A 54 year-old NUS professor has been confirmed as case 53 of the Covid-19 infection in Singapore.

An update posted on the NUS Facebook page on Feb. 13 confirmed that case 53 was a professor at the School of Design and Environment (SDE).

He has no recent contact with students.

Case 53

He is a male Singapore Citizen with no recent travel history to China, and is linked to the cluster at Grace Assembly of God.

He is currently warded in an isolation room at NCID.

He reported onset of symptoms on 10 February, and went to NCID on 12 Feb. where he was immediately isolated.

Tests confirmed a Covid-19 infection in the afternoon of 12 Feb., Thursday.

Mostly stayed at home

Prior to hospital admission, he reported that he had mostly stayed at home at Hillview Avenue, and that he had not interacted with any colleagues or students after the onset of symptoms.

According to NUS, the professor did not have any recent contact with students. His last contact with students was on Feb. 5.

Mandatory LOA as additional safeguard

While the professor had no recent contact with students, there are NUS staff members who had interacted with him, whom MOH does not consider to be close contacts.

NUS has placed them on a mandatory LOA as an additional safeguard.

Earlier speculation on possible Covid-19 case

NUS had earlier acknowledged the speculation about a possible Covid-19 case at SDE, in a post on their Facebook page in the morning of Feb. 13.

This was after a WhatsApp message began to circulate, alleging that a professor at SDE had been confirmed as a Covid-19 case.

The post stated that additional precautionary measures would be taken in the interim, that they were "in touch with the authorities", and that they would share details when they were available.

NUS President's message

In a message to all NUS students and staff, NUS President, Prof. Tan Eng Chye acknowledged that “ this latest news may alarm some in the community”. Urging the NUS community to “remain calm”, he stressed that the professor did not have contact with students since Feb. 5. He also expressed his gratitude that the professor had alerted NUS as soon as he was informed about his suspected Covid-19 infection, which facilitated quick contact tracing.

He also announced that all classes in SDE from Feb. 14 to 21 would be conducted as e-learning, until the recess week from Feb. 22 to Mar. 1, and reiterated the importance of adhering to all precautionary measures. He added that those who were in close contact with the professor would be contacted by the relevant authorities shortly.

Top image via NUS website and NUS SDE website