Dover Park Hospice raises S$1.1 million for patients in need of palliative care
There is growing demand for such services amid Singapore’s ageing population
NON-PROFIT organisation Dover Park Hospice raised about S$1.1 million at its annual Sunflower Charity Gala this year, held on Saturday (Aug 17) at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore.
The funds will go towards supporting the hospice’s programmes and services for its inpatients, home-care patients and day-care clients. Currently, more than 70 per cent of its patients have a per-capita income of less than S$1,200.
A silent auction took place at the gala, with prizes including artworks, jewellery pieces and trips to Bhutan and the Maldives.
Guest of honour Rahayu Mahzam, Minister of State for Health, as well as Digital Development and Information, said: “Singapore will become a ‘super-aged’ society by 2026, with 21 per cent of our population aged 65 and above. As Singapore’s population ages, the demand for palliative care services will increase.”
To address this growing demand, the organisation has expanded its home-care services islandwide to provide for more patients.
Dr Liew Li Lian, chief executive of Dover Park Hospice, said: “A lot of the growth, driven by real demand, is actually in the home-care space of palliative care… We expanded the reach and growth to become national coverage, which we have done since April.”
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Rahayu added that the hospice hopes to increase its home palliative care capacity by more than 200 clients by end-2025 – an increase of almost 80 per cent from 2023.
It also leveraged more medtech innovations to improve patient care and operational efficiency. For example, it launched tele-monitoring, adopted virtual reality in day-care programmes and started using an artificial-intelligence robot assistant.
The hospice relocated to Tan Tock Seng Hospital Integrated Care Hub in October 2023, which “greatly enhanced our ability to deliver better-quality palliative care”, said Dr Karen Soh, co-chairman of Dover Park Hospice Fundraising Sub-committee.
Dr Liew added that capacity increased from 50 to 70 inpatient beds. The increase in physical space at the new site also allowed inpatient and day-care spaces to increase by 40 per cent and 50 per cent, respectively, said Rahayu.
The hospice plans to improve caregiver and bereavement support, including growing its pool of social workers and therapists.
Dr Liew said: “It’s not just growth in terms of productivity or the number of patients, but also in getting the right type of care that works for palliation, as opposed to things like acute hospital care.”
In line with national strategy
Dover Park Hospice’s efforts are in line with the Ministry of Health’s refreshed National Strategy for Palliative Care, which was launched in July 2023 and aims to expand and improve palliative care in the Republic.
Rahayu noted that the country plans to increase the nationwide home palliative care capacity target from 2,400 to 3,600 by end-2025.
Established in 1992, Dover Park Hospice caters to those with life-limiting illnesses. The Sunflower Charity Gala is its annual fundraising event, although donations are open all year round.
The Hospice’s education and research arm – The Palliative Care Centre for Excellence in Research and Education – launched a Master of Science in Holistic Palliative Care in February this year.
It is a collaboration between Nanyang Technological University’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, the National Healthcare Group and Dover Park Hospice to meet the growing demand for professional training in palliative care, said Jeremy Lim, chairman of Dover Park Hospice.
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