By Vimita Mohandas, Channel NewsAsia, 7 Jan 2013
A new centre that provides integrated care for the elderly has been set up at Ling Kwang Home for Senior Citizens in Serangoon Gardens Way.
The centre will allow the elderly to receive nursing home care while allowing them to also spend time at home.
It is the third centre of the Singapore Programme for Integrated Care for the Elderly (SPICE), developed by the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC).
SPICE provides a combination of both centre-based and home-based services to help seniors who would otherwise have to be cared for in nursing homes to remain in the community as far as possible.
SPICE provides a combination of both centre-based and home-based services to help seniors who would otherwise have to be cared for in nursing homes to remain in the community as far as possible.
But, unlike the previous two centres, this is the first to be located in a nursing home. The other two, located at void decks, are the Salvation Army's Bedok Multi-Service Centre and Tembusu Rehab and Day Care Centre in Jurong.
So far, more than 100 elderly have benefited from these services. Through these centres, a multi-disciplinary team comprising medical, nursing, allied health and ancillary professionals provides a variety of services such as nursing and preventive care and rehabilitation services. These services are delivered at the centre and the patients' homes depending on their needs.
After suffering a fall, Tan Ah Kiat needed assistance for daily activities such as showering and going to the toilet. After an assessment by Ren Ci Community Hospital, he was enrolled at SPICE@Ling Kwang Home For Senior Citizens on 3 January. This way, he gets the help he needs in the day and returns home to his family in the evenings.
After suffering a fall, Tan Ah Kiat needed assistance for daily activities such as showering and going to the toilet. After an assessment by Ren Ci Community Hospital, he was enrolled at SPICE@Ling Kwang Home For Senior Citizens on 3 January. This way, he gets the help he needs in the day and returns home to his family in the evenings.
Tan Ah Kiat said: "Usually at home, there is nobody (to take care of me). With this centre, there'll be someone to take care of me. My family members need not worry too much."
Patients at the SPICE centres can expect to pay between S$16.20 and S$61.20, depending on the amount of subsidies they are eligible for.
Parliamentary secretary for health associate professor Faishal Ibrahim said: "This new co-location model will allow Ling Kwang Home to leverage on its rich expertise and resources in managing a nursing home, to at the same time provide quality community based care through SPICE. Such an arrangement also provides current residents in Ling Kwang Home an option to transit back into the community while continuing to receive a similar level of care provided through SPICE, which is in line with our ageing-in-place strategy."
Preliminary results for seniors served in the two centres show that there is generally lower caregiver stress and higher patient satisfaction with the care arrangements in SPICE.
The centre serves patients who are more frail and who need longer rehabilitation periods.
Chief of Care Integration Division at Agency for Integrated Care Dr Wong Loong Mun said: "The patients here are more frail and they tend to have maxed out their rehab potential. So they come here for just maintenance rehab whereas in the day, it's active rehab. They do sessional rehab and they get discharged six months once their goals are matched."
In light of the rising ageing population in Singapore, the number of SPICE patients is expected to increase with the opening of the new centre. The centre can take in more than 30 patients at any one time and has already received more than 10 applications and enrolled three patients so far.
Two more centres are expected to be set up this year.
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