Singapore Airlines will redeploy grounded flight attendants to a Singapore hospital, where they will serve patients in low-risk wards.
As in much of the world, health care workers are overburdened right now in Singapore, even as the city-state has largely controlled the spread of COVID-19. With most flights grounded, Singapore Airlines will re-assign cabin crew to serve as “hospital care ambassadors” at the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital starting next week.
No, the Singapore Girls will not be anywhere near COVID-19 and other high-risk patient. Instead, 30 will be initially assigned to low-risk wards and act in a nurse assistant role, providing caregiving assistance including vital signs monitoring, turning patients over, and serving meals. Even so, all will wear masks.
The hospital is understandably elated. Shirley Heng, the hospital’s chief nurse, told the The Straits Times that she hopes that the cabin crew members will help nurses offer better service to patients.
“This is also a good opportunity for our nurses to exchange knowledge and skills on service with the crew of Singapore Airlines, who are top service professionals.
“We hope that this will be a meaningful experience for them.”
Cabin crew have already undergone health screenings and received requisite vaccinations. They are now in training to learn medical terminology and how to safely interact with patients. Starting next week, the initial 30 will serve nine hour shifts, five days per week.
CONCLUSION
Singapore Airlines service in a hospital? Sounds lovely. Can I Book the Cook as well? On a serious note, what an excellent idea and something that other airlines should consider. With so many hospitals strained to capacity and so many flights attendants paid not to fly, this seems like an idea that should catch on around the world.
I can imagine, though, that this sort of role may make flight attendants yearn for a return to the skies.
image: Khoo Teck Puat Hospital
Just a bit of levity…
Will the crew have to perform any bathroom duties, like EVA crew?
Good to heard this news hope everything will be over soon keep posting articles like these.
Laughing at the “Book the Cook” reference. If only a hospital provided the leather bound menu that SQ does with Lobster Thermidor as a special request. I might just check in! Especially given my current meals at home.
Will they wear all the regulation make-up and uniform? I think not. Perhaps, they should wear some wings or SQ ID. Very nice for them to agree to be deployed for such duty.
Singapore shows the Covid-19 will be in the US for a long time. Singapore won the battle at first but now they are getting a second wave of cases. Not fun. The US hasn’t reached the bloodiest of the first wave yet.
Not sure about elsewhere, but this is already happening in the UK, BA, easyJet and Virgin cabin crew are volunteering at NHS Nightingale and SAS cabin crew are being retrained to help in Scandivania. All on a voluntary basis of course, but at this point we can use all the help we can get.
This seems like a fantastic use of resources, a win-win for the Singapore hospital, its staff, its patients, and hopefully the SIA flight attendants as well.