What is DORSCON to Pandemic Response in Singapore?

About DORSCON Alert System

The DORSCON (Disease Outbreak Response System Condition) is a generic framework that lists out the responses that Singapore will take as a nation should a pandemic flu or infectious event threatens it. The response to any outbreak is determined by the local disease situation in Singapore and the public health impact level, which is a measure of overall severity based on risk assessment.

The DORSCON Alert System can be used as a gauge as to when an organisation will activate its business continuity measures and adopt infection control measures at their respective workplace consistent with the advisories on public health measures issued by MOH.

WHO Outbreak System

It is also useful to note that World Health Organisation (WHO) has its outbreak alert system. Singapore's Disease Outbreak Response System (DORSCON) is used within Singapore for an organisation to prepare and update their Pandemic Flu/ Infectious Disease plan. Each country will have its own escalation process and some countries may align it fully to the World Health Organisation (WHO) escalation protocol.

The major issue of using WHO is that there are looking at a global scale and if your country is not affected, the escalation will cause the country system to escalate to the next higher level causing unnecessary deployment of a limited resource.

DORSCON Alert Levels

The DORSCON framework issued by the Singapore Ministry of Health comprises four levels: Green, Yellow, Orange and Red.

Colour	Nature of Disease	Impact on Daily Life	Advice to Public
Green	The disease is mild Or Disease is severe but does not spread easily from person to person (e.g. 2019 Novel Coronavirus)	Minimal disruption e.g border screening, travel advice	Be socially responsible: if you are sick, stay home Maintain good personal hygiene Lockout for health advisories
Yellow	The disease is severe and spreads easily from person to person but is occurring outside Singapore Or The disease is spreading in Singapore but is (a) Typically mild i.e only slightly more severe than seasonal influenza. Could be severe in vulnerable groups. (e.g. pandemic) or (b) being contained.	Minimal disruption e.g additional measures at border and/or healthcare settings expected, higher work and school absenteeism likely	Be socially responsible: if you are sick, stay home Maintain good personal hygiene Lockout for health advisories
Orange	Disease is severe AND spreads easily from person to person, but disease has not spread widely in Singapore and being contained (e.g. SARS experience in Singapore)	Moderate disruption e.g. quarantine, temperature screening, visitor restrictions at the hospital	Be socially responsible: if you are sick, stay home Maintain good personal hygiene Look out for health advisories Comply with control measures
Red	The disease is severe AND is spreading widely	Major disruption e.g. school closures, work from home orders, a significant number of deaths	Be socially responsible: if you are sick, stay home Maintain good personal hygiene Lockout for health advisories Comply with control measures Practice social distancing: avoid crowded areas