Healthcare Services (Community Hospital Service) Regulations 2023

Source: Singapore Statutes Online | Archived by Legal Wires


No. S 423
Healthcare Services Act 2020
Healthcare Services
(Community Hospital Service)
Regulations 2023
In exercise of the powers conferred by section 57 of the Healthcare Services Act 2020, the Minister for Health makes the following Regulations:
PART 1
PRELIMINARY
Citation and commencement
1.  These Regulations are the Healthcare Services (Community Hospital Service) Regulations 2023 and come into operation on 26 June 2023.
Definitions
2.  In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —
“allied health professional” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Allied Health Professions Act 2011;
“anaesthesia service” means a service that is provided to a patient undergoing a surgical or non‑surgical procedure, where the administration of an anaesthetic is required;
“clinical privilege”, in relation to a medical practitioner or dentist, means the type or types of care, treatment or procedure that the medical practitioner or dentist is permitted to provide;
“collaborative prescribing practitioner” and “collaborative prescribing service” have the meanings given by regulation 2 of the Healthcare Services (Collaborative Prescribing Service) Regulations 2023 (G.N. No. S 398/2023);
“compound”, in relation to a therapeutic product, means to formulate, mix, assemble, package or label the therapeutic product, with the intention of dispensing or administering the therapeutic product to a patient in accordance with the written instructions of a qualified practitioner;
“community hospital service” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“dietetic service” means any of the following:
(a)assessing and determining a patient’s nutritional needs;
(b)formulating and implementing a dietetic plan for a patient;
(c)assisting a patient in making dietary changes to promote and optimise the overall health of the patient;
“duly qualified allied health professional” has the meaning given by section 3 of the Allied Health Professions Act 2011;
“emergency ambulance service” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“enrolled nurse” means a person who is an enrolled nurse within the meaning of the Nurses and Midwives Act 1999 and holds a valid practising certificate under that Act;
“general anaesthesia” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“General Regulations” means the Healthcare Services (General) Regulations 2021 (G.N. No. S 1035/2021);
“haemodialysis” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“health product” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Health Products Act 2007;
“healthcare professional” has the meaning given by regulation 2 of the General Regulations;
“licensee” means a person who holds a licence to provide a community hospital service;
“medical condition”, in relation to a patient, includes the patient’s dental condition;
“medical transport service” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“medicinal product” has the meaning given by section 3 of the Medicines Act 1975;
“MediShield Life Scheme” means the MediShield Life Scheme established by section 3 of the MediShield Life Scheme Act 2015;
“minor surgical procedure” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“nurse” means a registered nurse or an enrolled nurse;
“nursing personnel” means a registered nurse, an enrolled nurse or any other person who assists a registered nurse or an enrolled nurse in providing nursing care to patients;
“nursing service” means the provision of nursing care to a patient to assist the patient in attaining, maintaining or recovering his or her health;
“nutrition service” means the provision of food to any patient at any approved permanent premises;
“patient health record” means a record containing the personal data and medical information of a patient that is maintained by a licensee in relation to the provision of a community hospital service to the patient;
“peritoneal dialysis support” has the meaning given by paragraph 2 of the First Schedule to the Act;
“personnel”, in relation to a licensee, means any individual employed or engaged by the licensee to assist the licensee in providing a community hospital service;
“pharmaceutical service” means —
(a)the procurement, storage and control, dispensing, distribution, supply and administration of medicinal products and health products stored at any approved permanent premises;
(b)the preparation of medicinal products or health products, other than the compounding of therapeutic products, at any approved permanent premises; and
(c)the counselling and monitoring of patient drug therapy;
“pharmacist” means a person who is registered as a pharmacist under the Pharmacists Registration Act 2007 and holds a valid practising certificate under that Act;
“practice of dentistry” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Dental Registration Act 1999;
“qualified practitioner” means —
(a)a medical practitioner; or
(b)a registered dentist under the Dental Registration Act 1999 whose name appears in the first division of the Register of Dentists maintained and kept under section 13(1)(a) of that Act;
“registered nurse” means a person who is a registered nurse within the meaning of the Nurses and Midwives Act 1999 and holds a valid practising certificate under that Act;
“rehabilitative service” means assisting or facilitating a patient in —
(a)regaining the patient’s physical or cognitive ability that has been lost or impaired as a result of disease, injury or treatment; or
(b)returning to the patient’s daily life and living in a normal or near‑normal way,
and includes physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and cognitive therapy;
“renal dialysis service” means the provision of haemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis support by a licensee only to patients who are admitted by the licensee to the licensee’s approved permanent premises, and includes the provision of any healthcare service that is incidental to the provision of haemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis support, other than a clinical laboratory service or radiological service;
“resuscitation service” means the treatment of, or implementation of an emergency procedure on, a person for the purpose of resuscitating the person;
“therapeutic product” means a health product categorised as a therapeutic product in the First Schedule to the Health Products Act 2007.
Application of Regulations
3.  Unless otherwise expressly provided in these Regulations, the provisions of these Regulations —
(a)apply in addition to the provisions of the General Regulations; and
(b)prevail if, and to the extent that, there is any inconsistency between these Regulations and the General Regulations insofar as the matter relates to a licensee.
PART 2
LICENSING MATTERS
Specified service
4.  For the purposes of section 9A(1) of the Act, the services set out in paragraph 1 of the Schedule are specified services for a community hospital service.
Prohibited service delivery modes
5.  A licensee must not provide a community hospital service by any of the following service delivery modes:
(a)at any premises other than permanent premises;
(b)using a conveyance;
(c)by remote provision.
PART 3
REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO PERSONNEL
No employment or engagement of unauthorised persons to practise medicine or dentistry
6.  A licensee must not employ or engage any person —
(a)to practise medicine or do any act as a medical practitioner unless the person is a medical practitioner; or
(b)to practise dentistry unless the person is a dentist.
Licensee must establish credentialing framework
7.—(1)  A licensee must establish and implement a credentialing framework for the grant of clinical privileges to every medical practitioner and dentist employed or engaged by the licensee, taking into account the professional qualifications, experience, competency and skills of the medical practitioner or dentist, as the case may be.
(2)   A licensee must —
(a)grant clinical privileges to a medical practitioner or dentist employed or engaged by the licensee in accordance with the framework mentioned in paragraph (1);
(b)regularly review the clinical privileges granted to the medical practitioner or dentist to ensure that he or she continues to have the necessary professional qualifications, experience, competency and skills to be granted those clinical privileges; and
(c)ensure that the medical practitioner or dentist only provides care or treatment or performs procedures within the scope of the clinical privileges granted.
(3)  A licensee must regularly review the credentialing criteria, processes and procedures under the framework mentioned in paragraph (1) to ensure that they are up to date.
PART 4
APPROVED PERMANENT PREMISES,
EQUIPMENT, ETC.
Approved permanent premises, equipment, etc.
8.—(1)  A licensee must ensure that —
(a)every approved permanent premises is operating at all times;
(b)every approved permanent premises is designed and built in a manner that provides a proper, safe and conducive environment for the treatment of every patient, including a patient who suffers from a physical disability;
(c)every approved permanent premises is adequately and properly equipped to address the mobility requirements of every patient, including a patient who suffers from a physical disability; and
(d)a security system is established and implemented at every approved permanent premises to ensure the safety of the personnel, patients and visitors at every approved permanent premises.
(2)  A licensee must —
(a)ensure that there is a process to facilitate prompt access to adequate supplies of equipment, materials and other supplies which are necessary for the provision of any community hospital service in a proper, effective and safe manner; and
(b)where there is any instruction manual for any equipment or material mentioned in sub‑paragraph (a) — ensure that the instruction manual is made available for reference by any personnel who uses or intends to use the equipment or material.
Backup utilities
9.—(1)  A licensee must ensure that there is access to emergency power and lighting in every approved permanent premises to ensure the provision of a community hospital service in a proper, effective and safe manner.
(2)  Without limiting paragraph (1), the licensee must ensure that —
(a)the emergency power and lighting are sufficient to ensure that any procedure that has commenced may be safely completed; and
(b)where any life support equipment is used, the life support equipment is connected to an emergency power supply at all times during its use.
Notification of addition or removal of beds
10.  A licensee who intends to add or remove a bed at any approved permanent premises used for the provision of a community hospital service must, no later than 2 months before the bed is added or removed, notify the Director‑General of the intended addition or removal.
 
Made on 21 June 2023.
CHAN YENG KIT
Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Health,
Singapore.
[MH 78:44/1; AG/LEGIS/SL/122E/2020/34 Vol. 1]

Archived for legal research. Authoritative version at sso.agc.gov.sg.