Govt feedback unit hears from more people this year

Earlier this year, the Government's push to get vulnerable seniors vaccinated against Covid-19 appeared to hit a wall. While seniors aged 70 and above were among the earliest invited to get their jabs, their vaccination rates plateaued by July and were soon outstripped by those of younger age groups.

Through its feedback channels and ground outreach, government feedback unit Reach found that many seniors were reluctant to get their shots due to advice from their doctors - mostly traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners who were unsure what advice to give.

Reach passed this feedback to the Ministry of Health (MOH), which had also heard about the issue.

MOH subsequently arranged to meet all TCM practitioners to explain why vaccination was critical, said Reach chairman Tan Kiat How, relating what occurred as an example of feedback helping to shape public engagement this year.

Such efforts, together with other outreach activities and home vaccination, have encouraged more seniors to get vaccinated, so that more than nine in 10 seniors here have now received their Covid-19 shots - not far off the national rate for the eligible population.

While the pandemic has made it difficult for Reach to hold its usual physical feedback sessions, it is clear that Singaporeans are keen to have their views heard, especially on hot-button issues, Mr Tan said in a review of Reach's work in the past year.

More than 70,000 people provided feedback to Reach this year, up from 56,000 last year, he noted.

In lieu of face-to-face feedback booths, Reach turned to its e-Listening Points, in the form of online surveys and platforms like WhatsApp, TikTok and Clubhouse.

Key topics that stood out across these engagements were home-based learning (HBL) and the stress faced by healthcare workers, said Mr Tan.

When HBL was announced in May, 20,000 parents came forward with their feedback within three days, said Mr Tan, who is also Minister of State for Communications and Information and National Development.

Some raised valid points, he said, with a front-line worker expressing concerns over not being able to supervise his children at home and another parent mentioning not having sufficient digital devices for the whole family.

The Ministry of Education has, at various points in the year, acknowledged that HBL cannot be a full substitute for learning in school and that it aims to minimise its use.

Mr Tan also said that feedback from a survey of more than 600 healthcare workers, who mostly responded anonymously, was "very raw".

"People were telling us 'I'm going to break down, I've worked three shifts non-stop for X number of days; I'm very tired, I haven't spent time with my family'… And they're worried about vulnerable people in their family, (they) don't dare to go home," he said.

In October, MOH issued a circular asking healthcare clusters to roster their staff for leave towards the end of the year. The Government has also said that manpower for the sector is being boosted.

Mr Tan said: "Every voice matters, all the more so in a more diverse Singapore and a more diverse society, where you have online social media and so a myriad of digital platforms."

At the same time, the Government is cognisant that social media can be an echo chamber, which is why it is redoubling efforts to reach out to a wide swathe of society, he added.

According to Reach's annual report, released yesterday, more than 65,000 people were engaged through the Listening Points - physical as well as online. Another 4,600 were engaged in 36 dialogues, while 6,700 were reached through three digital campaigns.

The pandemic also saw WhatsApp groups take off as a popular feedback channel for Reach. There are currently seven groups, with about 1,300 contributors in total.

Ministries and agencies have seen the success of some of the modes of feedback gathering - such as moderated chat groups - that Reach has piloted, and are thinking of doing it themselves, said Mr Tan.

MOH, for example, joined Telegram groups to share more information about the Covid-19 home recovery programme and answer questions on it when its rapid roll-out led to teething issues.

Even as individual ministries and agencies set up their own feedback channels, Reach maintains its relevance, said Mr Tan.

Some issues fall across different ministries and Reach tries to engage from a "citizen-centric point of view, rather than from an agency point of view", he said.

Next year, Reach will be focusing on professionals, managers and executives (PMEs), youth and members of the minority races.

Each of these focus groups will be helmed by one of Reach's deputy chairmen: National Trades Union Congress assistant secretary-general Patrick Tay for PMEs; Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development and Culture, Community and Youth Eric Chua for youth; and Parliamentary Secretary for Communications and Information and Health Rahayu Mahzam for minorities.