Care facilities for the elderly who are living next door

Residents in several areas do not see big issue with having centres nearby

By Goh Shi Ting , Teo Wan Gek, The Straits Times, 8 Jun 2012

FOR the past decade, odd-job labourer Anwar Omar has lived in a Housing Board block next to the Lions Home for the Elders (right) in Bedok South Avenue 2.

He does not find the co-existence unusual or disruptive. That is why the 62-year-old is baffled that some residents elsewhere have voiced unhappiness over plans to set up eldercare facilities in their neighbourhoods.

In his case, he said he will benefit from the Lions Home's proximity 'when the time comes' for him to be taken care of.

Other residents living near existing eldercare facilities also echo his views, noting that the benefits outweigh any cons.

Currently, there are 65 nursing homes and 54 eldercare centres, with many - such as Econ Medicare's eight centres and nursing homes - sited in residential areas.

A spokesman for the health-care group said: 'We have been able to get along cordially and well with our neighbours, hence helping to create a peaceful 'home away from home' environment for our residents.'

Nursing-home and daycare-centre operators said it is crucial to be based in the community. Madam Irene Ong, 55, managing director of Serene Nursing Home, said this allows the elderly to stay in a familiar environment and interact with others.

The community location also tackles the 'out of sight, out of mind' mentality that leads to some seldom visiting elderly parents, citing reasons such as distance and inconvenience.

The Lions Home in Bedok South Avenue 2 is surrounded by HDB flats and also faces the Sennett Terrace private estate. Its executive director Doreen Lye said there have been no complaints since it was built in 1997.

But the planned relocation of its other nursing home from Toa Payoh to Bishan Street 13 has upset some folks.

Last week, 40 residents signed a petition to oppose the proposed building of a 260-bed, six to eight-storey nursing home on a soccer field.

Elsewhere, petitioners from Woodlands to Jalan Batu to Toh Yi Drive have also opposed moves to set up an eldercare centre, a rehabilitation centre and studio apartments for the elderly in their backyards.

Reasons cited include poor air ventilation, space intrusion and noise from the sick and frail.

But residents living near existing eldercare facilities said while there are some inconveniences, these are not major.

Mr Anwar said, a few years ago, there was an elderly man who groaned so loudly he could hear a name he was shouting out every night. But this stopped after a few weeks and 'happens only once in a blue moon'.

Serene Nursing Home (right) in Joo Chiat Lane, set up in 1985, has been a fixture in the private estate for more than two decades.

Madam Ong said it tries to be a good neighbour. Last year, a resident from the next-door condominium called about an elderly man who suffers from dementia and moans uncontrollably at times.

She has taken steps, including sealing a row of air vents, to contain the sound.

Other than that, the nursing home has not received any other complaints during its time there.

The sprawling two-storey nursing home with an immaculate lawn is indistinguishable from the rest of the houses, contrary to the belief that nursing homes stick out like a sore thumb.

Other facilities also aim to blend in with the community and make themselves relevant. An example is the Shan You Wellness Community, a senior activity centre in Eunos that provides free meals for low-income families and space for the elderly to mingle.

Programme manager Sylvia Yap said the senior citizens look out for each other.

'Once, an elderly man died alone in his flat; nobody would have realised it if not for his friends in the centre.'

Madam Ong understands why some are wary over the setting up of nursing homes and daycare centres in their backyards.

'Some think nursing homes are hospitals that are full of contagious diseases, or that the air is not fresh,' she said.

But most nursing homes take in only people with chronic conditions such as diabetes, stroke or hypertension, she added.

Given that Singapore is ageing fast, residents should also realise that such facilities can benefit them.

Said Ms Lye: 'The reality is that most adults have to work to support the family so the elderly need a place to go to, to be taken care of.

'With the nursing home near you, it takes away the shame and guilt of sending parents away as he or she is just next door.'

Mr Tan Kee Chak, 65, a stall assistant, takes his 100-year-old mother on weekdays to a daycare centre a few blocks from his home. He picks her up at 5pm.

The Silver Circle centre - the eighth under NTUC Eldercare - opened last October.

He said: 'I like it because it's so near my home. If it's somewhere far away like Jurong, then it defeats the purpose.'

The centre, sited in the void deck of Block 91, Bedok North Street 4, has also got the thumbs up from residents.

Madam Amy Tan, 58, a sales assistant, said: 'Very few people use the void deck anyway. When people get older and they need places like these, then their mindsets will change.'

Temasek Polytechnic student Annabelle Lim, 19, said people should not be overly concerned about the possibility of property values dropping if these facilities are built close to their homes.

'We should be more humane. We will all grow old one day.'

Meanwhile, Ms Lye is confident that Bishan residents can be won over on the idea of a nursing home in their backyard.

'We want to work with them and the Ministry of Health to find a win-win situation. I believe we can achieve that; it's a commitment.'

When 80-year-old Shu Yong Poin was younger, he refused to hold his wife's hand in public.

He feared being laughed at.

Now, he often holds her hand - to help keep her from falling. 'She walks very slowly because of her bad back, so I help her,' he said.

Hand in hand, he and Madam Chow Xiu Cho, 77, have gone for taiji classes, to the gymnasium or to see the doctor.

They have also visited China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, but since going for back surgery a few years ago, Madam Chow has been unable to travel long-distance.

Mr Shu said, flashing a toothy grin and using the Cantonese phrase for 'date': 'Now, we pak tor at the eldercare centre.'

The facility he is referring to is St Luke's ElderCare Centre in Tampines Street 11, where he and his wife spend an hour four to five times a week - for free.

The centre is just opposite the block where they live with their daughter and granddaughter, so they just walk there.

They are on its Silver Connect programme, under which various activities are organised for the elderly.

About 600 senior citizens living in Tampines-Changkat are with the programme, which is funded by the Tampines-Changkat Citizen's Consultative Committee.

About 50 senior citizens use the gym at St Luke's in the mornings.

Cancer survivor Magdeline Lee, 75, goes there regularly to keep fit and to mingle with her friends.

'Life is so short, we must go out and make friends, rather than stay at home and think rubbish,' she said.

New eldercare centre after dialogue session

ELDERLY residents of Tampines Changkat can look forward to a brand-new gymnasium and daycare facility at an eldercare centre at a void deck at year-end.

It will be the third eldercare centre in the mature estate and, as Tampines GRC MP Irene Ng noted, 'more than usual for any single division'.

The new centre is at the northern tip of Changkat division.

In an e-mail reply, Ms Ng said she wanted to make sure the setting of the centre - in a void deck - was managed carefully, 'right from the start'.

Last year, she conducted house-to-house visits before identifying blocks 350 and 351 in Tampines Street 33 as suitable locations for St Luke's ElderCare Centre, which provides daycare and rehabilitation services.

This will be the 12th and largest St Luke's centre. The others are also in void decks, except for one housed in Ayer Rajah Community Centre.

After a dialogue session with about 100 residents from the two affected blocks, Ms Ng went ahead with the plans.

'The dialogue went well, and residents present were supportive and interested in the services offered. The mood was warm. I was very proud of them and their strong community spirit.'

She added that residents want to be consulted but they also want to have 'moral leadership'.

'We can appeal to their reason as well as their sense of community and social responsibility. This may take a longer time, but it makes for a stronger and more united community.'