Mount Elizabeth Hospital rejects critically injured worker

last SG · 2007-02-04T12:29:28+00:00

I supposed you're still ignorant about the system in Singapore. The patient got to be transferred with a reason and not just because they see the patient as...

C-100 SG

Finger do not have any major blood vessal, and as long as pressure is being applied, should stop bleeding in max 5mins.

C-100 SG

Originally posted by quarkz:
Hi,

Just would like to highlight something which happened this Monday ........ PS: The construction worker is now in the high dependency ward (ie bet normal & intensive). [b]It seems that his life is still NOT out of danger yet.[/b]

My take is, Mt E must have stablize the patient before transferring to TTSH. Why jump to the conclusion that he is not treated because he is a china worker? Mt E is a private hospital, which means, they might not have the Emergency equipments.

Btw, there is a HUGE difference from High D and Intensive care unit. For all u know, that china worker will be in a normal surgical ward the next day.

Dun jump to conclusion before knowing the whole issue. That is how rumors starts.

mancha SG

Other hospitals also transfer patients to TTSH after providing initial treatment and when the patient is stabilised. TTSH seems to specilize in neurological or head trauma.

soulwinner SG

Hmm… I think they simply have not equipment ba… I visit mount e before and it most occupied by pirvate clinic … So i don’t think they have equipment for life-saving….

Insomic SG

Sometimes, Singaporeans so quick to complain, when they should evaluate the whole situation first before mouthing off.

oxford mushroom SG

Mt E does have an A/E department. They have an obligation to stabilize the patient and decide if he is fit for transfer to another hospital. If he is unfit for transfer, Mt E will have to treat him. The threadstarter does not know the condition of the worker. For all we know, he might just have dislocated a shoulder, not at all life-threatening.

Second, as he is a foreign worker, he would be treated as a non-subsidized patient at TTSH as well. The differential in fees between Mt E and private ward charges in TTSH is not that much (not to say they are similar).

Third, foreign workers may be covered by medical insurance purchased by their employers (it is going to be a statutory requirement in future). The insurance companies may have stipulations as to the hospital for treatment, except in life-threatending situations.

The threadstarter is typical of those who pounce on any excuse to criticize the government, without facts, without reason, without brains.

fymk SG

Originally posted by quarkz:
Hi,

Just would like to highlight something which happened this Monday (29/1/7) around noon time. My friend was working in Tan Tock Seng hospital (TTSH) at that time and he saw a critically injured construction worker being rushed into the A&E department.

He was "transferred" from Mount Elizabeth Hospital (Mount E). The construction worker had fallen from 7th floor to 5th floor and then to the ground floor. His college rushed him to the nearest hospital, which was Mount E.

However, instead of treating this serious injured guy, he was simply put on drip and transferred to Tan Tock Seng hospital.

[b]Why wasn't he treated or operated immediately? It's a matter of life and death. The transfer from Mount E to TTSH could take anywhere between 20mins to 40mins or even longer depending on traffic condition. This time difference meant that he may lose his life.

Well, the reason is actually quite simple - He is a lowly paid construction worker from China. He will not be able to pay the hefty hospital bill ... so why give him treatment?

To Mount E, it seems that these ppl's lives are not worth saving! It's better to use the resources available to treat the rich ppl! I don't know who made the decision to transfer the serious injured guy but I believe it's a common practice over there.

It's really sad, disappointing to see such things happening. Should the motto of a doctor or hospital to try their very best to save lives, no matter who they are?

I'm posting this because I feel that such things 've to be made known. I wonder how ppl feel after reading this? Ignorant, indifferent ....?

PS: The construction worker is now in the high dependency ward (ie bet normal & intensive). It seems that his life is still NOT out of danger yet.[/b]

If he is in a life threatening condition - he will be in the intensive care ward, not high dependency .

Mount E has no specialist A&E doctors . They have private specialists who treat private patients, those usually manning the A&E are locums and they usually call down all the specialists relevant to the parts of the body injured. It is better to transfer that man to TTSH.

Treatment - first doctors have to assess the patient and then if the doctor state that he is stable medically for transfer - he will be transferred. At least they gave him a drip .Operation can only occur when the patient is stable enough to take the general anaesthetic or else he will die on the operating table. Sometimes the risk has to be weighted against the benefit of operating someone.

His colleague should have called the ambulance if his life was in danger.

honeymouse SG

Originally posted by quarkz:

Well, the reason is actually quite simple - [b]He is a lowly paid construction worker from China. He will not be able to pay the hefty hospital bill ... so why give him treatment?

To Mount E, it seems that these ppl's lives are not worth saving! It's better to use the resources available to treat the rich ppl! I don't know who made the decision to transfer the serious injured guy but I believe it's a common practice over there.

It's really sad, disappointing to see such things happening. Should the motto of a doctor or hospital to try their very best to save lives, no matter who they are?

[/b]

Are you certain that this is the main reason they transfered the injured worker to another hospital?

Some hospitals simply don't have the emergency facilities/department to attend to injured people and Mount E might be one of them. So even if the accidents happen in front of the hospital, they can't do anything about it.

I think when that accident happened, the colleague should have called an ambulance as the paramedics are trained to handle people with serious injuries and know which is the best and closest hospital to send him to. The colleague could have done more harm to the injured man even though it is out of his good intention.

iceFatboy SG

Dear TS, I think your initial judgement may be too harsh and rash.
There must be some reasons why he was transferred to TTSH. Perhaps you need to find out more. Don't just look at the tip of iceberg.

Yes, most private hospitals do have a premium. but, I don't believe if critical, any doctors, nurses or hospitals would reject. That's an insult to their profession and their ethics. And for those who jumped on the bandwagon, shame on you.

Please rem what happened during the SARS saga, how we all benefited from their TLC (tender loving care).

<Precious> SG

On what basis have you made your conclusion - ignorance? Evil or Very Mad

The construction worker may be lowly-paid but he won't be liable to pay the medical fees if he sustained the injury in the course of performing his work. It is his company which will be liable. The company will most likely have insurance coverage for its workers. So the fact that the worker is poor is irrelevant right from the very beginning.

Secondly, it is probably more likely that Mt E does not have the facilities/ doctors to treat the injuries suffered by the casualty which Tan Tock Seng has. The victim was definitely not just "put on a drip" and transferred. He most probably will have first been ascertained to be stable first, that is, his life is not threatened, before arrangement is made for the transfer.

As such, your conclusion is most laughable and biased. Perhaps you've got something against the rich........? Laughing

jljl SG

don't be surprised if :

1. it was his company/boss who refusesd him to be admitted to mount eliz.
2. his company's insurance does not cover private hospital admissions.

wake up and face the reality, somethings are beyond the hands of the doctors there too. they can probably apply some basic first aid (even for free), but eventually the real issue is the payment for the definitive treatment.

photo_seeker SG

I wonder where have the TS disappeared to. From his nick, it appeared that he've posted once and disappeared while he was being 'fired' at by forumers.

I strongly encourage others to get certain facts right before posting such remarks as the hospital can take it as a court case against the TS.

At the same time, I'm glad that many forumers here are able to see the bigger picture of this situation and make responsible comments.

Quincey SG

It is not true that Mount E does not attend to emergency cases. I remember very vividly an incident about a decade ago where the sister of my filippino auntie suffered a massive stroke while with her friends at lucky plaza. Like my aunt, her sister was a domestic worker working in a Singaporean family. Her friends, seeing her condition, rushed her to the nearest hospital which is Mount Elizabeth (it's just behind Lucky Plaza). The doctors did not hesitate for a moment to treat her and she was admitted to the ICU at Mount E after her employer willingly took up the responsibility of footing the medical expenses. Sadly, due to the severity of her condition, she passed away a few days later.

I believe that your friend got the wrong information or for that matter the workers' condition was deemed safe enough to be treated at a government hospital. Furthermore, most insurance policies do not cover private hospitals. I think we have to find out more information before we come to any wild conclusions of our own on this matter.

ShutterBug SG

In Singapore, it is MONEY and the ECONOMY that the systen saves....
...not lives.

Private hospitals and private healthcare are for the Elites and Rich, common folks goes to public hospitals and polyclinics where the WAIT for medical attention itself, kills people.....

ndmmxiaomayi SG

Based on experience, the longest I've treated a bleeding finger was 10 minutes, and it's a deep cut.

ndmmxiaomayi SG

ShutterBug, that I would beg to differ.

While Singapore does care about the money, lives are important as well. Mount Elizabeth is a private hospital, the worker is foreign which compounded the whole issue.

The threadstarter has never been clear, with no facts or whatsoever to back up.

Furthermore, it's his/her friend who witnessed it. There are lots of people working in Tan Tock Seng who aren't trained nurses/doctors and could easily jump into conclusions based on the people arriving at A&E, especially those in ambulances.

Seen a tad too many cases on this.

quarkz SG

hi,

Thanks for your valueable comments. Maybe some ppl 'll think tt I'm just jumping to conclusion and accusing Mount. E. The fact tt I waited 6 days before I post this is to get as much info as possible. Even the nurses shaked their heads when they saw tt.

FYI, I've fax a memo to the Chinese embassy to look into the matter.

Just to point out a few points....

1. Mount E do 've A&E department. However, compared to TTSH, the doctors there are not as good cos they do not encounter some many cases daily. But they do 've sufficient facilities to treat the injured person. "Treat" of cos does not mean simply to set plug and put the person on drip and then transfer him to another hospital. If a person is seriously injured, doing the above does not stablized his condition. More can definitely be done.

2. One good point is that the employer could 've called the friend who sent the injured guy in, telling him to transfer his injured friend to a govt hospital. Even so, Mount E should not 've allowed tt because the person is in a life threatening condition. In any case, the responsibility cannot be shifted.

3. A&E treats patients according to the seriousness of their condition. It's not 1st come 1st serve.

4. Complaint letter to Mount E? Sorry I believe it 'll just end up in the rubbish bin.

5. The injured person was initially in a intensive care. He is now in high dependency ward becos his condition is better now. Simple as tt. u try falling from 7th to 5th floor and then to ground floor. see how tt feels.

6. If u 've bought insurance, u should know there's lots of "terms and conditions". there are also special restrictions. depending on the cost of premium, it may only cover the basic. I'm sure some of u may 've the experience of not getting your claims from the insurance company. Moreover, I don't think there are many employers who 'll be willing to spend a lot of money on their workers' insurance. usually, just the basic 'll do.

ndmmxiaomayi SG

"Treat" of cos does not mean simply to set plug and put the person on drip and then transfer him to another hospital.

I'm afraid that in Singapore's context, it does mean this. Depending on the seriousness of the injury, basic first aid might be applied first before transferring to another hospital which has the facilities.

norm SG

Mount E has A & E dept. My grandfather died there in A & E.

stooki SG

i saw before a rolls royce car in MEH… i think the doctor there earn money like siao

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