Experts discuss issues like living environment, income and attitudes
By Salma Khalik, The Straits Times, 10 Oct 2012
By Salma Khalik, The Straits Times, 10 Oct 2012
RETIREMENT villages; letting the elderly rent out part or all of their HDB flats; and getting them to be aware and to take care of their chronic medical conditions were among suggestions made yesterday by experts in the field.
They were participating in a round-table discussion on "Ageing-in-place: How prepared are we?" held at the National University of Singapore.
Associate Professor Chia Ngee Choon urged the Government to allow the elderly to sublet part or all of their flats. Rents from two-room flats, for instance, can add about $1,293 a month to their wallets.
However, Associate Professor Paulin Straughan preferred giving the elderly the option of moving into retirement villages, a concept which is popular in Australia.
Dr Angelique Chan felt it was important for people to be aware of and be able to control their chronic medical conditions, so they remain in fairly good health in their sunset years.
But she said a significant number of people with high blood pressure - which raises the risk of heart attacks and strokes - are not even aware of their condition.
In opening the session, Dr Amy Khor, Minister of State for Health and Manpower, set the tone by saying "we should not see ageing as a problem".
She identified the "4Ps" Singapore will need to cater to its rapidly ageing population: philosophy, physical environment, policies and people.
On philosophy, she said: "What underpins our conversations must be a set of values and beliefs about the kind of society which our seniors, and in fact we ourselves in the future, will live in."
She identified the "4Ps" Singapore will need to cater to its rapidly ageing population: philosophy, physical environment, policies and people.
On philosophy, she said: "What underpins our conversations must be a set of values and beliefs about the kind of society which our seniors, and in fact we ourselves in the future, will live in."
In terms of physical environment, she said the Government is gradually turning the country senior-friendly, with lift upgrading in older HDB flats and the setting up of more than 100 eldercare facilities.
Policies, she said, have to be reviewed regularly, as those made in the context of a young population might not apply by 2030, when one in five will be aged 65 years or older.
She cited the example of a recently implemented $120 grant for families with seniors who need looking after to hire a foreign maid.
The last "P", people, is the most important, she said. It relates to how Singaporeans treat the elderly, and whether they teach the young to respect and care for them.
Dr Khor said: "We will need to think through how we, as a society, can imbue everyone with a sense of obligation towards our elderly members so that they can live out their years with dignity."
Revisit policies to facilitate ageing-in-place: experts
by Monica Kotwani, TODAY, 9 Oct 2012
by Monica Kotwani, TODAY, 9 Oct 2012
Provide free healthcare for those over 65 years old and bring in social entrepreneurs to develop retirement homes. These were among suggestions experts and academics made at an ageing-in-place-focused discussion today.
Associate Professor Paulin Straughan from the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Department of Sociology said providing free healthcare for those above 65 years would ensure the elderly are more pro-active about their health.
She said: "I would be quite willing to see an increase in taxes, specifically to fund this. Because at the end of the day, it benefits all of us."
Another suggestion is to revisit land acquisition laws to make it more affordable to develop and manage retirement villages.
Other suggestions include hospice care under health insurance cover.
A recent report by the United Nations estimates the number of Singapore residents aged 60 years and above will rise from the current 15 per cent to 38 per cent by 2050.
About 120 Government and industry representatives, academics and researchers attended the discussion at the NUS.
NUS' Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy's Associate Professor Phua Kai Hong said: "With the national conversation going on, we need a lot of bottom-up feedback. We also have a lot of good research, a lot of good thinking and ideas, which need to be discussed and to be debated. The more we talk and have this discourse and share ideas, hopefully, (the more) policies can be improved and refined."
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