Healthcare
One of the best things about Singapore is its healthcare system, which offers some of the finest medical services in the world and yet is readily accessible and affordable.
Outpatient Medical Services
As has always been the case, government polyclinics offer heavily subsidised outpatient medical treatment. Apart from medical care, services at polyclinics include laboratory and x-ray services, dental services, immunisation and health screening. For a full listing of polyclinics, click here. Consultation charges for adults are SGD 8 per visit and SGD 4 for full-time students, excluding medication.
While polyclinics can be found in all the major HDB estates, many Singaporeans prefer to see the neighbourhood General Practitioner (GP). The operating hours of these private clinics vary, but most of them operate from 9am to 5pm on weekdays, 9am to 1pm on Saturdays, and are closed on Sundays and public holidays. There are also 24-hour clinics.
Consultation charges at a GP range from SGD 18 to SGD 55 per visit, excluding medication. Some GPs make house calls for emergencies.
For a list of clinics in Singapore, visit the Ministry of Health (MOH) directory.
Hospitals
Public Hospitals
There are seven public hospitals in Singapore comprising five general hospitals, a women’s and children’s hospital and a psychiatry hospital. Non-Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents may only stay in the A (1 or 2 beds per room) and B1 (4 beds). The Ministry of Health compiles a list of complete charges including doctors’ fees for a comprehensive range of procedures at public hospitals here.
Six national specialty centres provide cancer, cardiac, eye, skin, neuroscience and dental care.
There are also community hospitals for intermediate healthcare for the convalescent sick and aged who do not require the care of the general hospitals.
At public hospitals, wards range from Class C (6-beds a room without air-con) to Class A (1- or 2-beds). Class B2 and C wards are heavily subsidised. From January 2009, means testing kicked in. What this means is that your monthly income will determine the level of subsidy you qualify for, should you decide to stay in a Class B2 or C ward. Class A and B1 wards are not affected by means testing. Ward charges range from SGD 20 a day for Class C and SGD 200 a day for Class A, onwards. Find out more about public hospital rates and admission procedures here.
Private Hospitals
The private hospitals in Singapore include Camden Medical Centre, East Shore Hospital, Gleneagles Hospital, Mount Alvernia Hospital, Mount Elizabeth Hospital and Raffles Hospital. Private hospitals charge from SGD 310 per day for a single room. These charges exclude treatment and other fees.
For a full list of hospitals in Singapore, visit the Ministry of Health (MOH) website.
Other Medical Services
There are also many specialist clinics in Singapore offering services such as dental and optometry.
Medical Insurance
You may use your insurance policy to cover your critical illness or hospitalisation bills, or you may use your Medisave account under your Central Provident Fund (CPF). Medisave can be drawn out to pay part of hospitalisation bills. From October 2006, the usage of Medisave was extended to include diabetes. As at 2009, it can cover outpatient treatments for four chronic diseases, namely diabetes, high blood pressure, lipid disorder and stroke . CPF members can also choose to be covered under MediShield which is a basic, low cost medical insurance scheme run by the CPF Board.
You may also consider buying private health insurance. These can be basic, covering only inpatient hospital stays, or comprehensive, to include inpatient and outpatient care, lab tests, x-rays and other medical services. There are many reputable insurance agencies in Singapore which offer attractive premium rates and coverage. Do shop around to find a policy that suits your lifestyle and needs.
Immunisation
All children in Singapore need to be immunised against a list of diseases, namely diphtheria, Hepatitis B, measles, mumps, pertussis (whooping cough), poliomyelitis, rubella, tetanus and tuberculosis. You will need to ensure that your child has undertaken all the required immunisation before he/she is allowed to register for Primary 1 in Singapore schools.
You may bring your child for his/her vaccination at any General Practitioner or government polyclinic. Bring along your child’s Health Booklet for recording purposes.
To check out the immunisation schedule, click here.