Every Saturday morning, former Dakota Crescent resident Yee Dew Eng welcomes volunteers who come knocking on her door in Cassia Crescent.
The former part-time cleaner, who lives alone, cannot read the instructions on her medication, so the befrienders explain them to her in Mandarin and pack the medicine to make it easier for her to track what she has to take. Madam Yee, 78, has several health conditions such as arthritis, shortness of breath and high blood pressure.
Although she has six children, she said they visit only once in two months. To ensure the welfare of these elderly residents who recently moved from their old flats, a team of about 20 volunteers has been visiting them weekly since February.
Members of the Cassia Resettlement Team (CRT) organise potluck parties, take residents out for lunch, buy groceries and help to pack their medicine, among other services.
Co-founder of CRT Lim Jingzhou, 20, said the weekly visits focus on the more vulnerable group of residents, such as those who have trouble walking or live alone.
“One significant problem we’ve observed is the difficulties residents face in identifying help they can receive from various agencies, especially when they are required to navigate through layers of bureaucracy.
“This is especially for the elderly residents who may be illiterate or unable to access information as easily as we do,” he said.
So CRT helps to coordinate support from various agencies, such as the senior activities and family services centres.
Mr Lim, who completed full-time national service recently, said CRT also hopes to spread what it has learnt through workshops and talks.
Social work undergraduate Lee Wei Ting, 20, said of his experience volunteering with CRT: “I realised that a lot of the time, all they want is for someone to be by their side to share what they thought of the drama they watched last night.”
Watch the video story below:
Read more here.
Source: The Straits Times, 4 December 2017