An SGH care team together with a team from Temasek Foundation Cares – Care Close to Home programme check on him regularly to ensure he is coping well after his discharge from hospital.
Mr Wong Ah Ann is 67 years old. He lives alone in his one-room flat in Chin Swee Road. He was admitted to Singapore General Hospital (SGH) due to a fall last year. He has returned home, but has been requiring living and medical assistance.
An SGH care team together with a team from Temasek Foundation Cares – Care Close to Home programme check on him regularly to ensure he is coping well after his discharge from hospital. They perform health checks, pack his medications, help him with Medifund application, provided caregiver training to his new maid, and referred him to the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped.
Mr Wong is one of the more than 260 seniors who benefit from the Community of Care programme, launched on 26 April 2107 by SingHealth Regional Health System (RHS) and Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng constituency. The programme aims at enhancing health and social care for elderly residents in Chin Swee Road and Banda Street who have complex medical conditions post-discharge and face social issues such as loneliness and financial difficulties.
A multi-disciplinary care team from SGH first identifies patients at risk before they are discharged from the hospital. SGH then works with Temasek Foundation Cares – Care Close to Home team to put together a personalised post-discharge care plan and deliver it to the patients in their own homes.
Key partners in the Commmunity of Care programme include the Agency for Integrated Care, Kreta Ayer Seniors Activity Centre and general practitioners in Chinatown.
"Patients have emotional and social needs, beyond the medical issues that we're helping to address. By working closely with grassroots organisations, community partners and GPs, we can strengthen the post-discharge care support system for this group of elderly residents, spot complications early and intervene before their condition worsens.
"This will help to ensure that residents who are at-risk of frequent hospital admissions do not fall through the gaps when they transit from one care setting to another," said Professor Fong Kok Yong, Deputy Group CEO (Regional Health and Medical), SingHealth.
Dr Lily Neo, MP for Jalan Besar GRE (Kreta Ayer – Kim Seng) said, "With the medical expertise from SingHealth, we are better equipped to help our elderly residents lead independent lives and age in place confidently, among a supportive network of friends and familiar faces."
