HSA launches anti-vaping checks near 5 institutes of higher learning

SINGAPORE — The anti-vaping blitz has extended to areas near schools, with enforcement officers conducting checks outside five institutes of higher learning (IHL) across Singapore on Monday (July 14).

In total, 27 people were caught and fined for vaping in enforcement operations conducted at several community hot spots, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) told The Straits Times.

Another eight persons were caught for underage smoking.

Those caught were aged 17 to 66 years old, said HSA, which added that 31 e-vaporisers were seized in the four-hour-long operation.

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Work in the East started just after 11am, with HSA officers positioning themselves at various spots where people gather outside the institutes.

Within the first hour, a man was caught loitering at a HDB void deck across from the school, with a vape around his neck.

HSA officers confiscated his vape, suspected to be a Kpod or etomidate-laced pod.

Etomidate is an anaesthetic agent used in clinical practice. It is classified as a poison under the Poisons Act. This means a licence is required for its importation or sale.

About 500m away from where the first man was caught, HSA officers found a man vaping at a bus stop directly opposite a school, in full public view.

He told officers that he had just seen a doctor and was given a medical certificate. The man was allowed to leave after enforcement officers recorded his particulars.

At around 4pm, ST followed HSA officers to an IHL in the north of Singapore, where officers found six people using vapes.

IHLs comprise autonomous universities, art institutions, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education.

The Ministry of Health and HSA said in a joint statement on May 16 that from January 2024 to March 2025, about 2,600 students were referred to HSA by schools and IHLs for vaping.

Previous figures released showed that there were about 800 cases in 2022, 900 cases the following year and 2,000 cases in 2024.

Teachers, who spoke to ST on the condition of anonymity, say vaping, which has been banned in Singapore since 2018, has been a problem in schools here.

Roger (not his real name) said he sees an average of three to four cases of students getting caught with vapes a month.

"Some schools have resorted to using portable metal detectors to check students when there is a tip-off," said Roger, who has been teaching in a secondary school for more than 20 years.

He added that at his school, bags are checked only when there is reliable information that the student may be using e-vaporisers.

Jim (not his real name) said the situation at his IHL has worsened since 2023, when about 200 students were caught vaping in the institute each month.

He said students would hide the vapes in false ceilings or behind mirrors inside toilets.

Jim declined to provide the number of students caught for vaping offences in 2024 and 2025, saying that it might identify his institute.

Roger said he is aware of the emergence of etomidate-laced vapes, or Kpods.

His school was first alerted to the use of laced vapes by a concerned parent who found her child in a "drugged out" state.

Laced vapes rose to prominence in April when a 13-year-old girl was caught behaving erratically outside the State Courts after puffing on a vape.

A subsequent raid of her home by HSA officers found that she had an etomidate-laced vape device in her possession.

Roger said that, fortunately, no students have been caught with laced pods in his school.

Jim said the emergence of Kpods has added another layer of complexity.

"Kpods are my number one nemesis because we have seen students using Kpods and, within seconds, they're not themselves. They don't know what is happening to them and their surroundings," he added.

Jim said that he had previously contacted the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) for guidance when a student was caught while high on the laced product. He said he was referred to HSA.

For students caught vaping, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) offers cessation support via tele-counselling service QuitLine, and on-site counselling by student health advisers in some schools.

Nearly 1,800 young people received counselling between January 2024 and March 2025.

HPB and the Ministry of Education will also soon start a year-long virtual cessation counselling pilot for all secondary schools, slated to kick off in July.

Meanwhile, medical practitioners and public healthcare institutions have been told to record all suspected and confirmed etomidate-linked vaping cases.

In a circular dated July 9, MOH and HSA said medical practitioners should also get patients to surrender their e-vaporisers and consider sending their urine samples for testing.

Schools have also sent advisories to parents through Parents Gateway, an app that connects parents and schools on key administrative matters.

The advisory provides warning of the dangers of vaping and how parents can protect their children.

Secondary school teacher Lim (not his real name) said he has received e-mails from his school's student management committee to look out for vapes.

"Metal detectors have been used during bag checks, but that happens only if there is a tip-off or when we have a valid reason to be suspicious that the particular student possesses a vape," said Lim.

Gopal Mahey, senior counsellor at the Centre for Psychotherapy, said more parents and their children have reached out for help in dealing with addiction to vaping.

He said many clients had initially assumed that vaping was a safer or "cleaner" alternative to cigarettes.

"With substances like etomidate or even tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and amphetamines lacing the same devices, the risks have escalated dramatically.

"I've had clients who shared that they unknowingly inhaled drug-laced pods because a friend had handed one to them at a party," said Gopal.

He said young people are still navigating through their formative years and may be seeking belonging and approval from others.

"If we don't intervene strongly now, with compassion, clarity and consequence, we risk watching this generation inhale their way to a new form of dependency, and by the time many seek help, it's already taken root.

"The window for prevention is narrow, but it's still open," he said. 

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.