Latest news with #AgeWellNeighbourhoods
CNA
5 hours ago
- Politics
- CNA
Active Ageing Centres call for more senior-friendly infrastructural changes
Operators of Active Ageing Centres are calling for more senior-friendly infrastructure, like accessible walkways and benches, to create so-called Age Well Neighbourhoods. The scheme was announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in his National Day Rally speech and aims to help seniors get the care they need at their doorsteps. But beyond facilities, some observers say the community must play a part in bringing seniors out of their homes. Sabrina Ng reports.
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Lifestyle
- Straits Times
Care Corner expands network of centres in Toa Payoh to help seniors age well
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Care Corner, which provides social and healthcare services, currently runs seven active ageing centres in Toa Payoh (pictured) and two in Woodlands. SINGAPORE - Care Corner Singapore will be setting up six new satellite centres in Toa Payoh over the next two years so residents need not walk too far to access active ageing services such as exercise programmes and community dining events. Its expansion will support a new national initiative that aims to help seniors age with dignity within their own communities. Seniors in Toa Payoh will be among the first to benefit from the new Age Well Neighbourhoods national initiative , announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Aug 17. Care Corner, which provides social and healthcare services, currently runs seven active ageing centres in Toa Payoh and two in Woodlands. Ms Sharon Tang, head of the Care Corner Active Ageing Group, said that having more sites will mean being closer to seniors, many of whom prefer not to travel too far from home. 'We hear feedback from seniors about why they are not coming out of the house. They would rather not go for their medical appointments. So we understand that concern,' said Ms Tang. Age Well Neighbourhoods takes inspiration from the Community Care Apartments that the government is building to help seniors with long-term care and living arrangements. Under the programme, care staff will coordinate these services, visit seniors regularly and be first responders in times of emergency. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Jobs, infrastructure and homes at the core of Singapore's resilience: Economists Business New online tools by SkillsFuture Singapore help companies plan and curate staff training Singapore LTA, public transport operators join anti-vaping effort with stepped-up enforcement Opinion It's time vaping offences had tougher consequences Life Chinese EV brand Nio to be launched in Singapore in first quarter of 2026 Asia 2 firefighters die in building fire at Osaka's Dotonbori tourist district Singapore Woman hurt after car turns turtle in Upper Thomson accident Singapore Jail for driver of 11-tonne garbage truck that ran over cyclist in Woodlands Healthcare services will be made more accessible to the elderly in the community. Health posts, set up by public hospitals, will also deploy nurses on the ground more regularly. For the senior, having this initiative is somewhat akin to being in a retirement village, without having to move to a separate, isolated area. PM Wong said that new sites are being identified for active ageing centres in Toa Payoh, so that seniors do not have to walk more than 1km to reach one. There are now 13 active ageing centres in Toa Payoh, up from six centres just four years ago. Nearly one-quarter of the residents in Toa Payoh are 65 and above. Madam Teng Yeng Gee, 94, who has been a Toa Payoh resident for more than 20 years, will be among the beneficiaries. Her daughter Jessie Lim, 59, a human resources executive, said her mother, who lives with a helper, goes for regular check-ups at the nearby Toa Payoh polyclinic. 'She will also take my mum to do some exercises at the Thye Hua Kuan active ageing centre a few times a week,' she said. 'As long as she can live happily, we are happy for her.' Professor Alex Siow, chairman of Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities, which runs the Toa Payoh active ageing centre that Madam Teng goes to, said Age Well Neighbourhoods is aligned with its approach of providing seniors with a supportive environment and opportunities to build strong social connections. Given that each neighbourhood has its own unique characteristics, demographics and needs, the key is to have flexible and localised solutions, said Prof Siow. This is because what works well in one area may not be suitable for another area with a different group of residents, he added. Public health specialist Jeremy Lim said that the Age Well Neighbourhood initiative is very doable as Singapore is densely built and various services can be easily accessible. Given the high cost of manpower, however, it would be vital to provide new care models through greater technology adoption, he said. Dr Lim cited the example of tele-rehabilitation, where therapy services are delivered remotely via video conferencing. Sensors deployed in homes help care takers monitor patients' progress. Elderly patients were not receptive during early trials, he said. 'We just didn't try hard enough.' He suggested stronger nudges, such as prioritising patients who are willing to do teleconsultations and giving them shorter waiting times. 'We have to be able to tell patients that we are capacity constrained right now, so these are the choices we have to make,' he said. Watch PM Wong's National Day Rally speech here:
CNA
16 hours ago
- Health
- CNA
Snap Insight: Ageing well is a challenge Singaporeans must take on together
SINGAPORE: Age Well Neighbourhoods were one of the centrepiece initiatives in Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's 2025 National Day Rally speech, dealing with the reality that Singapore is on the cusp of becoming a super-aged society. By 2026, 21 per cent of the population will likely be aged 65 and above. Starting with Toa Payoh and one or two other areas where there are higher proportions of older residents, the Age Well Neighbourhoods initiative aims to deliver assisted living support and services to seniors where they live. These services would include not just basic health check-ups but access to wellness and social activities such as kickboxing and carpentry workshops. For those requiring more assistance, they might access help with their daily living activities such as washing, eating and housekeeping. Such services mirror those available in Community Care Apartments built by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) in estates like Bukit Batok and Queenstown, but extended to more seniors who choose to remain in their own flats. IDEAL FOR LAND-SCARCE SINGAPORE Mr Wong made the point that Singapore would not want to set up retirement villages for seniors to live separated and isolated from the rest of society. Instead, the Age Well Neighbourhoods concept would allow for seniors to age in the communities that they are familiar with. This makes sense in land-scarce Singapore, with urban density allowing for services to be delivered much more readily to residents where they already live, rather than gathering them into dedicated retirement villages. This in-community model of senior living will require a network of assisted living service providers that offer customised care and would thus be resource-intensive. But this is where the other elements of the National Day Rally speech relating to technology and innovation as well as a 'we-first' Singapore spirit can contribute. New technological advancements such as artificial intelligence can drive significant productivity gains, for examples, by reducing the time public officers spend on tasks such as note-taking. Specifically in the case of healthcare, we might imagine that nurses would be freed from routine and repetitive administrative tasks. The time saved can be allocated to delivering personalised care in the community as part of the Age Well Neighbourhoods initiative. All of us could embody the 'we-first' Singapore spirit and volunteer our time to caring for others in our community. Perhaps this is the way we might, as a united people, achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation.
Straits Times
a day ago
- General
- Straits Times
NDR 2025: The case for growing old at home in super-ageing Singapore
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Since senior care infrastructure is already available in many places, the key is to make sure all Singaporeans can access this care. SINGAPORE – At assisted living flats for seniors in Bukit Batok, there is round-the-clock emergency help, basic health checks, social activities, and access to gathering spaces. It's a new housing concept for fast-ageing Singapore, with the first keys given out 10 months ago. Such homes, known as community care apartments (CCAs) – will also feature in Queenstown, Bedok and Geylang. And there will be more, to cater to seniors who want to live independently, but with some help. No matter how quickly these flats are built, though, it's unlikely to adequately meet the needs of our super-ageing nation . One in five Singaporeans is already aged 65 and older. By 2026, it is likely that at least 21 per cent of the population will fall into this category, making us officially super-aged by international standards. In fact, there are already super-aged towns in Singapore, like Toa Payoh where nearly one in four people is a senior. That more options are needed to supplement the CCA scheme, launched in 2021, was clearly articulated by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in his National Day Rally speech on Aug 17. 'There is a limit to how many new CCAs we can build,' he said. 'Furthermore, many seniors don't want to move out… They prefer to age where they are, and we will need to provide for them as they get older.' His government's solution: Age Well Neighbourhoods . This new scheme will distill the key elements of assisted living flats, such as senior-friendly activity spaces and healthcare services, and bring them closer to homes. Neighbourhoods with more seniors, such as Toa Payoh, will be the first to get this treatment. It's a sensible approach, and not just because there is a limit to how many community care apartments we can build. This way, there is also better use of scarce resources, and in particular land. More community care apartments means less space available on a plot for other types of public housing. This trade-off must be taken seriously, especially in light of a supply crunch, among other factors, that have driven up public housing prices in recent years. The Government has also signalled that it is reviewing the income ceiling for couples applying for Build-To-Order flats, as well as the minimum age for singles purchasing flats. If either is eased, demand will go up. How to manage the growing housing needs of different demographics will become a bigger challenge for policy makers. This is why Age Well Neighbourhoods make sense; since senior care infrastructure is already available in many places. The key is to make sure all Singaporeans can access this care. At Age Well Neighbourhoods, the plan is to make 'physical touchpoints', such as active ageing centres, more accessible to seniors. In Toa Payoh, for example, some seniors have to walk more than 1km to the nearest centre. 'We will identify new sites, to make it more convenient for seniors,' PM Wong said. Healthcare services, such as rehabilitation, will be brought closer to the home, while home-based services – ranging from simple fixes to housekeeping and laundry – will be expanded. The idea is to support seniors where they are, instead of uprooting them in their golden years. There is, however, one crucial difference between assisted living flats and Age Well Neighbourhoods, and that is the number of people involved in providing care. In the Bukit Batok community care apartments – the only ones to be completed so far – a single operator, Vanguard Healthcare, is responsible for providing basic services. This will not be the case in most neighbourhoods. At present, an active ageing centre may be run by a social service agency, while the nearby community health post is staffed by nurses from the public healthcare sector, and yet another organisation offers personal care services at home. Many hands make light work, especially when the needs are pressing. But with so many players involved, it can be difficult for people to navigate the system and get the help they need. Getting this right has to be a priority for the Age Well Neighbourhoods scheme to work. Already, many health posts are conveniently located in active ageing centres. Ideally, these centres will become the go-to spots for everything that seniors need – medical checkups, yes, but also meaningful friendships. In its 60 years of independence, Singapore has faced a number of existential challenges. Being a super-aged society is now one of them – and as before, how the country rises to the challenge will be a test of its grit and ingenuity. Read more: Key announcements from PM Wong's first National Day Rally Watch PM Wong's National Day Rally speech here:
CNA
a day ago
- Health
- CNA
NDR 2025: PM Wong introduces Age Well Neighbourhoods for seniors to age in place
Seniors in Singapore can soon access the care they need in their golden years - right at their doorstep - with what is been dubbed "Age Well Neighbourhoods". The first will be located in Toa Payoh, and will include at-home healthcare and more Active Ageing Centres. In his National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said this move builds on the many ongoing efforts to ensure seniors are able to age at home independently and with dignity. Chloe Teo reports.
