Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital opens second nursing home to cater to Potong Pasir's seniors

SINGAPORE - Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital (KWSH) opened its second nursing home on Saturday morning in Potong Pasir to meet the needs of the high concentration of seniors there.

The neighbourhood was chosen due to the high number of seniors compared with the national average, many of whom need nursing, daycare and traditional Chinese medicine services that will be provided by the home, said KWSH chief executive Ow Chee Chung.

The home also specialises in dementia care and can receive seniors with dementia from public hospitals to free up wards for patients with more urgent conditions, said KWSH chairman Patrick Lee during the home's opening.

In a collaboration, Tan Tock Seng Hospital nurses will work with the home's employees and train them to look after seniors with mild to moderate dementia in a five-month deployment until January 2023, said Mr Lee.

The home's opening coincides with KWSH's 112th anniversary, making it one of the oldest charitable healthcare institutions here.

The new facility, which has 438 beds, brings the total number of beds across its six eldercare facilities to 1,200.

Besides its other nursing home in Serangoon Road, KWSH has four care centres, including its Jalan Besar and MacPherson facilities, that offer eldercare services during the day.

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, the guest of honour at the opening, said the nursing home will give the nation a boost in its fight against the Covid-19 pandemic as it helps to free up resources in hospitals to focus on more acute patients.

The Ministerial Committee on Ageing is finalising a plan by 2023, which will focus on care for seniors by giving them opportunities to learn and contribute, and keeping connected with others and staying active, said Mr Ong.

Beyond the usual services as a senior care centre, the new home in Potong Pasir will support up to 75 seniors daily through activities like dancing and taiji, and social work such as weekly visits to lonely seniors and running errands for them.

These programmes are part of a goal to develop the centre as an active ageing care hub, which welcomes seniors to drop in for social and recreational activities to keep them engaged in the community.

The home's development as a care hub will be supported with a transition grant from the Ministry of Health and is expected to reach out to at least 350 seniors in Potong Pasir in its first year of operation, said Mr Ong.

The home is also partnering schools at St Andrew's Village located next door to bring the young and old together in activities such as carnival games and outdoor walks.

Mr Ong said in his speech: "The lessons the students can learn (from the seniors) are sometimes more important than what they learn in class.

"I think it's very precious. When you have a school next to a nursing home and you bring old folks and young people to interact together as a community, even when you're old, you'll feel young."