5 more estates get grant for features to help the elderly

Five more estates have been awarded the $50,000 City for All Ages grant to enhance their elderly-friendly features.

There had been eight applications for the remaining three grants this year, Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Health told The Straits Times earlier this week.

But due to the quality of the proposals, the Ministry of Health (MOH) decided to award two more grants than budgeted for, she revealed.

The ideas that caught the attention of the City for All Ages committee, who come from the public, private and people sectors, include a "Seniors Academy" at Bukit Batok East where the teachers are themselves above 60 years of age.

Kembangan-Chai Chee wants to tie up with the Institute of Mental Health to keep depression in the elderly at bay, while MacPherson is looking at door-to-door health-screening for those who find it hard to move around.

Kampong Glam, meanwhile, will give small incentives to seniors whose health shows improvement through exercise.

Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng wants to replace the bamboo pole holders in rental flats to make it easier for the elderly to hang their laundry.

Dr Khor said she was quite surprised by the novelty of the ideas from the various towns, adding that they were beyond her expectations.

These five estates join the seven which got the grants in July, along with four others which were part of the pilot scheme since its launch in 2011.

The $50,000 grant, which is disbursed over two years, can be used for a range of improvements to support three key objectives: safety and security, health and wellness, and social support.

Some ideas implemented during the pilot have gone national.

The most notable is a programme in which homes of elderly people are retrofitted with grab bars and non-slip floors.

Called the Enhancement for Active Seniors or Ease, the initiative has its roots in Marine Parade. But it has since been made available by the Housing Board to all of its flats.

Under the scheme, residents pay between 5 and 12.5 per cent of the cost of adding these age-friendly items, depending on the flat's size. As of September, 14,300 flats have been signed up with Ease.

Estates awarded the grant are encouraged to do a town audit to see what needs improvement and carry out a survey to find out what its seniors want.

These include little things that can make life difficult, such as steep ramps that can be a danger for wheelchairs and prams, bus stop seats which slope, making it difficult for the elderly, or uneven floor surfaces, which make walking difficult.

Dr Khor said the $50,000 is not a great sum, but it helps to motivate people.

She revealed that money for improvements also often comes from other sources, such as the HDB for the Ease programme and from the town council as part of its estate upgrading.

MOH plans to put all the successful ideas into a booklet to share with the rest of the country.

salma@sph.com.sg

Making life better for all

The City for All Ages scheme awards $50,000 grants to estates for improvements in three areas: safety and security, health and wellness, and social support.

SAFETY & SECURITY

Madam Helen Lee, 75, was afraid of stumbling in the dark when she had to get up at night to use the toilet, so she would leave a light on all night at her one-room Bukit Merah View rental flat.

Under the scheme, a light switch was installed near her bed. "It's so convenient - I can reach it while still in bed," she said.

Another popular improvement is to coat slippery drain covers with an anti-slip surface. More than 800 drain covers in estates such as Marine Parade have been given an anti-slip coating, or replaced with anti-slip covers.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Subsidised health screening, often done in conjunction with the Health Promotion Board or hospitals, is a top choice under this category. The screenings are often followed up with visits by nurses to help seniors control chronic conditions.

Siglap has also started low-cost traditional Chinese and Indian medicine consultations once a month.

SOCIAL SUPPORT

Volunteers in Bedok and Whampoa, often seniors themselves, pay visits to the elderly who live alone.

Tanglin-Cairnhill has a monthly "cooking for a cause" session where volunteers cook and deliver free meals to about 100 needy seniors.

ESTATES AWARDED

THE CITY FOR ALL AGES GRANT

2011: Bedok, Marine Parade, Taman Jurong and Whampoa

July 2013: Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang, Hong Kah North, Queenstown, Siglap, Tampines Central and Tanglin-Cairnhill

December 2013: Bukit Batok East, Kembangan-Chai Chee, MacPherson, Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng and Kampong Glam

Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.