A new healthcare programme is helping thousands of elderly Singaporeans avoid frailty through exercise, diet, and medication reviews at polyclinics.
KEY POINTS
IN SIMPLE TERMS
Frailty is a condition that makes older people weak, more likely to fall, and less able to do everyday tasks. A new programme at polyclinics screens seniors and gives them exercises, better nutrition, and medicine reviews to keep them strong and healthy.
WHY IT MATTERS
WHERE DO YOU STAND?
Should Singapore's healthcare system prioritise preventive programmes for frailty in older adults over treatment of advanced age-related conditions?
👍 👎 Vote ↓Singapore’s National Healthcare Group Polyclinics (NHGP) is tackling frailty head-on with a programme to help seniors stay healthy and active.
In a press release by National Healthcare Group, NHGP started a new Frailty Programme in June 2022.
The programme aims to help older people stay healthy and strong.
It focuses on patients who are 65 years old and above.
These patients have a Clinical Frailty Scale score of 3 (Managing Well) or 4 (Living With Very Mild Frailty).
Dr Karen Ng, CEO of NHGP, said, “As Singapore’s ageing population continues to grow, frailty will be an increasing challenge, impacting the quality of life among the elderly.”
Frailty is a big problem for older people in Singapore.
It can make them fall more, go to the hospital often, and have trouble doing daily tasks.
By 2030, one in four Singaporeans will be 65 or older.
That’s about 900,000 seniors, up from 510,000 in 2017.
A study from April to December 2019 found that at least 30% of seniors were pre-frail and 5% were frail.
| Year | Number of Seniors (65 and above) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 510,000 |
| 2030 (Projected) | Over 900,000 |
The Frailty Programme uses a team of different health experts to help patients.
They use exercises and high-protein diets to manage frailty.
These methods work best in primary care settings like polyclinics.
From November 2020 to September 2024, the programme screened over 7,100 patients.
Nearly 3,600 of these patients got special help to improve their health.
The programme is showing good results for patients.
After 12 months, 48% of CFS 3 patients and 31% of CFS 4 patients had stronger hand grips.
Stronger hand grips mean these patients might live longer.
Dr David Ng, a Family Physician at NHGP, said, “Through the collaborative efforts of the multi-disciplinary team, we have successfully improved frailty outcomes of these patients.”
The programme helps patients join Community Exercise Programmes.
These exercises are chosen based on what patients like and their CFS scores.
Clinical pharmacists also check the medicines older patients take.
This helps reduce the risk of problems from taking too many medicines.
These efforts are part of Singapore’s wider plan for healthy aging and better care for seniors.
By the end of 2025, all NHGP polyclinics in the central region will have this Frailty Programme.
This will help more older people stay healthy and active.
The programme is part of a bigger plan to help Singapore’s aging population.
It shows how Singapore is working to improve senior-friendly healthcare services.
Professor Joe Sim, Group CEO of National Healthcare Group, said, “This Frailty Programme demonstrates NHG’s commitment to addressing the healthcare needs of Singapore’s ageing population by offering proactive, primary care interventions early.”
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