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A trip to the Emergency Department may be one filled with uncertainty. Our team recognises this and tries its best to make the visit as comfortable as possible for our patients and their loved ones.
NTFGH's Emergency Department is staffed with 24-hour specialist coverage to oversee and manage acute emergencies, providing patients with treatment at the specialist level. Our team of Emergency Medicine specialists, nurses and Patient Service Associates is experienced and well-equipped to provide one-stop care to anyone seeking emergency medical help.
Patients suffering from asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are given the option of non-invasive ventilation. Our Emergency Department is one of the few in Singapore that offers this service.
We have fostered a close collaboration with the National University Health System (NUHS). The latter supports our Emergency Department in the management of time-sensitive emergencies, including stroke and acute myocardial infarction i.e. heart attack. By pooling our expertise and resources, we are able to save precious time and ensure continuity of care.
Our Emergency Department is also one of the few in Singapore that offers an Extended Diagnostic Treatment Unit (EDTU) manned by emergency specialists. This 24-hour short-stay ward provides transitional care for patients who are no longer in a critical condition but still require extended observation.
The Emergency Department in NTFGH is designed around patients' needs to reduce waiting time through a more efficient workflow. Elder-friendly features also help improve comfort and reduce anxiety. Additionally, it is pandemic-prepared, mass-casualty and decontamination-ready.
An emergency is a situation that is unforseen but requires immediate care. At our Emergency Department, we attend to a wide variety of conditions and ensure excellent care for all patients. To achieve this, we need to prioritise cases to administer emergency care based on the severity of the medical conditions.
In all emergency departments, assessment and prioritisation of patients are performed by a triage nurse, who will enquire about the patient's condition and assess the vital signs, before assigning a Patient Acuity Category (PAC) Scale, as follows:
AC 1 are serious cases such as acute myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest or major trauma that require immediate medical attention. PAC1 patients are either in a state of cardiovascular collapse or in imminent danger of collapse. In such cases, a life is at stake and every minute counts.
Patients are unable to move on their own and in various forms of severe distress. They appear to be in a stable state upon initial cardiovascular examination and are not in danger of imminent collapse. However, they still require early attention due to the severity of their symptoms, failing which early deterioration of the medical condition may occur. Examples of such medical conditions are stroke, long bone fractures and asthma.
Patients with PAC 3 status show acute symptoms but are still able to move on their own. Their symptoms are mild to moderate and acute treatment will result in the resolution of symptoms over time. Conditions in this category include bleeding cuts, mild to moderate injuries and high fever.
PAC 4 are non-emergency cases that do not require immediate medical attention. There is no present threat to their lives and their symptoms can be managed in a primary health care setting such as a general practitioner or polyclinic. PAC 4 examples include chronic lower back pain, high cholesterol, acne, etc.
Our patient journey for walk-in patients is as follows:
Our 24-hour one-stop Emergency Department handles the following emergencies.
Our Emergency Department assesses and treats patients with general medical and surgical emergencies.
We provide basic care for all cardiovascular emergencies including physical examination, ECG, X-ray, blood investigation and basic supportive treatment.
Our team collaborates closely with National University Hospital. Patients requiring thrombolytic (clot busting) therapy and preparatory care prior to acute percutaneous angioplasty (ballooning) will be transferred to NUH seamlessly.
We are equipped with the necessary resuscitation equipment to provide medical treatment for accident patients with major trauma. This includes resuscitation and other basic trauma treatment procedures such as suturing, basic care of wounds and setting of simple fractures and dislocations. With multi-disciplinary trauma resuscitation capabilities, major procedures are initiated within the Emergency Department before the patient is sent to the operating theatre.
We provide emergency care for patients who suffer from any form of poisoning or toxic exposure.
As the Emergency Department is often the first point of contact for patients in a hospital, our Emergency Medicine department liaises closely with the Ministry of Health's Emergency Preparedness branch to coordinate pandemic and emergency workflows within the hospital.
Patients admitted with contagious diseases are treated in our negative pressure isolation rooms.
Bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract is a potentially life-threatening condition. Patients with gastro-intestinal tract bleeding have to be resuscitated before emergency endoscopy is carried out to identify the source of the bleeding and stop the bleeding.
Patients who arrive at the Emergency Department in an urgent or critical condition are given priority for CT and MRI services, which would help our doctors to make informed decisions on the patient's treatment plan.
Our partnership with NUH allows us to provide timely treatment for specialised conditions. Patients with the following conditions will be stabilised and transferred to NUH for further care. This includes children under 12 years old as we do not have specialised nor inpatient paediatric services to treat young patients.
If you are unsure whether you should visit our Emergency Department for your medical condition, simply call the NurseFirst Helpline at 6262 6262.
For more information, visit www.wh.com.sg/nursefirst
Mon - Sun & PH: 24hrs
Ng Teng Fong General Hospital
Tower B - Wards
Level 1
