Elderlive for Elderly

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Cooking, Singing, Talking to each other, Learning Handicraft, Reading, Watching TV.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Walking Programmes, Simple Stretch Programmes, Group Dancing, Group Tai Chi, Singing Songs, Music Appreciation,

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

chess, taiji, gossip

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

frequent volunteer visits

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Bingo, Just chit chat, Games, Karoake, Eat, Talk about news and politics, Talk about their children, Plently of conversation topics really.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Mindfulness, Engaging in meditation can really go a long way in terms of mental health. Going on nature walks and really feeling the earth - can search up eco psychology

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Chit chat, bird watching, mahjong

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Mahjong, chess

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Karaoke, interacting with others

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Group activities such as exercising, celebration, hiking an touring. These enable them to interact and make friend with others as well as keeping them active as they will be moving.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Karaoke, BINGO game, arts and craft (e.g. making chinese new year lanterns out of angbao etc), mahjong

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Trips to garden by the bay, playing chess, going to near by parks and gardens

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Brisk walking, bird watching, chess, singing

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Exercising, volunteering, playing music, dancing, playing games

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

mahjong, ipad painting games(my grandma is obsessed ever since she learnt to play it), painting by numbers

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

I think they definitely need friends or companion because it so hard to come by for them. if you see st. hilda\'s community service tiktok page, u can see the elderly learning tiktok dances and its so cute they always smiling and seemingly enjoying themselves. idea?

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Catching up with friends/neighbours, Common Interest Groups

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Going for brisk walks, engaging in games that involves memory

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

cooking, talking to fellow friends under the void deck

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

some simple stay-home exercises or activities catered to elderly: childhood games etc.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

anything with a companion - i think it\'s not so much the activity but a need for people interaction

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

simple hand-eye coordination games - like kanoodle for example is a convenient one player activity that can be played anytime. Also perhaps activities with animals? Pets?

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Talking and playing games with friends

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Exercise groups will strengthen their metal health, give them something to do as most elderly tend to lose their direction in life, don’t feel so lonely as they have someone to accompany them and talk to them

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Just talking heart to heart with another person from their age group, music, taichi

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Taking care if their mind and health by eating good and exercising, go out to explore nature, hiking would fellow friends, spending quality time with grandchildrens.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

The most disengaged elderly would just stay home the whole day and watch TV. Some would at least have a sit at common areas or have a walk in the garden.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Provide some form of simple employment for them (2-3hours work per day) Employment gives people a sense of purpose.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Learning Digital Applications (Zoom, Paylah!, NTUC App) and Going for Outdoor Walks

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Going for outdoor walks and mentoring young adults

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Some activities include mahjong, chess, playing card games etc

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Walking is one of the ways they can improve their physical health. Doing some Tai Chi and qigong. They can always talk to someone if they are facing difficulties in life.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Traditional instruments, music and games.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Seniors can rediscover nature and visit new attractions in Singapore to boost their mental state.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Chess, Taichi, Coffee, Hikes

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Community kitchen which engages their physical health and mental health by working with others towards giving back to the community.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Chatting and exercising together

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Go for group hikes and nature tours. Play chess or even organise interest volunteer groups to take care of surroundings. Make themselves feel useful and appreciated

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Gather and drink tea/coffee and chat.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Volunteering to help another elderly in need.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Some activities that seniors love to participate includes less vigorous sports such as taichi, walking, yoga and other activities like playing chess, cooking, baking, chit chatting with their friends.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

There are many ways seniors can do to improve their physical & mental health. Firstly, elderlies may have the tendency to stay home which may cause to feel lonely affecting their mental health, so one activity would be to encourage them to go out to do light sports like brisk walking, taichi or even yoga. These are activities that will encourage them to excerise which is good for their health. Besides the excerising, elderlies can also go on excursions to explore different parts of Singapore, or even do volunteer work. Through doing of volunteer work, it can help them know that they can still contribute to the society, and at the same time encourages them to make friends, this would give them a sense of achievement, improving their mental health. Another activity they can embark on would also be mind games like chess, sudoku as it helps their brains to stay sharp and active!

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Tai Chi and maybe cooking or smth

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

They can exercise regularly and meet up with their friends more often. It is important for them to have people they can talk to and support them.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

No

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Dancing, singing, chitchat, mahjong

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Having a pet at home :)

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Chit chatting, watching tv, doing exercise, hands-on art and craft

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Regular guided tours with transport to bring them out to places that are related to past memories. Give them common topics to discuss and test memory while walking around

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Depends on their personalities- some love karaoke, some hate it; some used to hate exercises, but when they were stuck at home during COVID, I think they appreciated the time it enabled them to go out. Some love mahjong, some babies, some love to watch television

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Involvement of their families, and maybe to give more variety to their days

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

mahjong, watching tv, dancing.

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Memory games. Outings to attractions. Tours around singapore.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Low-impact activities, e.g. birdwatching, keeping fish, chess, walks

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

forming social networks that are interest-based.

In response to "Have you observed elderly loneliness?"

Yes

In response to "What are some activities seniors love to participate in (i.e. common interest amongst seniors)?"

Shopping in supermarkets are one of the major activities senior citizens take a considerable pleasure in

In response to "Other than forging new relationships, what other activities can seniors embark on to improve their physical and/or mental health?"

Outings to Gardens By the Bay

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Can have channels where elderly can Sign up for excursions with other elderly or have volunteers bring them around to Explore Singapore.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

are you sure the elderly uses mobile app?

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Knowing when and how to seek for help is something that elderlies, in my opinion, have troubles with. Esp in the asian culture where it seems to be embarassing and shameful. This could be a possible addition to your project where you can strive to educate seniors on knowing when and how to recognise that you need to seek help + what kinds of support system they have! Another aspect you can improve on/explore is that alot of places where elderlies live alone have care centres. And if they have already disconnected with themselves, how can we encourage the adoption of an application, something that they may not be familiar with? Perhaps partnering with HDB would be a good place to start

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Would it be useful to complement the mobile app with an offline option such as through resident’s committee to facilitate the pairing of elderly for such activities? This should increase outreach to elderly who may not be tech savvy.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

You can expand this idea to family members as well this will help them to strengthen their bonds. You can reach out to old folks homes, caregiver association or communities centre for assistance in organising these event. And also you can consider on how to help the elderly who have mobility problems but they also want to participate. How will you enable them to have the same experience as the other elderly. I really like the idea. I hope you guys all the best :)

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Few questions for your team to consider: First, your project hinges on the elderly having access to mobile devices that can connect to the internet and has a camera function. However, in reality, not all elderly have access to such mobile devices, thereby providing a barrier to entry to participate in this project. Will there be community partners providing elderly with access to free mobile devices? Second, the elderly are not as tech savvy and are likely to run into technical problems while attempting to use the application. Will help be on hand 24/7 to assist the elderly in their difficulties? How will this help be rendered? Face to face or through a phone call? What if multiple elderly encounter technical problems while trying to join the same activity? Will there be sufficient help on hand or will the elderly be put on hold and wait till the other issues encountered by other elderly are resolved? Third, how sustainable is this project? As covid will ultimately become endemic, there is no doubt that activities will shift back to being held physically once the situation has stabilized. What happens to all the mobile devices provided / loaned out? Will they then be underutilized? How can your project still remain relevant as Singapore moves to living with covid19 and activities and brought back offline?

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

The mobile application sounds like an amazing idea as not only do seniors get to connect with each other, they also get to learn a new skill which can help them age better in place and give them a new positive self-identity that they are still capable of learning and keeping up with the times. The mobile application could also have a video call function and allow these seniors with similar interests to video call one another when they can. Additionally the application can also have “daily targets l (94 the seniors to fulfil so that they feel driven to go through each day and complete a goal that has been set for them (eg “do 30 minutes of brisk walking today”). Volunteering opportunities could also be included in the application as volunteering could give them greater purpose in their lives and show them that they can still contribute to the society reinforcing their positive self-identity. :)

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

I love the tackling of elderly issues faced, I think there are many things we can do but key is not to do it as a one time event. probably really think through if they would really enjoy doing this or will it be just a one off event which doesn\'t tackle the issue at all!! Good luck yall!!!

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

perhaps how to ensure the elderly are competent in using such mobile application are they also automatically sorted into various language in the interest grps? language barrier wld be a major concern

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

\"This will be set up through a mobile application that helps the seniors connect with each other.\" i think the effectiveness of this will be largely affected by the ages of the elderly.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Hi team, I have a few suggestions and concern as I am also working on a project with the same target audience. Mobile application may be confusing for some elderly, since they are not tech savvy and are new to this technological world, I think that adding some logo or icons will definitely help them to identify the different use of the mobile application. Also it will be best if the user interface is clear, simple and minimalist. Adding too much information may cause the application to look cluttered and complicated for the elderlies. From my experience, some elderly will resist this type of application, they feel that it is too much for them to handle and that they simply couldn’t understand. I strongly suggest that there will be a step by step manual for them to refer to as some of them tend to be forgetful. I look forward to you prototype, it will be beneficial for the elders. Thank you.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Can have more questions related to fight loneliness of seniors and neglects from their kids.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

My personal experience with a depressed elderly is that they will not actively seek out opportunities to improve their lives. They might not even know how to download a mobile application and probably do not have any interest to download such an application as well. I realized upskilling and learning new things can be very challenging for certain elderly. Alternatively, the application can be targeted for people that are interested to support the elderly. They can organise or recruit volunteers for elderly-specific events.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Good job to the team that came up with the idea to create \"kampungs\" of different interest groups amongst the elderly. However, this idea assumes that elderly has high digital literacy to be able to adopt the mobile application. From my understanding of elderly, they prefer meeting face to face and engaging in the activity. As such, we can consider doing a hybrid mode of using digital and physical engagement. For example, elderly can go on outdoor walks with their friends and use their phones to take picture of themselves at different parts of the journey to share on the mobile application - creating a \"facebook\" group for elderly. In the application, it can share food/shopping deals for the elderly so they can find where to go gaigai at with their friends.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

I feel that using technology might be hard for the elderly especially those that has no knowledge about tech or etc. a lot of seniors actually struggle with tech. Perhaps you can create games or activities that are easy to understand and use!!

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Maybe give a short information session to the seniors to teach them how to use the app.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Perhaps a non-digital medium to complement the app could be introduced since some elderly residents are not so equipped/adept with technology.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

I feel that it may be tough to include those who are not digitally savvy or inclined and those who do not own phones and mobile plans. Can try to include this bunch, who will likely be the ones sorely in need of friendship by getting organisations involved to sponsor some freebies. Can also try to integrate them into interest groups with youths who may share their same interest. Maybe can outreach to schools who can be like their guides and befriend them and help them connect better with each other.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

I know you are aware of this but I reiterate again. It is not easy for elderly to use apps. While we have a good number of elderly who are using digital devices, they may still not be familiar with apps. Maybe you should do user interviews (>30) with these elderly who are living alone and talk to them and see how they respond to your idea. If they find it difficult really, then maybe you want to tweak the idea of using an app they are more familiar with to connect.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

I think that this idea is a good initiative that can enhance seniors mental & physical well-being. However, there are some improvements that can make it even better! First of all, elderlies may not be as tech savvy, so downloading the mobile application can already be a challenge to them. Hence, the team can improve by having other physical alternatives where seniors can physically go down to a specific place to sign up or look for the interest groups. Secondly, the team can also look into other ways to improve seniors mental and physical well-being that are not related to just expanding their social circle. The team can add include mind games like sudoku, puzzles in the application. This is because some seniors may be too shy to meet new people, so other alternatives like mind games can also reach out seniors with different demographics. Furthermore, mind games are good for seniors minds, it helps them stay active improving their mental & physical health as it could prevent illness like demential. Thirdly, beyond just expanding their social circle, sometimes to seniors what matters the most is their family members. Hence the team can look into encouraging seniors family members to take them out & spend time with them. This can be done through providing them incentives like free vouchers to Gardens By the Bay if they bring their parents along etc. This would not only help families bond, it would definitely make the seniors happier, improving their mental well-being! Lastly, the team can also look into creating monthly events for the seniors, so that seniors can make even more friends that out of their circle group making them feel less lonely.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

It is definitely a very thoughtful initiative. I am a little concerned about the involvement of technology here. A lot of our seniors struggle with navigating through apps and stuff. So you guys might wanna arrange some crash course to help them get started with the mobile application. You can try to make it very simple as well.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Set up cross-organization activities, eg let elderlies mingle with kindergarten kids, encourage elderlies to adopt foster pets

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Not all seniors know how to use mobile application properly or they may not even have access to digital gadgets like iphone, ipad or laptop. Need to consider other physical ways that are easier for the seniors to use or understand, such as face-to-face interactions. If digital technology is still needed, need to consider getting technology-savy adults to involve to help seniors with mobile application.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Not entirely sure if mobile applications would be useful for the elderly if they are not tech literate. Also with covid scares, I guess what we need to think is how to bring the activities to the elderly in a manner that they view is low risk of covid spread.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Elderly would now be very concern of hygiene. I think apps are a good idea but have to ensure that it is easy for them to view and also the font can\'t be too small

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

Ensuring the activities are applicable to seniors who may be illiterate and provide options for languages and dialects.

In response to "How Can We Improve?"

By gamifying the activities they can participate in, since older folks enjoy a little challenge so long as their bodies don\'t tax them too much