Opening of NTUC Health’s nursing home underscores the commitment of NTUC Enterprise to meet elderly needs

NTUC Social Enterprises announced today the official opening of NTUC Health’s first nursing home at Jurong West to provide quality and affordable care and rehabilitation to seniors, who are unable to receive 24/7 care in their own homes.

Singapore, 25 May 2016 – NTUC Social Enterprises announced today the official opening of NTUC Health’s first nursing home1 at Jurong West to provide quality and affordable care and rehabilitation to seniors, who are unable to receive 24/7 care in their own homes. NTUC Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing was the guest-of-honour at the event.

The opening of the nursing home is an important signal of NTUC Social Enterprises’ commitment to meet the needs of the seniors now, and in the future, in as holistic a manner as possible. NTUC FairPrice and NTUC Income have also launched specific elder-focused products and services to respond to these needs and help prepare seniors to age inplace.

Holistic care and rehabilitation as top priorities at nursing home

The nursing home currently cares for more than 200 wheelchair-bound or highly-dependent seniors, who may also have dementia. These residents not only receive assistance and supervision in their daily activities, but are also able to receive medical, nursing and rehabilitative care at the nursing home.

A small number of residents, who are suitable for active rehabilitation, receive intensive rehabilitative care to help them recover and eventually return to their families and the community. Those who require more assistance and supervision for their daily activities will receive the rehabilitative care appropriate for them to help them regain some of their physical functioning. This way, they may progress to a stage where they will be able to participate in active rehabilitation, and eventually return to their families and the community. The rest of the residents who are highly dependent on caregivers for every activity in their daily lives will be
given care to ensure their comfort and health.

Said Mr Chua Song Khim, CEO of NTUC Health, “The focus in our nursing home is to provide good, holistic care for our residents and support their recovery, so as to help them return to their homes and the community as far as it is possible. We believe that the seniors’ emotional wellbeing and quality of life generally improve when they are with their family and within the community.”

The nurses and physiotherapists’ dedication and commitment are key factors in delivering a high level of care and rehabilitation to the residents. Since it started operations in October 2015, the nursing home has received positive feedback from families of the residents which highlighted the staff’s kindness, compassion, dedication and professionalism.

Ms Foong Chee, daughter of Mdm Soh Ting Sung, a resident at the nursing home, penned this short note to the management team, “My mother and I are deeply grateful for the kindness and utmost care, and tremendous help we have received…Your team truly have the residents’ well-being at heart, working tirelessly to ensure that they receive the best possible care and help in every aspect.”

By the first quarter of 2017, NTUC Health will run two more nursing homes – in Geylang East Central and Chai Chee Street to care for seniors in the Eastern part of Singapore. At full capacity, these two nursing homes and the current one in Jurong West will be able to care for close to 900 seniors altogether.

Nursing home – key component in NTUC Health’s care ecosystem
The nursing home is an important component in NTUC Health’s network of health and eldercare services. With its comprehensive suite of services including home care services, day and senior care centres, senior activity centres, senior wellness centre, pharmacies, dental and family medicine clinic and the nursing home, NTUC Health is able to widen its social footprint to better meet the different needs of seniors and empower them to age in place. In doing so, it is also supporting workers in the care of their elderly dependents.

Support from community – U Care Fund donation
The seniors accessing NTUC Health’s various eldercare entities also enjoy the support of the community. NTUC U Care Fund is one strong and loyal supporter. This year, it donated $1 million to the Eldercare Trust to support 700 needy seniors in NTUC Health’s day and senior care centres, and nursing home, as well as the home care service.

NTUC Social Enterprises provide assurance and support for elderly to age in place
Together with NTUC Health, other NTUC Social Enterprises are also providing assurance and support to empower seniors to continue living meaningful and independent lives.

NTUC FairPrice’s Enabled Stores
A case in point is NTUC FairPrice. It has opened two Enabled stores, in Lengkok Bahru and Redhill, where there are higher concentrations of elderly residents. The Enabled stores incorporate the principles of universal design with special features and products to make the experience of grocery shopping more enjoyable for seniors, and support them as they carry out their everyday tasks independently.

Elderly shoppers can use the call assist buttons located at the entrance and along the aisles to attract the attention of staff should they require assistance. They can also use the magnifying glasses at the aisles to help them read product labels with greater ease. They will also find it easier to reach for products as the shelves are customised to ideal heights. The stores also have wheelchair-friendly shopping trolleys available to allow wheelchair users to shop independently in the stores. To better meet the needs of elderly customers, the Enabled stores also offer a range of supplements, products with the Healthier Choice Symbol (HCS), and assistive products such as walking aids. A fact sheet on Enabled stores is attached.

The frontline staff at the Enabled stores have also received training to serve elderly customers better. The specially designed training programme – jointly developed by NTUC LearningHub, Centre for Seniors and the Dr Oon Chiew Seng Trust – equips staff with the skills and knowledge to better understand and anticipate the needs of elderly customers. They are now able to recognise senior-related ailments such as dementia, and be able to empathise with the difficulties that seniors may encounter, so that they can communicate better with them and respond better to their needs.

Four more Enabled stores are planned by the end of this year located in the west and central parts of Singapore.

NTUC Income’s Silver Protect
NTUC Income has also designed a special insurance plan just for seniors to give them peace of mind, and free them from unnecessary worries of hefty medical bills should they fall ill.

Because it is specially developed to benefit seniors, the Silver Protect insurance plan is very strict in its eligibility criteria. Only people aged between the 50 and 74 are allowed to purchase it. The insurance policy covers early stage cancer, advanced stage cancer as well as accidental death, among other features up to a maximum age of 84.

With Silver Protect, seniors can grow old gracefully and happily, with the peace of mind that they need not have to worry about huge medical bills should cancer strike. More information is at: https://www.income.com.sg/insurance/life-insurance/term-life-insurance/silver-protect

NTUC Social Enterprises – All for good
Said Mr Tan Suee Chieh, Group Chief Executive Officer of NTUC Enterprise: “As a group, NTUC Social Enterprises are able to offer up a suite of integrated services to meet specific needs in our society and drive meaningful social outcomes. As a group, we are able to offer concrete solutions to the pressing concerns facing society, such as ageing, to enable Singaporeans to live better and more meaningful lives.”

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1 This nursing home is under the Ministry of Health’s Build-Own-Lease (BOL) scheme