Four key recommendation of the report: 1) Provide a Elder-adapted residence for the elders.
-Have different housing choices like the size, types, cost and where is it situated so as to offer the elderlies with more option to choose from to meet the needs of their requirement.
2) Have a barrier free community.
-Provide the elderlies with an environment that will not impede them from traveling or access to some places. This will facilitate the elderlies and thus making their life easier and this will encourage them to participate in social activities more often.
-Make the buses more accessible by the elders by having no steps for wheelchairs and a low floor. This will not only benefit the seniors, but young parents, children in prams and those with physical disability.
3)Have affordable healthcare and eldercare
-Top up the Medisave accounts of those who are not well-to-do when there are budget surplus, which means whenever the government have left over from the expenditure of the country development, it will go into the Medisave accounts and this will defray the cost of the healthcare costs.
-Family physicians should take care of the elderlies more and look into their matters comprehensively.
4) Active lifestyles and well-being
-Promote more programmes and services for the seniors so as to have them significantly contribute to Singapore, their family and the society.
-Build on family ties to ensure that the elderlies still have their family members as their front line of support.
State ONE way the CAI is recommending to make our public housing estate more elder-friendly .
-The Government is considering specific measures to facilitate the development of retirement housing by the private sector, in particular, varying the length of land leases to lower land costs, to cater to seniors who desire such lifestyles.
State TWO ways on how we can ensure that the quality of elderly care here in Singapore is affordable .
-Have the qualification for being a doctor higher so as to raise the standard if the doctors in Singapore, providing a better healthcare for everyone, including the seniors. Encourage more people to save for their retirement age for we will get sick more often when we are old. More people will save if the interest rate is higher with no risk.
After reading the CAI report, what do you are the THREE things that you can do, as an SST student, to help overcome these elderly challenges?
-Invent a type of wheelchair that can go up and down the stairs more easily, reducing the effort needed to go up and down the stairs. SCAMPER can be applied to this idea and this type of wheelchair will also benefit people with physical disabilities.
-Ask more people to donate to the poor elderlies so as to help them financially and give them more support in terms of physical needs, like helping them to climb the stairs or guiding them in shopping malls voluntarily.
-Have more activities organised for the seniors so as to expose them to the outside world and not just to stay at home all day long watching television or reading books. This will also strengthen them physically and help them to keep fit if the activity is on sports.
