In support of stroke survivors, caregivers (Amended)

Singapore

THE weight of taking care of a stroke survivor can be unbearable for caregivers, particularly when the stroke survivor is the sole breadwinner.

Having seen how caregivers have suffered and how families have broken down because of this, Chew Poh Yim, a member of the board of trustees of Sing-Health Foundation, opened the volunteer-led charity Stroke Support Station (S3) last May. She is also the wife of Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean.

"Stroke survivors face many challenges both physically and mentally," she said. "Poor understanding (of their situation) and fears of employers and colleagues may result in them losing their jobs, which can be catastrophic for a stroke survivor and his family."

The number of stroke cases in Singapore has risen in the past few years as conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity become more prevalent, said Mrs Teo.

Data from SingHealth showed that stroke is the leading cause of long term disability in Singapore, accounting for 9.1 per cent of years of life lost and 6.1 per cent of disability-adjusted life years.

To help stroke survivors lead an active life and re-integrate into society, S3 has a wellness centre at the Enabling Village to provide stroke maintenance care and support services.

The charity, comprising 40 volunteers and staff, collaborates with hospitals and healthcare partners here to ensure stroke survivors and caregivers can have access to post-stroke maintenance care near their homes.

And Mrs Teo said that there are plans to reach out to more stroke survivors in Singapore by opening more wellness centres in the neighbourhoods to help those who are less mobile.

In the nine months since operations started, S3 and medical professionals and therapists from the National University Health System ) and other hospitals have come up with a series of programmes to help with the transition from hospitalisation.

Besides creating a social platform to allow the stroke survivors and their caregivers to interact with others in the centre, S3 also came up with mobile applications for both stroke survivors and caregivers that can assist them with their rehabilitation when they are not in the centre, said Mrs Teo.

To fund the expansion, S3 is organising a charity gala dinner on Oct 15 at Marina Bay Sands, where 800 guests including Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam will attend.

"Additionally, we plan to reach out to a greater community through targeted organisations for partnerships such as East Coast GRC so that we can bring S3 programmes closer to them," added Mrs Teo.

Amendment: The previous subhead misspelt Mrs Teo's name as Chew Poh Kim. It has been changed to reflect that it should be Chew Poh Yim. The article has also been changed to reflect that the charity was opened last May and not founded then.