F1 Pit Building no longer a Covid-19 treatment facility as cases in Singapore dip

SINGAPORE - The F1 Pit Building has been stood down as a Covid-19 treatment facility (CTF), in another move towards normality after a two-year battle with the coronavirus.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) told The Sunday Times (ST) on Saturday (April 2) that the facility was stood down at the end of March due to fewer Covid-19 cases and sufficient capacity at other Covid-19 facilities.

MOH said about 760 Covid-19 patients had been treated at the F1 Pit Building before it was stood down.

It said patients have been directed to other community treatment facilities, like the CTF@Expo, Bright Vision Hospital and other designated community hospitals.

The F1 Pit Building first received Covid-19 patients on Nov 9 last year, to manage the surge in Covid-19 cases during the Delta wave.

As a CTF, it took in Covid-19-positive seniors who had chronic illnesses but were stable and could perform daily activities such as eating and toileting independently.

They had to be above 70 years old if they were unvaccinated, or above 80 if they were inoculated, to be admitted.

The temporary treatment facility could house up to 721 patients at any one time.

MOH told ST there are 31 CTFs and Covid-19 community isolation facilities islandwide with a capacity to accommodate about 13,500 patients in total.

The current utilisation of CTFs is under 20 per cent and that of community isolation facilities at under 10 per cent, said MOH.

It added: "Their overall capacity remains sufficient to meet our current and projected needs."

MOH said the closing of the F1 Pit Building as a CTF would facilitate preparations for other activities there, such as the Singapore Grand Prix 2022.

Other upcoming events at the building, which is owned by the Singapore Tourism Board, include Boutique Fairs Singapore from April 22 to 24, and the Army Open House from May 28 to 30.

MOH had earlier said the existing CTF in Tampines would be converted back to a nursing home around this month.

Sengkang Community Hospital, which has been serving as a CTF, will be reconfigured to allow it to attend more to chronically ill patients who need medical follow-ups.

Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious diseases specialist from the Rophi Clinic at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, said the current low utilisation rate of the CTFs and community isolation facilities suggests there is scope to deploy resources from these places to hospitals to help with acute cases.

But he agreed a healthy buffer in terms of the unused capacity of such facilities is needed, given that Singapore is now in the initial stages of significantly relaxed Covid-19 restrictions.

"Standing down more Covid-19 facilities now may be calling out for celebration champagne too soon as cases might just spike again," he said.

He noted that other countries that have relaxed restrictions also saw a spike in cases.

He added: "Standing down these facilities is easy. But restarting or setting them up again needs at least two to four weeks' lead time at the least."