Press Releases
NATION-WIDE TRIAL TO REFER NON-LIFE-THREATENING 995 CALLS TO THE NURSEFIRST HELPLINE
30 May 2025
From 1 June 2025, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and Woodlands Health (WH) will pilot a nation-wide trial to refer non-life-threatening 995 calls to a medical triage helpline. This helpline, known as NurseFirst, will provide medical advice on a caller’s medical condition and guide callers to appropriate medical care options.
2. Supported by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of Health (MOH), the nation-wide pilot will enable SCDF to prioritise timely emergency medical response to those facing life-threatening emergencies, and public hospital Emergency Departments (ED) to focus their resources on patients who require urgent medical care.
Management of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) calls
3. The demand for EMS has been increasing rapidly over the years. In 2024, SCDF responded to 245,279 EMS calls – an average of 672 calls per day, a 57% increase from 2014. With Singapore’s ageing population and rising healthcare needs, EMS calls are expected to continue increasing.
4. Over the years, SCDF has progressively rolled out various initiatives to actively manage the increase in EMS calls and ensure emergency ambulances are available to serve those in critical need. [Refer to Annex A for a list of the past initiatives to cope with rising demand for EMS.]
5. SCDF has been exploring linking up with a triage helpline that can assess the individual’s condition and redirect non-life-threatening cases to alternative care options. This will enable SCDF to reduce conveyances to EDs, and focus SCDF and hospitals’ resources on life-threatening cases, such as patients experiencing cardiac arrest or severe breathing difficulties. Similar helplines are in use in various countries, including the United Kingdom, Japan, Denmark and Finland.
NurseFirst Helpline
6. Operated by WH, NurseFirst began as a medical triage helpline pilot on 4 February 2022 for the management of non-life-threatening cases in the Northern district, to reduce ED attendances by guiding callers to appropriate alternative care sites. The pilot was supported with funding from MOH.
7. As an expansion of the pilot, the NurseFirst helpline will widen its coverage to serve callers island-wide for six months. Trained nurses, with medical oversight from emergency medicine physicians, will assess callers based on their symptoms, and advise those with non-life-threatening conditions on the various appropriate alternative care options nearest to them.
Transfer of Non-life-threatening 995 Calls to NurseFirst
8. When a 995 call is assessed1 to be non-life-threatening, SCDF’s Operations Centre will transfer the caller to the NurseFirst helpline for further assistance. The caller may be directed to an appropriate care provider, such as a general practitioner. Other follow-up actions could include advising the caller to call for a non-emergency ambulance, as well as other self-care steps.
9. Before transferring the call, the SCDF call-taker will share key patient details with the nurse at NurseFirst. This ensures a seamless transition for the caller. At any time during the call with the nurse at NurseFirst, if the patient’s condition deteriorates, SCDF will be immediately notified to dispatch an ambulance.
10. The NurseFirst pilot will operate from 8:00am to 11:00pm daily. Outside of these hours, if a 995 call is assessed to be non-life-threatening, SCDF will deal with it according to its current protocols.
11. The public is also encouraged to call the NurseFirst helpline directly at 62626262 for non-life-threatening medical conditions, to receive timely medical advice at no cost. Refer to Annex B for examples of non-life-threatening conditions.
Looking Ahead
12. The nation-wide pilot is expected to run for six months. SCDF and WH will monitor its impact and effectiveness to assess its potential for extension.
1 All 995 medical calls are assessed by 995 call-takers using the Advanced Medical Protocol System. The system helps call-takers to assess the seriousness of a medical emergency and prioritise ambulance response to life-threatening cases.
Annex A
June 2009 | Engagement of Private Ambulance Operators (PAOs) – SCDF started engaging PAOs to augment its fleet of EMS ambulances. |
April 2013 | Introduction of the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) Scheme – Fire and rescue specialists are cross-trained as EMTs so that they are able to respond to both fire and rescue, and medical emergencies. |
April 2017 | Introduction of the EMS Tiered Response Framework – The scale of SCDF resources dispatched and response speed will be calibrated to the seriousness of each medical call, prioritising life-threatening calls over lower acuity calls. |
Implementation of Medical Call Triaging by 995 call-takers using the Advanced Medical Protocol System at the SCDF Operations Centre – A system used by SCDF to triage emergency medical calls based on their severity, by asking specific questions about the patient’s conditions (e.g., consciousness, breathing status) to determine the appropriate level of response | |
Fire Bike – The dispatch of EMT on fire bikes allows SCDF to respond more quickly and render life-saving interventions to life-threatening medical calls like cardiac arrest. | |
April 2019 | Enhanced SCDF Medical Support and Faster Response for Life-Threatening Cases – Implementation of High-Performance Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation to improve chances of survival, and deployment of additional EMTs in SCDF’s response. |
Introduction of the Non-Conveyance Policy – Under SCDF’s non-conveyance policy, if a patient is assessed to be a non-emergency case by paramedics when they arrive at the scene, the patient will not be conveyed to hospital. Such cases will be advised to seek treatment from their family doctor or general practitioner at nearby clinics, or to call 1777 for a non-emergency ambulance. | |
March 2023 | Implementation of the Non-Dispatch Policy – Under the non-dispatch policy, SCDF’s 995 Operations Centre will assess the seriousness of the emergency call and dispatch ambulances only when the call is assessed to be an actual emergency. |
July 2024 | Slightly Longer Response Time for Lower Acuity EMS Calls – To allow SCDF to further prioritise emergency ambulances for higher acuity and life-threatening emergencies that require immediate medical attention, a slightly longer response time of up to 20 minutes can be expected if a call is assessed to be of a lower acuity. |
Annex B
List of Non-Life-Threatening Conditions
The following list provides some non-exhaustive examples of non-life-threatening conditions which may qualify for a referral to NurseFirst helpline.
- Mild to moderate symptoms of:
o Cold and flu,
o Strains & sprains (e.g. back pain, limb pain, bruises),
o Cuts/open wounds with no active bleeding,
o Nosebleeds,
o Diarrhoea/vomiting,
o Headaches
- Minor allergic reactions
- Animal bites without allergic symptoms and without active bleeding
- Resolved choking episodes without active symptoms
- Minor burns affecting less than 15% of the body surface area
- Minor eye-related issues (e.g. sore eyes, contact lens irritation)