Encouraging Stay-alone Seniors to Stay Connected with Community and Tracking of Seniors who Pass Away Alone

36 Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye asked the Minister for Health whether the Ministry has plans to commission local studies to (i) examine how it can improve efforts to encourage our ageing and stay-alone seniors to stay connected with the community and (ii) consider the usefulness and practicality of tracking the number of senior citizens who pass away alone and undetected at home.

Mr Ong Ye Kung: The Ministry of Health (MOH) actively funds research studies to better understand the needs of senior citizens, including stay-alone seniors, to support them to age well in the community. An example is the Transitions in Health, Employment, Social Engagement and Intergenerational Transfers in Singapore Study conducted by the Duke-NUS Medical School's Centre for Ageing Research and Education. This is a longitudinal study of health and social engagement levels among older Singaporeans.

Learnings from the studies feed into the relevant MOH initiatives. For instance, the Silver Generation Office under the Agency for Integrated Care proactively identifies vulnerable seniors, including those who live alone and connects them with the relevant support, such as the Active Ageing Centres, which provide active ageing programmes and befriending services. In line with these efforts, MOH tracks the number of vulnerable seniors who are referred to and supported by community services.