TABLE 1.

Summary of strategies adopted in the National Centre for Infectious Diseases Screening Centre

Pre outbreak preparation	Purpose‐built infrastructure ◦In‐house radiological and laboratory facilities ◦Air regime: positive‐pressure in staff rest area; negative‐pressure in resuscitation room Standard operating procedures for rapid activation and deployment ◦Standard operating procedures of various stakeholders (medical, nursing, logistics, operations, etc) developed in conjunction with each other ◦3‐day activation timeline Regular activation and equipping drills
Layout and patient flow	Seating arrangement: adequate spacing between each patient Direct access routes for confirmed COVID‐19 cases Minimize criss‐crossing of patient flows Minimize patient movement within the screening centre Minimize chokepoints Real Time Location System for contact tracing
Wide‐net surveillance	Epidemiological mapping from new positive cases to identify close contacts Hotspots stratified into high and low risk Close contacts instructed to practice self‐isolation and social distancing; a proportion may be quarantined
Manpower	Whole‐of‐hospital approach to manpower augmentation Just‐in‐time training to orientate staff to protocols and layout of the screening centre Refresher training for proper use of PPE Early establishment of communication channels across all staff levels Dedicated teams of staff support staff to cater to staff wellbeing