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MSF calls for study on divorced, widowed seniors in Singapore - Channel NewsAsia
(POSTED: 16 Oct 2015 00:20)
MSF has called for a study to understand the needs of divorced and widowed seniors. For instance, it will look into the impact on them when immediate family members are not available to provide care and support, and their help-seeking behaviours.
SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) is calling for a study on divorced and widowed seniors in Singapore.
According to a tender document on Government procurement website GeBiz, which was put up on Wednesday (Oct 14), the study is expected to take a year to complete, with a final report to be presented in November 2016.
In 2004, there were 723 divorcees aged 55 and above, according to the Department of Statistics. By 2014, that number had doubled, hitting almost 1,500.
Seniors like these - as well as those who are widowed - are the ones social workers worry about, especially when they do not have immediate family members to turn to.
AMKFSC Community Services social worker Tan Jia Hui, said: "They may feel a greater sense of loneliness compared to those who never married, so social isolation is a very common issue because social isolation may lead to depression."
Hence, MSF has called for a study to understand the needs of divorced and widowed seniors. For instance, it will look into the impact on them when immediate family members are not available to provide care and support, and their help-seeking behaviours.
The study will also include alternative care and support arrangements, the unique issues these older Singaporeans face, as well as how infrastructure can be enhanced to better support them.
The issues faced by this group of seniors can be complex. Ms Tan added: "Let’s say their relationship with their children is affected by the divorce and they may not stay in contact with their children. They won't be able to contact their children easily and may not want to bring their children into the tribunal for a mediation to ask for maintenance.”
“Their financial difficulties will only become more and more difficult if they can't get help from their children,” she noted.
Experts have also said that the study is timely. More elderly-only households could be on the horizon, with more Singaporeans choosing to stay single.
Sociologist Associate Professor Paulin Straughan said: "The proportion of older Singaporeans who will end up living alone when they need their family most is going to grow. So the question is - what will happen to them?
“I think it is very important for us to be cognate that this is an emerging trend that we need to prepare for, and it means levelling up on infrastructure and social support in the community. So, in lieu of kinship as we know it traditionally - your spouse, your children - where these are not present, then can we replace them? Can we put in place another kind of social support?"
The study will likely involve 100 people aged 55 and above who require care, but are divorced or widowed, and do not have children around to care for them. It will also involve focus group discussions and interviews with professionals and volunteers who regularly provide support to this group of elderly.
(POSTED: 16 Oct 2015 00:20)
MSF has called for a study to understand the needs of divorced and widowed seniors. For instance, it will look into the impact on them when immediate family members are not available to provide care and support, and their help-seeking behaviours.
SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) is calling for a study on divorced and widowed seniors in Singapore.
According to a tender document on Government procurement website GeBiz, which was put up on Wednesday (Oct 14), the study is expected to take a year to complete, with a final report to be presented in November 2016.
In 2004, there were 723 divorcees aged 55 and above, according to the Department of Statistics. By 2014, that number had doubled, hitting almost 1,500.
Seniors like these - as well as those who are widowed - are the ones social workers worry about, especially when they do not have immediate family members to turn to.
AMKFSC Community Services social worker Tan Jia Hui, said: "They may feel a greater sense of loneliness compared to those who never married, so social isolation is a very common issue because social isolation may lead to depression."
Hence, MSF has called for a study to understand the needs of divorced and widowed seniors. For instance, it will look into the impact on them when immediate family members are not available to provide care and support, and their help-seeking behaviours.
The study will also include alternative care and support arrangements, the unique issues these older Singaporeans face, as well as how infrastructure can be enhanced to better support them.
The issues faced by this group of seniors can be complex. Ms Tan added: "Let’s say their relationship with their children is affected by the divorce and they may not stay in contact with their children. They won't be able to contact their children easily and may not want to bring their children into the tribunal for a mediation to ask for maintenance.”
“Their financial difficulties will only become more and more difficult if they can't get help from their children,” she noted.
Experts have also said that the study is timely. More elderly-only households could be on the horizon, with more Singaporeans choosing to stay single.
Sociologist Associate Professor Paulin Straughan said: "The proportion of older Singaporeans who will end up living alone when they need their family most is going to grow. So the question is - what will happen to them?
“I think it is very important for us to be cognate that this is an emerging trend that we need to prepare for, and it means levelling up on infrastructure and social support in the community. So, in lieu of kinship as we know it traditionally - your spouse, your children - where these are not present, then can we replace them? Can we put in place another kind of social support?"
The study will likely involve 100 people aged 55 and above who require care, but are divorced or widowed, and do not have children around to care for them. It will also involve focus group discussions and interviews with professionals and volunteers who regularly provide support to this group of elderly.
