Caregiving has become a hot topic recently, especially as more people are ageing here in Singapore. There has been a flurry of activity these few years in the home-care space with more companies all too ready to offer care for the elderly. From medical escorting to befriending, there are more services available so people can be cared for in the comforts of their homes and with the peace of mind for their families.
The good news is these services have also become affordable and provide a much-needed respite to caregivers. In addition, there are also subsidised training now available for family caregivers who want to do their best in caring for their loved ones, and there are also people of various ages, including retirees, who are eyeing this caregiving space to earn a little income. Some are even ex-family caregivers who are using their knowledge to help other families.
While these efforts are wonderful, we have decided to come up with more help in this space with ProjectCare, which is all about giving caregivers, whether you are a family caregiver or a professional caregiver, that extra helping hand, be it resources or just inspiration and tips so you can go down your caregiving journey a little smoothly. It doesn’t matter whether you are caregiving an elderly with dementia or a child with Down syndrome, we want to “inspire, educate, empower” you and to go down this journey with you. We want to build a community of support for caregivers so that you know you are not alone as many people too are on this journey and have experiences to share.
If you are not caregiving someone yet, you might be someday. After all, someday, you also might be the one being cared for.
Eleanor Yap & Luenne Angela Choa
P.S. Eleanor and Luenne spent a few hours with 19-year-old Allan Cai to take photos for our page. We learned much about our new friend, who has Down syndrome – he likes to go to the gym, read and play the piano – these are just a few things from a repertoire of things he enjoys doing. One thing is also clear, he loves his mother, Shu Yun and we at ProjectCare celebrate her tenacity.
More pictures of our day with Allan can be found on our Facebook page.
