1777 hotline emergency screening protocols and cost implications for non-emergency ambulance service case redirection

Mr Yip Hon Weng: To ask the Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs (a) what are the screening protocols for 1777 hotline operators for non-emergency ambulance services to identify and divert emergencies to 995 and whether exclusion criteria are communicated to callers upfront; (b) how many cases received through 1777 are re-directed to 995 annually; and (c) whether consumers are required to pay the associated costs if the private ambulance deems a case unsuitable upon arrival.

Answer:

Mr K Shanmugam, Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs:

1. 1777 hotline operators use a structured screening protocol to assess whether a patient’s condition may constitute a medical emergency. The protocol guides operators to identify symptoms such as major trauma, stroke, cardiac arrest, or other life-threatening conditions. Where a case is assessed as a medical emergency, the caller will be advised that the patient’s condition warrants an emergency response, and the call will be redirected to Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), unless the caller declines. Between 2024 and 2025, an average of 1,420 cases were redirected annually from 1777 to SCDF.

2. Callers are informed upfront that 1777 services are intended for non-emergency medical conveyance. Should a caller insist on engaging a private ambulance ^[1] despite being advised that the patient’s condition warrants an emergency response, the 1777 operator will dispatch a private ambulance licensed under the Healthcare Services Act as an Emergency Ambulance Service ^[2] (EAS) provider. The EAS provider would then be able to convey the patient to the hospital.

3. For cases initially triaged as non-emergencies, a Medical Transport Service (MTS) provider would instead be dispatched. The crew would not be equipped to manage emergency cases and would activate SCDF if they assess upon arrival that the patient’s condition warrants an emergency response.

4. The payment of fees is subject to the terms and cancellation policies of private ambulance operators, which may vary. Callers may incur fees for services rendered by the private ambulance operator, even if the case is subsequently redirected to SCDF.

[1] In such scenarios, callers may prefer conveyance to a medical facility of their choice as SCDF ambulances will only convey patients to the nearest public healthcare institution.

[2] The two types of ambulance services licensed by the Ministry of Health under the Healthcare Services Act (HCSA) are i) Emergency Ambulance Service (EAS) and ii) Medical Transport Services (MTS). EAS are qualified to convey patients with life-threatening conditions requiring urgent medical intervention, while MTS are for stable patients requiring medical supervision during transportation.