Does Singapore’s kampung spirit hold key to living with dementia?
- Facing a surge in dementia cases, the greying city state is trying out a variety of approaches towards the disease
- Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it hopes the whole community – and not just the government – can chip in to care for patients and their stressed carers
Advanced dementia has left Lim Jeok Moey unable to leave home without a wheelchair for the past year.
But last month at the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, the 90-year-old managed to clock a distance of nearly half a kilometre on her own two feet. “This was probably the longest she has walked since she was diagnosed with dementia,” her son, Justin Foo, said, adding that the cheering crowd spurred his mother on. “I was emotional as she held my hands and walked to the finishing line.”
Lim and Foo were among hundreds who attended Walk 2 Remember, a walkathon aimed at bringing together Singaporeans – dementia patients, carers and the public – while educating them about the condition.
The event, organised by four undergraduates from Nanyang Technological University, comes at a time when Singapore is witnessing a surge in dementia cases.
The walkathon joins a list of community initiatives that work hand in hand with governmental measures to build dementia-friendly communities and bring back Singapore’s kampung spirit, in which neighbours help and stand by one another.
Within these communities, residents, businesses,service providers and the community at large are not only aware of dementia, but are also able to support afflicted seniors and their carers.