SINGAPORE, June 17 — About 70 residents and former residents at Block 203 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 have undergone screening for tuberculosis as of 5pm yesterday, and will be notified of the results within the next two weeks, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
The 160-unit block currently has more than 350 residents.
Several residents who participated in the screening — which involved answering a questionnaire and taking a blood test at the block’s void deck, and a chest X-ray conducted in a Sata CommHealth bus — told TODAY they were surprised but “not overly alarmed” by the cluster of multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) cases involving six of their neighbours.
Dr Koh Poh Koon, a Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC, who addressed the media at the screening site yesterday, said most residents responded calmly when he visited them on Wednesday night to encourage them to participate in the exercise, although some asked why there was a need for on-site screening.
While only close contacts are screened in typical cases of TB, the Health Ministry had broken away from routine in this episode — which it described as “highly unusual” — as a precaution.
“(MOH) is taking a precautionary approach partly because this is the first time that there is such a cluster localised in one block ... Many (residents) are quite happy that we are willing to share information with them, because sometimes when there is a knowledge gap, it can actually raise anxiety,” said Dr Koh.
He also commended Dr Cynthia Chee, senior consultant at the Tuberculosis Control Unit at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, for her “astute observation” in connecting six patients with similar residential addresses over a four-year period.
Resident Tan Lye Huat, 56, found news of the cluster unexpected as he did not personally know anyone with the disease.
“But I am not too concerned. Even if I am indeed diagnosed with TB, I am confident that it can be treated with today’s medical technology,” he said.
Another resident, Lau Lian Huat, said he got screened because it was free and he had time yesterday.
“But I don’t think it is so easy to get TB,” said the 59-year-old, who lives with his wife.
MOH officials and grassroots volunteers were on site to educate residents on how TB is typically transmitted, diagnosed and treated.
The screening, which is not mandatory, runs from 9am to 9pm daily until Sunday.
The 11-storey block houses about 350 residents in 160 units, all of which face the common corridor.
Residents share the same lift situated at the centre of each storey, and two stairwells — one in the centre and another at the extreme left.
Common spaces in the vicinity include a playground, a pavilion and an open court with several benches. — TODAY
