Better community mental health resources on the cards

SINGAPORE — More people will be able to seek help with dementia, depression and other mental health issues within the community, while general practitioners keen to link up with community partners will be given more resources, the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Thursday (March 9). 

Mental health and dementia services in polyclinics will be expanded and the goal is for one in two polyclinics to have mental health clinics by 2021. 

The Government will also strengthen the Institute of Mental Health’s post-discharge “after-care” support, said Senior Minister of State for Health Amy Khor during the debate on MOH’s budget.  

The IMH will be able to support more patients as they transition back home. The goal is to support 3,000 more patients over the next five years, on top of the 8,000 patients that are supported today.

Frontline staff of selected government agencies such as the Housing and Development Board and Singapore Police Force will also receive basic training on mental health conditions over the next five years.

They will be trained to identify and respond to people with mental health issues in the community, such as referring them to the Agency for Integrated Care for help. 

Dr Khor said the Government also wants to create more dementia friendly communities where residents, businesses and other partners can assist people with the condition. Dementia will affect more people as Singapore ages. About one in 10 people above the age of 60 years has dementia, an illness affecting the brain that leads to failing memory and personality changes, and worsens intellectual function.

To involve private general practitioners more in the shift towards community care, Minister of State for Health Lam Pin Min said Primary Care Networks will be scaled up this year. The networks consist of GPs organised in virtual networks, who then deliver care in a multidisciplinary team alongside nurses and allied health professionals.

Eighty per cent of primary care is currently provided by GPs and the remainder by polyclinics. Calling primary care the bedrock of the healthcare system, Dr Lam urged interested GPs to sign up when a Primary Care Network application call opens on April 1 for two months. 

Participating GPs will get funding support to provide better care for patients with complex conditions like diabetes.