Singapore Ageing

The following sections are included:

• Contents
• List of Abbreviations
• Acknowledgements

This chapter covers an overview of the various discussions advanced by the authors who have contributed engaging thoughts on Singapore ageing. This volume has tapped wide-ranging views from social service practitioners in the field of ageing, researchers on gerontology and academics from the social and political realms to contribute their thoughts, views and suggestions on dealing with the complex social, political and healthcare implications of an acute ageing Singapore society which is unfolding very quickly like climate change in the next three decades. A number of critical decisions about allocation of resources and social policies for the ageing community will have to be made and these are more often than not fraught with controversies as the silver power will gain prominence and is likely to make demands to protect its interest.

This chapter will discuss some of the major social and healthcare issues facing the elderly population in Singapore and examine some of implications and challenges. The development of key social policy measures and constraints will be touched upon. The various concerns about social consequences of ageing and affordability of healthcare will be addressed. Some suggestions to strengthen the service delivery will be presented. The future challenges of Singapore ageing will be discussed, taking into consideration the lessons learned about the consequences of ageing and ways to reduce the impacts on the vulnerable elderly. There is an urgency to consider in the setting up of a national body to plan and formulate various policies and coordinate services in preparation to meet the challenges of ageing Singapore.

Ageing in any society is a highly political and politicised event. This is especially true when the number of aged is increasing incrementally and would be in a position to influence the electoral outcome of a country. According to the traditional definition of aged, it refers to those who are 65 years and above; in 2020, Singapore had an aged population of 614,400 out of a total population of 5,685,000. This constituted 15.19% of the total population, a relatively high percentage, with serious allround implications, including in the arena of politics. In 2018, the Deputy Secretary (Development), Ministry of Health, Teoh Zsin Woon, highlighted this challenge by observing that Singapore’s population was ageing fast: there was one aged out of 14 in 2000; in 2015, the figure stood out one in eight and in 2030 this will be one in four [Teoh, Z. W. and Zainal, K. “Successful Ageing: Progressive Governance and Collaborative Communities.” Ethos, Issue 19, 8 July 2018, (Singapore: Singapore Civil Service College, 2018). See https://www.csc.gov.sg/articles/successful-ageing-progressive-governance-and-collaborative-communities.]. In view of this serious development, with possible dire political consequences, this chapter discusses the politics of ageing in Singapore and what is involved in this broad rubric of the issue.

This chapter focuses on seniors in Singapore, using a strengths perspective, and examines the family policies relating to seniors from a critical gerontology framework. The current cohort of seniors, 65 years and above, consists of the baby-boomer generation, alongside seniors 80 years and above who belong to the pre-baby-boomer generation. The latter are often referred to as the pioneer generation. Policies regarding family support, vulnerable seniors, caregiving and grandparenting will be analysed for their social impact as well as influence on positive ageing. Legislation enacted with the intention of protecting vulnerable seniors will be critically analysed. Using a macro perspective, the chapter will conclude with identification of social trends in family structures, and how future policies could be shaped by keeping these in mind.

This paper focuses on the Singaporean model of long-term care for older people. With only about 2% of the older population living in institutions, the mainstay of long-term care is community care. The reader is provided an overview of the Singaporean services, including case management, followed by a discussion of the current issues and future challenges. In keeping with the prospect of a rapidly aging population profile, the Singapore government plays a leading role in framing policy and planning for future needs of this sector of the population. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <getinfo@haworthpressinc.com> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2001 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]

This chapter discusses the national initiative by the Singapore Silver Generation Office (SGO) in building a social network of support for older adults with the aim to enhance health and social outcomes in a rapidly ageing society. The discussions entail how the SGO seeks to build social capital at both the micro and macro levels to improve the social- and health-related outcomes of older adults in Singapore, and examine the issues involved in building a support network and the implications moving forward.

Digitalisation is potentially a new social determinant of health and can affect ageing. From a gerontological perspective, digitalisation can affect ageing biologically, socially and psychologically. Digitalisation covers digital literacy and connectivity and can be an enabler or a disenabler. Enabling and disenabling people from communities can mean physically and virtually, and even through resources like information and services. Using Singapore’s case, this chapter discusses how effects of digitalisation can present policy implications in the politics of ageing. This includes implications on future politics of ageing, taking into consideration the political force of ageing coupling with digitalisation as another political force.

Singapore is experiencing significant demographic changes. By 2030, it will progress to be one of the world’s demographically oldest countries. With increasing singlehood and low fertility rates, the incidence of the elderly living alone is also on the rise. Given an ageing population and an increased risk of social isolation amongst the elderly due to the recent pandemic, it is crucial to strengthen the ecosystem of support networks for the elderly living alone, particularly at the community level. A pragmatic model of community intervention is thus needed to augment social connectedness for the elderly living alone in Singapore.

As information technology is having a revolutionary impact allround, be it in the political, economic or social arena, its mining and consequences for the “silver generation” cannot be ignored. In this regard, many programmes, under the ambit of the “silver technology”, have been rolled out for the ageing of Singapore’s society over the years such as unobtrusive monitoring, digital companionship and assistive technology for “silver productivity”. There are also wellness games for early detection, intervention and rehabilitation such the Ping Ping Pong Pong game that serves as an iterative design process of modern health technology. This chapter demonstrates that long-term tech-enabled solutions will play a key role in dealing with the aged in the coming years.

As population ageing is a global phenomenon, dealing with declining birth rates is likewise a rising global issue. This will have a momentous knock-on political, economic and social impact on all societies, and dealing with this trend will become a key national and international political issue. This will involve issues involving employment and healthcare, especially for the chronically ill. Against this backdrop, a key issue is how to deal with productive ageing in terms of research, programmes and policies. This in turn will involve the issue of productive engagement of the ageing in a society. As ageing transforms the world in older societies, issues of health, education, employment and social programmes will change, in turn, requiring our attitudes and expectations to alter likewise.

This chapter will introduce how data from the social service sector can be obtained, managed and analysed. We will first describe the different genres and classifications of databases and how they can be harnessed to make policy or programme decisions. The types of data include information derived from ethnographic research, quantitative surveys, primary versus secondary databases, administrative data and location-based information. Following this, we will discuss the limitations of data management. It should be emphasised that this chapter is not aimed to demonstrate the full range of statistical models and data analytics, but to give readers a flavour of the diverse possibilities in the field of data management and analysis, such that they may be more cognisant of the potential to harness reliable data from their current and future work.

Population ageing is an important demographic feature in Asia. Different regions of Asia exhibit different rates of ageing. Nonetheless, no Asian region is immune to population ageing. Singapore in Southeast Asia is ageing rapidly. Increase in older adults aged 85 years and above, diminishing old-age support ratio, low labour force participation and increasing chronic illness are some challenges associated with the unprecedented growth of older adults in Singapore. Increase in retirement age, non-discriminatory work environment, equitable access to the healthcare system, and creating a favourable social environment devoid of ageist attitudes are some measures to create an age-inclusive society in Singapore and in other Asian countries.

While not much is usually discoursed about the end of one’s life, there is an increasing need and importance to plan for end-of-life care and death. The critical need to live until death and die with dignity requires a range of decisions to deal with issues involving hospice and palliative care, a patient’s right to self-determination of life and treatment, and the ethics and efficacy of medical interventions. As Singaporeans are ageing fast and the silver community forms a rising proportion of the population, fundamental questions, such as access to old-age healthcare, healthcare financing and legislations dealing with end-of-life care with all the ethical and social aspects, need to be borne in mind and addressed.

Singapore Ageing will become a critical societal concern as our population is not rejuvenated and in a danger of shrinking further. With the increase in life expectancy and lower fertility rates of about 1.2, societal ageing will be accelerated and about a third of the population will be 65 years and above. For such a high silver population, the old-age support ratio is 1 elderly person above 65 years old being supported by 4 between 20 and 64 years of age in 2021. This dependency burden will increase with a reduction of the ratio to about 2 persons when the total fertility rate falls further if not mitigated by selective immigration of younger families without which the Singaporean community will be less versatile and vibrant. Renewal and rejuvenation of the population will be essential to keep the society going and sustainable. Singapore must face the silver tsunami social landscape squarely and think about proactive and creative solutions to tackle the various social situations confronting an ageing society. Such a greying demographic profile cannot be wished away but must be tackled head on in a few selected areas which require close attention besides those recommended by the Committee on Ageing Issues…

The following sections are included:

• Select Bibliography
• Index