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May 17: The Ministry of Health in Singapore has today determined that the cluster of patients and staff in the Institute of Mental Health who developed fever on 11 to 12 May does not represent cases of SARS. None of the patients, which included 34 inpatients and 20 staff at the Institute, has shown any signs of clinical progression characteristic of SARS. Alternative diagnoses, including influenza and other causes of upper respiratory tract infection, have further excluded suspicion of SARS. Of the 54 patients, 25 have been discharged and only 7 continue to have mild febrile illness. As a precautionary measure, the Ministry had previously decided to treat the cluster as suspect SARS cases until proven otherwise. In line with this view, Singapore immediately introduced a series of stringent measures, including transfer of all cases to a designated hospital, active contact tracing, recall for medical consultation of all patients recently discharged from the Institute, and home quarantine for selected individuals. In addition, special accommodations for staff at the Institute, who continued to care for patients, were arranged to minimize opportunities for further transmission to occur pending results of the investigation. The most recent probable SARS case in Singapore developed symptoms on 27 April and was isolated the following day. May 10: Singapore, which has the world's third-highest fatalities from SARS reported no new cases of infection for the 13th day on Saturday, but there were two suspect cases. The two patients diagnosed as suspect cases, on a transit from Manila to Spain, were admitted or observation. The last time anyone was diagnosed with SARS was on April 27. Eight more days without anyone contracting the disease would be needed to declare the epidemic was under control -- estimated to be around May 18 to factor in two incubation periods. On May 6, the USA removed Singapore from its list of SARS-affected areas. The total numbers of cases stands at 205, 155 of which have been discharged and 27 have died. April 14: The Singapore Government announced today tougher screenings of air travelers arriving from affected such as Hong Kong, Canada, Taiwan, Hanoi and Vietnam. Nurses and air force paramedics at the main airport, armed with the power to quarantine, are now taking the temperature of all travelers from Hong Kong and China's Guangdong province. April 12: Singapore has today reported a cumulative total of 147 SARS cases of which 60 remain hospitalized, with 15 in intensive care. Recent concern has centered on clusters of SARS cases seen in health workers, inpatients, and visitors at Singapore General Hospital and Ton Tock Seng Hospital. WHO has collaborated with health authorities in investigations and contact tracing that have linked most cases in the hospital outbreaks to a single "super-spreader." This patient was treated at Ton Tock Seng Hospital from 5 to 20 March, where he is thought to have become infected. He was subsequently admitted to Singapore General Hospital on 24 March. The patient showed a very atypical clinical course before being isolated on 2 April. This late isolation is thought to explain, in part, the large number of exposed and infected individuals linked to the single patient. Ongoing investigations have linked the outbreaks at Singapore General Hospital, Ton Tock Seng Hospital, and other hospitals in Singapore to clear trains of transmission. April 4: 6th SARS death in Singapore; one new case emerges, brings total infected to 101 by Farah Abdul Rahim, Channel News Asia A sixth person has died from the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) in Singapore. 29-year-old Chong Pei Ling is the youngest to die from SARS here, after she contracted the virus overseas. She returned to Singapore on board a China Southern Airlines flight CZ 355 on Wednesday March 26 after a 13-day business trip to Hong Kong and Beijing. Upon arrival at Changi Airport, Miss Chong, accompanied by her mother, went straight to Singapore General Hospital in a taxi. She was sent from SGH to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where she had been in a serious condition for the past 8 days. The taxi driver who ferried her to hospital, her mother, and passengers on the flight with her, are still under quarantine. Meanwhile, another new SARS case was reported on Friday, bringing the total infected in Singapore to 101. The new case was a close contact of a SARS patient. 69 patients have been discharged while 26 are still hospitalised. The Health Ministry says 12 are in serious condition. There are 45 patients who are on the 'suspect list'. The Ministry says it has traced 94 patients to the first index case, Esther Mok, and on Friday said that all other 6 index or source cases, have not infected others. Meanwhile, the number
of people under home quarantine has fallen from 609 on Thursday to 203
on Friday. April 1: A doctor who had treated a female wearing an N95 mask, gown and gloves still contracted the disease from the patient. He had performed a close-contact procedure on his patient at National University Hospital on March 26 - at a time when no one even suspected that she was suffering from SARS. The woman died on Monday, March 31. From initially believing
that the disease could only be spread through close contact, to conceding
that it could be airborne in certain cases, experts have now come to
realize that even gloves and masks might not always provide enough protection.
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