I agree with Mr Tam Ah Hock's point on focusing on the affordability in building a dementia village (Building dementia village: Focus on affordability, May 22). A long-term whole-of-nation outlook is needed.

One in 10 people aged above 60 in Singapore has dementia, and half of those above 85 have it. Around 82,000 people in Singapore are affected by dementia presently and the number is expected to go beyond 100,000 by 2030. With such statistics pointing to a ballooning problem, it is rather dismal that presently Singapore does not have enough dementia nursing homes, let alone any significant number of assisted living facilities or dementia villages.

The cost to a family which cannot afford to hire help or put their loved one in an institution is significant; another family member who could be contributing to the economy has to stop work to look after the person with dementia.

The relevant authorities should consider the downstream cost to the families and, ultimately, the cost to the nation when facilities such as a dementia village continue to be non-existent or prohibitively expensive.

Would the state consider another approach, such as freeing up some land space for concerned entrepreneurs to start a pilot village, with regulations in place to ensure affordable care, as a model for other state-backed villages to follow?

Ng Lee Beng (Dr)