Many elderly individuals in Singapore do not want to seek medical help for various reasons. These include a lack trust in community care, perceived inaccessibility of healthcare services, high costs, and a preference for self-administered remedies. Consequently, they often delay seeking medical attention until their conditions become more severe, leading to serious complications and potentially avoidable hospitalisations. This trend poses significant challenges for Singapore’s healthcare system, especially as the nation faces an ageing population. By 2026, Singapore is projected to attain “super-aged” status, underscoring the need for a robust healthcare system that ensures accessibility and affordability for the elderly.

In response to these demographic changes and the growing needs of the elderly, SATA CommHealth launched the “Doctors-On-Wheels” (DOW) initiative in 2007. This community-based programme is designed
to provide accessible and affordable medical services.

What is Doctors-On-Wheels (DOWs)?

DOWs is a mobile clinic service that brings comprehensive medical care directly to the community. The service is delivered via a van equipped with a dispensary, staffed by a dedicated team consisting of one doctor, one nurse, and one administrator. Operating 4-5 days a week, the mobile clinic visits various sites in the community, such as active ageing centres and sheltered homes.

The mobile clinic offers a range of services, including medical consultations, medication dispensation, blood and urine tests, ECGs, and visual acuity tests as needed. This initiative is particularly beneficial for elderly residents who live alone—a demographic that has grown from 58,000 in 2018 to 79,000 in 2022 and is expected to continue increasing as the population ages and household sizes decrease.

The programme has seen a 48% increase in episodes of care in 2023 compared to 2022, marking one of the highest uptakes since its inception. A key factor in the programme’s popularity is its affordability, as it offers heavily subsidised or at no cost for eligible beneficiaries for DOW programme and eliminates travel time, making it convenient for patients. In addition, our multilingual team of healthcare professionals is able to build trust and rapport with elderly individuals by removing communication barriers through a common
language.

In some cases, the team even visits patients in their flats if they are unable to come down to the ground floor due to illness or disability. DOWs serve those who are mobile enough to visit the Senior Activity Centre but may find it challenging to travel to polyclinics or healthcare facilities due to the long waiting times. DOW also alleviates challenges faced by partner organisations such as sheltered homes to provide medical care to
their beneficiaries.

The future of DOWs is to bring the program to institutional care facilities such as sheltered homes and disability homes, which are often short-staffed. This allows care staff to focus on caring for the residents rather than escorting them to clinics for medical treatment or follow-up. Additionally, the plan includes setting up community clinics in densely populated areas with seniors and vulnerable families to address their healthcare needs in collaboration with community stakeholders. The concept is to provide a health and social ecosystem for the residents.

One positive outcome of this initiative is that, with seniors attending the DOW sessions, partners like the Active Ageing Centre (AAC) can engage them in various activities such as active ageing exercises. This engagement helps reduce social isolation, provides regular check-ins on the well-being of seniors, and encourages their participation in community life, enhancing their overall quality of life.

This initiative exemplifies how targeted healthcare solutions can address the unique challenges of an ageing population, ensuring that elderly individuals receive the medical attention they need in a convenient and accessible manner.

For more information, please reach out to:
SATA CommHealth Hotline: +65 62446688
Email: [email protected]
Updates on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sata.commhealth

For donation:
You can also donate to support SATA CommHealth’s Community Programmes here: https://portal.sata.com.sg/Donation/DonateNow

Contributed by Sherman Chan, Director, Head of Community Programmes, SATA CommHealth.

Images: SATA CommHealth