Ageing population doesn’t have to be a barrier to a nation’s success: Gan Kim Yong

SINGAPORE — Older persons can be an “engine for national development” that can help the economy flourish, thanks to their expertise and experience, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong today (Mar 19).

Mr Gan, who is also the Chairman of the Ministerial Committee on Ageing, said how Singapore’s future will pan out in the next 50 years will in part be determined by how well the country responds to an ageing population as a people, a society and an economy.

Speaking at the SG50 Scientific Conference on Ageing, he said that instead of letting society be taken over by a “silver tsunami”, the longevity of the elderly can be translated into a positive force for social and economic development, in the areas of work, preventive health and the urban landscape.

Mr Gan said Singaporeans had to rethink the concepts of learning, work and retirement: “For example, some seniors we spoke to told us that they would like to take on a mentoring or coaching role in their current workplaces. Others tell us that they would like to have more flexible work arrangements, such as part-time work so that they can spend time with family, volunteering, or learning new things.

“As we live longer, we have to learn longer and work longer.”

Workplaces need to adapt to changing employee profiles, he said, and the challenge is in redesigning the workplace — not just the physical environment, but in aspects such as job roles, work hours, model of remuneration, work environment and work culture — into a model that is suitable for all ages.

MINDSETS MATTER

Mr Gan said the Health Ministry will place greater emphasis on preventive health by investing more into adults, especially older adults.

The way services are delivered to patients needs to be transformed, a process that has already begun with the Government’s shift to primary care and home and community aged care, he said.

“We envision a primary healthcare system where there is a primary care team for every patient. The team, comprising physicians, nurses and allied health professionals, will be able to look after patients in the primary care setting, as well as help them navigate the healthcare system as they transit across care settings.”

It also means more assisted living services within housing towns and involving the community to look out for their older neighbours, the Health Minister said. Urban planning also has to evolve as the population ages, to make the transport system more senior-friendly and the city more walkable, he added.

Beyond these areas, Mr Gan said the critical determinant of whether ageing will be positive for individuals and society is in the mind: “We have a much higher chance of achieving successful ageing if individuals do not associate ageing with mere decline, loss of value, or worse, disability. Likewise, we have a better chance at productive longevity if employers do not have a negative view about seniors, and if the young and the society as a whole do not hold a pessimistic and deterministic view of ageing.”

At the event, Ageing In Singapore In The Next 50 Years, a book published by the Gerontological Society of Singapore, was launched. CHANNEL NEWSASIA