Dr Lim Chien Chuan (Photo – Terry Xu)

Dr Lim Chien Chuan, who have been serving as a General Practitioner (GP) at Sims Drive Clinic for 16 years, was one of the three doctors who referred their clinic’s patients to Communicable Diseases Centre (CDC)at Tan Tock Seng Hospital under the assistance of the Ministry of Health (MOH) which led to the discovery of the first locally transmitted Zika infection in Singapore.

The two other doctors at the clinic are Dr Chi Wei Ming and Dr Tan May Yen.

According to the press release by MOH, the first patient who is a 47-year-old female Malaysian residing at Block 102 Aljunied Crescent, developed fever, rash and conjunctivitis from 25 August. She visited a GP on Friday (26 August) and was referred to the CDC, where she was tested positive for Zika on last Saturday (27 August).

Dr Lim noted to reporters in an earlier interview on Monday, that it was difficult to notice trends among their patients, because he, Dr Chi and Dr Tan are rarely on duty at the same time.

The clinic had begun seeing as many as 10 patients a day with mild fever, rashes and joint pains just two weeks before they informed MOH about the matter. Prior to this, the clinic was seeing only two or three cases.

Dr Tan drew attention to the “sudden spike” in the cases and further suspicions aroused when the patients were tested negative for dengue, chikungunya, measles and rubella.

Dr Lim said that the clinic contacted MOH on last Monday (22 August) and the CDC asked the clinic to send samples for testing on Tuesday (23 August) which eventually resulted in the discovery of the first patient.

Dr Lim is unable to provide information of whether the workers were from his clinic as MOH does not get back to the clinic on whether their patients have been tested positive for the Zika infection. However, he did share that the clinic referred another five patients with the same symptoms for testing just on Monday itself.

The only difficulty that he brought up is that although patients do agree to go for testing, but the doctors cannot be sure if they would be physically present for the testing.

Identifying the Zika infection

The problem with identifying the Zika infection is that doctors would likely write the patient’s sickness off as a fever as majority of them would have their fever subsided by the time they visit the clinic. And prior to the clinic’s referral of patients to MOH, there has been no awareness among the GPs that they had to look out for Zika infections in patients who have showed signs of the infection but had not travelled in recent days.

But the infection is not to say undetectable as Dr Lim pointed out that the fever will come with rash and painful joints. The rash will come about on day two, day three upon infection and it is itchy.

According to Dr Lim, some patients will also have meningitis as a result of their infection.

There is a guideline issued for GPs, before any referral is made to the CDC so that the GPs will not over diagnose or under diagnose.

Back when the clinic had its earlier suspicion, the doctors could not test the samples because of the lack of access to the labs. But from today (29 August), GPs can now send the samples to CDC for testing if it meets the criteria.

People with symptoms should not panic

Dr Lim said that people need not worry if they take necessary precaution. If they show symptoms of the infection, which would be mild in most of the cases, they should just visit their GPs to be sure.

Pregnant ladies need not panic over any symptoms and should visit their obstetrician for medical consultation and advice.

Dr Lim believes that with the appropriate vector control, he is confident that the situation can be brought under control.

When said that it is the credit of the doctors for highlighting the first case of infection, Dr Lim said that “This is just our duty” and added that he believes that other doctors would have done the same.

sims drive medical
Clinic that referred the patients to MOH for suspected cases of Zika infection
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

"There is a difference between being part of the elite and subscribing to and propagating elitism" – SDP's Chee Soon Juan

“If Singapore is going to remain relevant and competitive, we don’t have…

李绳武被控藐视法庭获准上诉 撤销总检察署海外庭令

李绳武父亲李显扬,于今早在脸书贴文表示,新加坡上诉庭在昨日驳回高庭决定,允许李绳武上诉,以撤销总检察署的境外传召庭令。 他在贴文补充,“上诉庭的裁决,也印证了我们的信念,即绳武提出的严肃课题,值得认真探讨。“ 他相信,这是有史以来,上诉庭有机会在公开法庭探讨,在李绳武个案的情境下,我国法庭在国外是否具备司法权。 探讨是否具备海外司法权 新加坡总检察署指控,建国总理李光耀的孙子李绳武涉藐视法庭,并采取法律行动。 李绳武是在去年7月15日,在脸书贴文批评我国政府“好诉讼”,法庭制度“温顺”,被总检察署指控藐视法庭。 李绳武也拒绝撤下有关贴文。他曾指出,有关贴文只是设定为只供朋友圈浏览,不公开大众阅读,却还是引来三大媒体和总检察署的注意,令他对新加坡政府琐事必究的程度感到惊讶。“难道我在私人脸书上发布“煽动性”炫耀休假的照片,也会被对付?” 李绳武的代表律师在去年12月22日,提出申请以撤销有关在美国递交法律文件给当事人的庭令,但在今年3月26日,被高庭驳回。 李绳武代表律师提出理据,总检察署有必要证明,藐视法庭程序必须根据“成文法”提诉,或是基于成文法来执法。然而,在李绳武发布有关贴文期间,藐视法庭罪并没有成文法律可依据。 其二,即便能以成文法提出藐视法庭诉讼,总检察署错误援引高庭法(Supreme Court of…

Fire breaks out in Ang Mo Kio flat; 130 residents evacuated, 7 sent to hospital

About 130 people were evacuated, and seven residents were conveyed to the…

SCDF deployed in response to gas leak at 3 Jalan Samulun

Singapore Civil Defence Force(SCDF) had earlier announced on its Facebook page that…