A volunteer for over a decade, caring comes naturally to her
The TLDR: This International Women’s Day, meet a young woman committed to making a difference. Ms Shantini Subramaniam started volunteering as a child, and later chose nursing, blending her passion for helping others with career aspirations. Throughout her education journey, she continued to volunteer through projects in school and with external organisations.
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Ms Shantini Subramaniam (third from left) at a recent Death Cafe event as part of Project Caring Hearts.
PHOTO: NUS NURSING
Ms Shantini Subramaniam’s ardent and decade-long volunteering efforts earned her a mention by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in his Budget speech
At the tender age of 23, Ms Shantini is a veteran at helping others, having begun her journey at Sree Narayana Mission Nursing Home at the age of 11.
“Even before this volunteering experience, whenever I came across elderly people under my block, I would just smile and wave at them. It was just something that came naturally to me,” she told The Straits Times.
Next was Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities, where she participated in activities like Zumba and craft sessions with the seniors.
When she was a polytechnic student studying nursing and volunteering with Youth Corps Singapore – a national institution that supports young people in community service – interacting with people with intellectual disabilities left the greatest impact on her.
Together with fellow volunteers, she organised activities such as outings, art and craft, and baking sessions for clients of MINDS.
“I realised that despite their challenges, they were still participating in the activities and were genuinely happy being with us.”
Coming from a family that experienced financial challenges, these “meaningful and life-changing moments” taught her lessons on gratitude and positivity despite her own situation.
“When I went to volunteer to help people, such as the elderly and those with intellectual disabilities, I felt like their problems were much bigger than mine,” she said.
“If they could be smiling and if they could be going forward, then I felt like I should do the same too.”
Ms Shantini drew inspiration for her nursing path not only from her caregiving role for her younger brother, who has cerebral palsy, but also from her interactions with the elderly.
These shaped her decision to pursue nursing, from studying nursing at ITE to obtaining a nursing diploma from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and now pursuing a nursing degree at the National University of Singapore.
Today, her volunteering extends to supporting palliative patients through befriending programmes and community outreach with Project Caring Hearts, as well as engaging with children battling cancer through Project Iris.
These two projects are led by students from the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies at the NUS’ Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.
Working with a home hospice provider to identify patient profiles for befriending has served as a poignant reminder for her of life’s fleeting nature.
“Sometimes even before any befriending could take place, they pass away,” she said.
As part of Project Caring Heart, she has facilitated “Death Cafe” sessions where students openly discuss death and reflect on life and mortality.
She emphasised the importance of addressing the topic of death, which many find difficult to confront, particularly for nurses. And she reflected on her own experience, recalling how she was moved to tears when, during her ITE internship, a patient died.
When asked about what motivates her, she said: “No matter how difficult your circumstances are, I think it is so important to bring joy into someone’s life. It can be the smallest gesture, but at least when I go back home, I know that I’ve done something for someone.”
