Singapore portal apologises over article on hit-and-run victim

PETALING JAYA: A Singapore news portal has retracted its report on the death of hit-and-run victim Justinian Tan (pix) who was purportedly refused treatment by Hospital Sultanah Aminah (HSA) in Johor.
It took down the report and replaced it with a notice with the headline "We're Sorry!".
"We unreservedly apologise to the parties concerned for the anguish and distress this incident has caused," read the notice.
Malaysia's Health Ministry (MOH) had announced that it would lodge an official complaint with the Singaporean government over an allegation made in the report.
It quashed allegations that the hospital had refused treatment to the 25-year-old victim because he did not pay up front.
The ministry's director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said Tan was given the necessary emergency treatment upon arrival at HSA and was not asked to fork out a deposit as reported by several Singapore news websites.
"MOH would like to stress that there was no delay or demand for payment before treatment of this gentleman by Sultanah Aminah Hospital (HSA) Johor Baru," he said in a statement.
"In view of his critical condition, the Singaporean man was admitted to the Red Zone upon arrival at the Emergency Department. Immediately, the emergency treatment as per the Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) protocol was continued, which was already initiated by the ambulance team earlier. The Emergency Department team also initiated the necessary imaging (primary survey X-rays, CT-scan of brain, cervical and thorax), treatment (including intubation) and referral to the relevant team in a very timely and professional manner, without asking for any deposit since this is an emergency case," he added.
The Singapore portal said an ambulance took 30 minutes to arrive at the accident scene along Jalan Dato Abdullah Tahir, in Taman Abad, on Aug 25.
It claimed that HSA had demanded a deposit from the victim's friends before treating the patient.
A friend of Tan who was there at the scene was later reported as admitting that there could have been confusion at the hospital due to difficulties in communicating.
"When the accident happened, a lot of things were going on at once, so the wait for help to come felt really long then. I thought it took 30 minutes but their logs said differently," said Joshua De Rozario.
He was quoted by The Straits Times of Singapore as saying there could have been miscommunication at the hospital as the staff "were speaking Malay and we were speaking English and we had difficulties communicating".
"So many of us go to JB just for supper or shopping and we don't actually know what to do when something happens there. That's the point we want to convey. It's not about wanting to get revenge, because that is not going to bring Justinian back. We want to move on," he added.