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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 38, Number 13. 12th June 1975

Student Survey of the Aged

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Student Survey of the Aged

This survey was jointly conducted by the Welfare Committees of SPSU and USSU. Its Aims are:
1.to understand the present living conditions of the old folks in the aged homes and the problems faced by them.
2.to inculcate in the students a sense of social awareness through an exhibition.
3.to foster closer links between students of both institutions.

In this survey, 108 males and 185 females from 8 welfare homes and Chinatown Kongsi Homes were interviewed. Questions were asked on families background, the past and present economic conditions, their health, the staff, food and recreation in the homes.

From the Survey it was found that:
1.Not much individual attention is given to the inmates and the welfare of the old folks is partly neglected as a result of shortage of staff, owing to heavy burden of work coupled with unattractive salaries, inconvenience in transport, etc.
2.The homes surveyed are poorly funded. In fact in some of the homes such as Yew Tee and Dragon Lotus homes, the salaries of the staff are donated by charitable organisations or churches.
3.Generally, the old folks lack the spirit of living and have little communication and co-operation with their counterparts. Most of them are very depressed and lonely and have a very negative outlook on life even though they are provided with the basic requirements of life. They spend most of the time sitting idly, doing nothing.
4.

Most of the old folks interviewed are living in the 'dormitory-type' homes. Hot in the day, cold at night, poor ventilation and no privacy are the common complaints. Besides, it is quite congested and such living conditions are not conducive to those sick persons as diseases will spread to one another.

Yew Tee home, Buddhist home and the Dragon Lotus home serve as good examples,
5.80% of the old folks have no savings and the rest who have saved a small sum spend it on medicine because of their prolonged illnesses. Generally, most of them come from a lower-income group and financially they are in bad shape. The public assistance they receive is only S$28 per month which is paid to the home for food, and other household necessities. A meagre sum of S$2 is allowed to each one for personal expenditure like tobacco, haircuts, entertainment, etc. With the present spiraling inflationary trend, most of them complain that the amount given by the Social Welfare Department is definitely insufficient.
6.The food usually served is poor and insufficient — Breakfast: biscuits, plain bread and plain water or coffee; Lunch: Dinner: rice, vegetable, fish (ikan Kuning), plain soup and occasionally meat; Tea: coffee and biscuits. This happens mainly because there is a lack of funds to cater for better food.
7.The circumstances leading to aged landing in homes are many-fold:
(i)Most of the ageds' children belong to the lower income group (64.3% are unskilled workers, 21.4% are unemployed).
(ii)The prevailing generation gap also contributed greatly to this problem of the old being neglected. The gap exists because of the different set of values different generations have. Each of them is preoccupied with their own activities. For instance, with rapid industrialisation both husband and wife go out to work, when they return home, they are too tired to communicate with their children. On the other hand, the children are so burdened by their heavy school works and activities, find little time to talk with their parents.
(iii)Urban renewal and building of HDB (Housing Development Board) flats fostered the separation of the older generations from their adult children because of the limited space in the HDB flats.
(iv)Many of the inmates in homes are of poor health as a result of hard work in their younger days. When they become old and sick, family members are not available to care for them (because they have to work for a living) and therefore they are sent to the aged homes that do not provide them with adequate medical services.
(v)It was also found that 33.7% of the inmates are single with no dependents. They are immigrants who helped Singapore to become the 4th largest port in the world and to speed up modern high rise buildings. What have they got in return for their hardships?

Conclusion

1.In every home visited there is a long waiting list of applicants which shows that more and more aged are opting for the Aged Homes.
2.The voluntary organisations which have been set up to meet the needs of the aged sick have practically no vacancies. These organisations are also limited by lack of resources and manpower and are therefore unable to expand their services. In the light of this dilemma, perhaps more government grants and other support could help them to expand. But so far the Social Welfare Department has not made any response to this call for aid. What the Singapore government lacks is iniative in welfare work. At present most of the welfare work is done by voluntary organisations.
3.The aged are part of the society. They must not be dumped into these isolated homes but should be integrated in the community. The government, the voluntary organisations, and the public should work jointly to tackle these 'old-age' problems.
4.Viewing the inadequate health services in the homes, it is suggested that the setting up of a special institution with adequate medical facilities and staff to attend to the disabled and chronically sick old folks is highly necessary.

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