew can call you if they are not able to find the place.
Information 2 : Location of the patient. Give the address of the exact location of the patient. Be specific: Eg. At the lift A on level 3, At the open carpark near to Block 222.
Information 3 : Describe the patient. Eg. He is about 50 years of age and is bleeding a lot from the head, he is unconscious, he is screaming.
Information 4 : What happen? Do not try to tell the whole story of how the patient got injured. Be concise: Eg. He had a fall, He was in a car accident.
Information 5 : Direct the ambulance. If you are not helping the patient, stand at the nearest main road, car park entrance and wave at the ambulance when it appears. Direct the ambulance to the exact location so that they do not waste time trying to identify the exact house or apartment block.
** Note: The ambulance will bring the patient to the nearest hospital, and not the hospital of your choice. A lot of people have the wrong perception that they can request where to send the patient to seek treatment. Trust the paramedics, they will know what to do.
At the Hospital
When you reached the A&E department of the hospital, the patient will be attended to by the hospital staff. Stay at the A&E waiting area and be available to furnish the doctor with any information that might be useful to help find out what happened to the patient. If you have not already done so, get someone to bring the medications that the patients have been taking at home. Eg. drugs for hypertension, diabetes, heart conditions.
Appoint one family member or friend as the main liaison person. Provide this person’s contact information to the nurse.
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