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SMRT’s new S$30m fund aims to help elderly, commuters with disabilities

SINGAPORE — An inclusive playground and a mobile clinic to bring physiotherapy services directly to the elderly are among the projects that rail operator SMRT will be sponsoring with its new S$30 million Gift of Mobility Fund.

Wheelchairs ready for use as part of the Heartwheels trial at Outram Park MRT Station yesterday. Two trials there have been set up to improve access to SGH. Photo: Koh Mui Fong/TODAY

Wheelchairs ready for use as part of the Heartwheels trial at Outram Park MRT Station yesterday. Two trials there have been set up to improve access to SGH. Photo: Koh Mui Fong/TODAY

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SINGAPORE — An inclusive playground and a mobile clinic to bring physiotherapy services directly to the elderly are among the projects that rail operator SMRT will be sponsoring with its new S$30 million Gift of Mobility Fund.

The fund, aimed at helping the elderly and commuters with disabilities, was announced on Wednesday (Aug 16) at a special appreciation dinner held at SMRT’s Recreation Club in Bishan. The event was attended by Social and Family Development Minister Tan Chuan-Jin, as well as about 200 beneficiaries and staff members.

The fund, which builds on SMRT’s Gift of Mobility programme that was set up in 2008, will be managed by the National Council of Social Service and disbursed over the next five to 10 years.

Social service organisations will be able to tap the fund to explore partnership opportunities to improve mobility and inclusivity in Singapore.

At St Joseph’s Home, for example, an inclusive playground is being built to promote interaction between its residents and children attending the infant and childcare centre. A concrete timeline will be established once talks between SMRT and St Joseph’s Home are completed.

SMRT has previously funded two other inclusive playgrounds – one at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park in 2015, and another at Ghim Moh last year.

The Singapore Red Cross (SRC) will also be rolling out a clinic-on-wheels programme called Therapy Aid, which will bring physiotherapy services directly to the elderly. It will start with one mobile clinic, fully run by volunteers such as therapists and nutritionists, and the vehicle will be sponsored by SMRT.

“Over the past few years, we’ve come to realise that the number of elderly living alone in Singapore is tremendous,” said Mr Benjamin William, SRC’s secretary-general and chief executive.

“In the next few years, the number will go up to 90,000 ... Many of them ignore ancillary services – for example, nursing needs, care for chronic illnesses such as diabetes.”

The first mobile clinic should be ready by the end of the year, he added, as SRC is currently building its pool of volunteers and working out its operations.

SMRT has also been working with the Ministry of Social and Family Development and the NTUC Learning Hub for its “Inclusive Service Delivery” programme. Staff will be trained to better recognise and understand the needs of the elderly, and the visually and hearing impaired.

Mr Desmond Kuek, SMRT president and chief executive officer, said the operator is “committed to providing safe, reliable and comfortable rides for the more than one billion passenger journeys on our trains, buses and taxis each year”.

“And we want to also extend that service to include that one more elderly or special-needs person who might need a bit more care and support on their travel journey,” he added.

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