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Need for wellness centres that provide basic elderly care, says Shanmugam

SINGAPORE — With Singapore’s population ageing, medical costs will rise in tandem. Therefore, wellness centres that provide basic nursing and elderly care for those who do not need intense and costly medical interventions in hospitals will be needed, said Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam yesterday.

SINGAPORE — With Singapore’s population ageing, medical costs will rise in tandem. Therefore, wellness centres that provide basic nursing and elderly care for those who do not need intense and costly medical interventions in hospitals will be needed, said Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam yesterday.

Speaking at the third Active Ageing Carnival held in the Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (GRC) yesterday, where its first wellness centre is due for completion early next year, the minister added that Singapore — one of the fastest ageing societies in the world — also needs to think of ways to encourage ageing in place instead of in a long-term care home.

Not everything needs to be done at a hospital where the cost is very high for the state, Mr Shanmugam added.

“So, you need step-down care, long-term care and also wellness centres in the community, where people need a bit of help but they do not necessarily need to go to hospital and the nurses can come down if they do not need intense intervention,” said Mr Shanmugam, who is also Member of Parliament for Nee Soon GRC.

The minister also encouraged elderly residents to take part in volunteer activities as a means of ageing actively. If care is not taken, the number of active seniors taking care of even older people will decrease, given that many people aged 65 and above would continue working if they are still healthy, he added.

Yesterday, Mr Shanmugam also gave out a new award, the Outstanding Seniors Award, to five senior citizen volunteers in Nee Soon to recognise their volunteer efforts.

In June, Nee Soon GRC unveiled plans to build three wellness and care centres in Nee Soon. Once completed, these facilities will provide elderly care services such as day care, dementia care and basic healthcare.

The Nee Soon South division also signed a memorandum of understanding with National Healthcare Group Polyclinics earlier this year. The collaboration will cover areas such as psychology services, diet and nutrition advice, caregiving, as well as clinical pharmacy and diagnostic services.

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