When Kwai Yoke first joined Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital (KWSH) as a Nurse Manager in 2014, she was put in charge of a 50-bedded dementia ward. Armed with 32 years of nursing experience in acute hospitals, she was quick to adapt and set about to make a positive impact with her knowledge and skills.

Her first task was to understand her patients. “Dementia patients benefit from individualised care due to the differences in their behaviour. We have to remember that all of them are unique individuals with their own memories and triggers,” she says.

Kwai Yoke who turns 64 this year does not show any signs of slowing down. She now oversees four dementia wards with a total of 154 patients in the recently redeveloped KWSH.

A strong believer of continuous learning, she participated in the dementia care Train-The-Trainer Programme in 2015 to better equip herself to train other nurses on dementia care and management. Kwai Yoke and her team also conducted a thorough review of nursing practices and developed new operating procedures to standardise care for residents with dementia.

In 2016, she went on a study trip to Hong Kong where she visited hospitals and day care centres to gain insights on best practices in elder care and dementia care. What struck her was how patients were kept engaged and motivated throughout the day with different activities. When she returned, Kwai Yoke and her team enhanced each patient’s care plan to keep them engaged during the day and introduced new activities such as gardening.

Her dedication to patient care also motivated her to undergo an Advanced Care Planning (ACP) Facilitators’ Course and Patient Preferred Care Course by Agency for Integrated Care. As an ACP facilitator, Kwai Yoke engages patients and their caregivers to identify patients’ care goals and preferences. These discussions enable patients to share their care wishes ahead of time so that their loved ones will know their preferences in the event that they become seriously ill.