61 Individuals, 16 Teams Commended at Healthcare Humanity Awards, Latest Singapore News

John Loh, chief driver for Touch Community Services’ medical escort and transportation service team, was shocked and heartbroken to learn that an elderly man in his care had died by suicide.

Just a week before the man’s death in 2019, Mr Loh noticed that the elderly man, who was in his 70s and lived alone, was unusually quiet. But it didn’t occur to him that the man would take his own life.

“Life seemed so fragile. After that, I thought I needed to encourage the elderly to participate in community activities so that they have friends and support from each other… This is better than letting them stay at home alone and thinking a lot,” said Loh, 59. .

To reach the lonely seniors he knows, Mr Loh makes a point of inviting them to join him during his lunch break at a cafe near the Touch Community Services office.

His job as a driver requires him to transport up to 10 elderly people a day from their homes to medical appointments. Whenever possible, he went above and beyond the call of duty to accompany them to appointments, sometimes acting as a translator for those who did not speak English.

As a result of his efforts, some seniors opened up to him about their problems.

“Sometimes they are very sad because their children don’t visit them. But I tell them… Touch will come in and offer services like taking them to appointments or doing chores. There are people who love them,” he said.

For going the extra mile to provide comfort to the sick and infirm, Mr. Loh is among the 61 people who, along with 16 teams, received Healthcare Humanity Awards in 2024.

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam presented them with the awards on October 17 at the Conrad Centennial Singapore.

The award began in 2004, a year after Singapore faced the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) crisis, and is a continuing legacy of the Courage Awards given in 2003 to healthcare professionals for their courageous fight against Sars.

The 2024 edition of the awards saw an increase in the number of community care awardees, highlighting the growing recognition of their contributions to the healthcare ecosystem.

Ren Ci medical social worker Louisa Bielig, 31, is another award winner.

When she was assigned to help at the elderly care center in Bukit Batok in 2019, Ms Bielig realized that many of the foreign domestic workers caring for dementia patients faced language barriers, as well as challenges dealing with difficult behaviours.

To better support them, she created an informal monthly support group and prepared training materials for them in her free time. She was also careful to ensure that sessions were conducted in English, Bahasa Indonesia and Burmese.

Their initiative ultimately led to the implementation of a dementia-focused care program at Ren Ci, which equipped migrant domestic workers with the skills needed to meet the emotional needs of people with dementia.

“They were unsure how to lessen the emotional distress that clients with dementia might face – such as losing items and being afraid that someone had taken them… So we equipped them with knowledge and skills, as well as practical sessions on as to support basic emotional needs,” Bielig said.

Praising the winners, Tharman said: “Each Healthcare Humanity Awards winner has gone above and beyond, providing not just treatment, but also comfort and hope to the people in their care. They remind us that healing is as much about the heart as it is about the hands.”

The individual category winners each took home a medal, while the teams each received a commemorative plaque. Everyone also received a certificate recognizing their contributions.