Written Reply to Parliamentary Question on Help Provided for Home Team Officers if They Face Stress when conducting Checks on Persons Under Stay-Home Notice, by Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law

Question:

Ms Joan Pereira: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether there is a dedicated line for Home Team officers to call if they face mental and physical stress when conducting spot checks on persons under Stay-Home Notice; and (b) what help is being provided to ensure that these essential officers' well-being are met.

Answer:

1. Counselling helplines, manned by Home Team psychologists, are available to all Home Team officers, including those who are involved in COVID-19 operations. During this period, we have stepped up the manning of these helplines.

2. Home Team Departments have also put in place other measures to ensure the well-being of our officers working on Singapore’s response to COVID-19. Our in-house psychologists and para-counsellors look out for distressed officers. Supervisors and commanders engage officers frequently to gather feedback, motivate and raise morale. Self-care materials and guides are disseminated to officers on a regular basis. We have also distributed “care packs” which include personal items such as reusable masks, Vitamin C supplements, and hand sanitisers.

3. Home Team Departments have also implemented various physical measures to protect our officers and these measures are elaborated in the reply to Q*38 on today’s Order Paper by Mr Christopher de Souza, as published in the Circular for Written Answers to Questions for Oral Answer Not Reached by End of Question Time on 4 June 2020.