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1. To promote public awareness on issues surrounding death and bereavement;
2. To encourage and support the seniors and their family members to prepare for the inevitability of death and bereavement;
3. To provide support and resources to those who are frail, vulnerable, or lacking family support, and help them make informed decisions on matters relating to the end stage of life.

The Empowering Seniors Project (FY18 onwards) seeks to increase service user participation in the design and implementation of services for seniors to create more effective and sustainable services. With the insights from NCSS Quality of Life of Seniors study, seniors have the ability to make decisions in the delivery of services and contribute in various service settings. Hence, seniors should be seen as active participants and contributors instead of passive recipients of services.

An Empowering Seniors workgroup, comprising of eight organisations¹ was formed in 2018. The workgroup is co-chaired by National Council of Social Service and Agency for Integrated Care. Together with the workgroup, NCSS developed the following resources for any eldercare agencies that wish to adopt empowering principles to increase the level of user participation in the delivery of senior services.

Empowering Seniors Resource Kit (version 1.0)

 

Download a copy of the Empowering Seniors Resource Kit.

The resource kit is compiled for agencies that would like to implement empowering principles using the Ladder of User Participation. The Ladder helps agencies to concretise the abstract concept of empowerment into doable actions. Case studies of empowerment initiatives by workgroup members are included for inspiration.

Empowering Seniors Video

Explaining the why and how empowering principles are practised in the various initiatives and services through the case studies of few eldercare agencies.
Click here for the video.

¹The Empowering Seniors Workgroup comprises of AMKFSC Community Services Ltd, Alzheimer’s Disease Association, Filos Community services, Jamiyah Nursing Home, RSVP Singapore, Sree Narayana Mission (Singapore), Tsao Foundation and Ng Teng Fong General Hospital (a member of National University Health System).

Background

The Empowering Seniors Project (FY15-FY17) focused on development of evidence-based engagement framework to enhance purposeful engagements between practitioners/volunteers and seniors. The Project was a collaboration among 15 social service organisations² to drive senior empowerment in the sector. NCSS initiated the partnership of the social service organisations with 3 collaborators - National Arts Council,  Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and  National Heritage Board - to develop three toolkits:- Seniors Life Review through Arts, the Strong Again! Companion Guide and Conversation Starter Kit.  The toolkits aim to guide practitioners in their service delivery so that seniors can be empowered to discover their strength, create purpose for their lives and gain a strong sense of belonging to their community. The toolkits were launched at the Seniors Empowered! Conference on 3 November 2017. Here is a summary of the toolkits and their outcomes:

Senior Life Review through Arts

​Encompasses group work activities and takes seniors through personal art journeys and meaningful conversations, to enable seniors to gain confidence to share their life stories, hopes and dreams.
Collaborator: National Arts Council

​Strong Again! Companion Guide

Encompasses structured home-based activities, targets frail and home-bound seniors, with the aim to help them gain strength and mobility, and aspire to re-integrate into their community.
​Collaborator: Ng Teng Fong General Hospital

These toolkits are designed for use by social service practitioners.

Conversation Starter Kit for Seniors

​Catered for staff or volunteers to engage with seniors purposefully, through meaningful conversations and recollections of their memories and past experiences.
Collaborator: National Heritage Board
Join us in this journey of senior empowerment!

Download a copy of the Conversation Starter Kit for Seniors - Places.

²AWWA Ltd, AMKFSC Community Services Ltd, Care Corner Seniors Services Ltd, Empower Ageing Limited, Fei Yue Community Services, Filos Community Services, Lions Befrienders (LB), NTUC Health Co-operative Ltd, O’Joy Care Services, ProAge Pte Ltd, SAGE Counselling Centre, Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities Limited, TOUCH Community Services, TSAO Foundation, and Yong-En Care Centre

 

1. Grief counselling;
2. Structured support group; and
3. Widow’s Mentoring

Day Care Centre

Provides day-time supervision and care to frail seniors when their family members are at work or if they require some time off from their caregiving roles. The programmes conducted by the centres include exercises that enhance one's physical well-being as well as social and recreational activities such as doing handicraft work, and singing (karaoke).

These programmes support seniors to stay active and offer opportunities for them to socialise with others and be engaged in meaningful activities. Meals are provided and transport can be arranged to ferry seniors to and fro the centre.


Senior Activity Centres

Senior Activity Centres (SACs) are drop-in centres for vulnerable seniors staying in one- and two-room HDB rental flats within a service boundary. The centres are a hub for social and recreational programmes for seniors to drop by during the day. SACs also befriend and monitor frail and/or provide support services such as the monitoring of frail and/or homebound elderly, and provide information and referrals.

Home Personal Care

Home Personal Care supports the frail and home-bound Persons Needing Care through personal hygiene care, housekeeping, laundry, mind-stimulating activities, monitoring of medication compliance, and assistance with other personal care services.

Meals and Escort

Provides meals delivery and medical escort services to seniors who are living in the community.

Sheltered Homes

Residential facilities catering to the needs of ambulant seniors, who do not have family support or are unable to live with family members for certain reasons.

These Homes are located within HDB neighbourhoods and seniors are supported to maintain their independent living skills within the Home and the community.  Social-recreational activities are organised for the seniors.

Family members and caregivers of persons with dementia are often concerned about their safety and well-being. With effect from 15 April 2021, caregivers of persons with dementia can sign up for CARA Membership to access an ecosystem of personalised dementia support and benefits, including Safe Return. NCSS will be ceasing the Safe Return Card (SRC) with the launch of CARA to avoid duplication.

CARA is an initiative by Dementia Singapore (formerly known as Alzheimer's Disease Association).

 

Visit www.cara.sg for more information.

The annual Senior Give Thanks! Campaign - in conjunction with International Day of Older Persons (IDOP) has garnered participation from more than 50 organisations since it was first launched in Singapore in 2014. In 2017, NCSS supported RSVP Singapore to organise a celebratory event on 1st Oct for the social service sector.​

IDOP highlights the importance of the society coming together to build a loving and supportive community that embraces our seniors.

We have prepared these additional reading materials to support your needs:

International Day of Older Persons Digital Training

>> Training Videos
Session 1 - Background of IDOP and Its Significance
Session 2 - Gratitude and Its Impact on Seniors
Session 3 - Communicating with Seniors to Elicit Gratitude Stories

>> Download Digital Training Facilitator Guide

>> Campaign Videos
International Day of Older Persons 2016
International Day of Older Persons 2015
International Day of Older Persons 2015 event highlights

>> Publications
Removing Barriers - Interacting with Seniors