June 2020

A sudden spike in COVID-19 cases in countries that have recently emerged from lockdowns is now sparking concerns of a possible resurgence in coronavirus infections. Globally, many are fixated on the number of daily reported cases as they are often regarded as indicators of second waves of infection, which may potentially lead to lockdowns. “However, the measure of a country’s ability to manage the COVID-19 outbreak goes beyond a simplistic focus on daily case numbers – an indicator which dangerously ignores the impact of the outbreak on the economy andRead more

1,375 dengue cases were reported last week, making it the highest number of weekly cases ever recorded in Singapore since 2014. The record-breaking figure suggests that Singapore might be heading for a big year, wrote Assistant Professor Hannah Clapham in a commentary zooming in on our battle against two outbreaks: COVID-19 and Dengue. While the ‘circuit breaker’ has managed to reduce person-to-person contact thereby stabilising the COVID-19 outbreak, it seems to be doing the opposite for dengue, which spreads from human-to-mosquito-to-human. Dr Clapham noted that a combination of factors may

Recently, two of the world’s most prestigious medical journals each retracted an article about treatment of patients with COVID-19. In a ScienceTalk contribution to The Straits Times, Associate Professor Mikael Hartman and Professor Lee Chuen Neng elaborated on the process of the publication and dissemination of scientific work, and discussed how critical errors can be missed when journals publish hastily generated reports. The peer review process is a lengthy one that ensures high-quality work is published in the best, most transparent and fairest way. Papers usually go through several iterations

Some may perceive Phase One of Singapore’s three-phase exit of its ‘circuit breaker’ as a mere extension, with many existing restrictions to continue. But these restrictions are needed because we have merely averted a tsunami, wrote Professor Chia Kee Seng and PhD student Ms Ong Suan Ee in a commentary for The Straits Times. They warned that Singaporeans must be mentally prepared not just for a second wave, but for multiple waves that may be the new normal for the foreseeable future. If we are not careful, if we abandon