Low income seniors may not be able to take care of their oral health, due to a lack of access to dental products and the lack of awareness regarding maintaining good dental hygiene.
How might we support these vulnerable seniors in taking care of their oral health?
Helping Hands aims to help seniors improve their dental health by distributing care packs (with dental products and an activity booklet) to encourage and empower seniors to maintain good dental hygiene.
So far, partners of the team include Tung Ling Community Services, Filos Community Services and Lion Befrienders.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Not sure, not asked enough elderly about this. Overall, most elderly seem to care/worry about their health.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Not sure what the full activity booklet entails.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
It is important. They can have tooth decay, bad breathe, ulcers which can lead to other oral health issues.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Chinese language, QR code to a video as some Elderly cannot read as they are illiterate and might not have good eye sight to read. Can also have video in many languages to facilitate different races groups.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
yes. key to happy life is to eat well
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
multi language please
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
yes, people able to chew is 福, it allows seniors to enjoy their later years.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
let them know, even though they have already lost teeth taking care of the remaining teeth is important
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Perhaps include symptoms and signs of deterioration if oral health, for seniors to seek treatments?
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes, they don\'t care already.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
1 Not Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
I think for elderly it may be an issue to even find their book.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes, it is important for everyone regardless of age. Good oral health = able to enjoy food better without pains and complications of tooth decay
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
font must be big enough for elderly to see
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes, I do think its important. I think more often than not, people tend to prioritize general body health and increasingly mental health but dental healthcare has been neglected. While there are various forms of subsidies to offset general health consultations, diagnosis (X-ray, CT) and treatments, the dental aspect is lacking as compared to general health (although subsidies are still available). Studies have shown that a minimum number of 20 teeth is required for overall health and quality of life past the age of 80. With the elderly population of Singapore living longer due to better quality of life, more emphasis should be placed on oral health among the elderly.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Tips on brushing (including brushing of gums) where they can seek oral health assistance apart from the dentist (hotline to call) would be nice
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes and many of them are not aware that it also leads to heart conditions.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
The most important thing is that care product you have given to the elderly.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes because it is paramount for their oral health to be in tip top condition to ensure that they are able to eat and drink properly
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
probably in Chinese as well as some elderly cannot read english, perhaps an audio version of dialects as well.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
I do think that it is a very important issue. They easily neglect such issues.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
3 Very Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
It is definitely simple and clear which is great. Also you can translate it into all 4 languages.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes, they may not have the level of awareness about daily maintenance
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Recommended routine checkups; daily maintenance suggestions
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes, makes eating difficult for them hence don’t get adaequate nutrition
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
1 Not Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
More content
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes- because it affects their oral intake (what textures they can eat, how much they can eat) and should they experience any dental problems, they would be also in a lot of discomfort
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
1 Not Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Language, and that not often the elderly who is not going to the dentist is probably the less informed and likely illiterate elderly. Maybe it maybe worth impressing that good dental health which can be regularly checked at subsidised price, can enable them to avoid dentures which is expensive and may not always be comfortable
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
Yes of course. Oral health is important for all ages as it may lead to illness.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
Clinics they can find nearer to their home.
In response to "Do you think oral health is an important issue among the elderly? Why or why not?"
I guess if their teeth starting to rot it will affect their daily consume and talking. So letting them know the importance of oral health do help them to take care of themselves.
In response to "On a scale of 1 to 4, how effective is our activity booklet? (Scale)"
2 A Bit Effective
In response to "What do you think of the activity booklet (is there anything you would like to see in it)?"
For the care packet, will there be specific toothpaste or toothbrush to purchase themselves? Since i believe most of them will opt for the cheaper brand in the market. So it may be a bit of Hussle for them to get those specific brands.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Oral hygiene at any age is important and it is a worthy cause to advocate for, especially amongst the elderly. Would be good to look at how to incentivise behavioural changes to get them to change habits in a sustainable way.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Can have more simple exercises for the elderly to practice. E.g brush teeth 2x daily. Can have dental check up once a year.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
should think of how to expand the scope beyond dental for greater impact
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
erm most seniors I believe know the importance of taking care of their own teeth how about finding out the barriers that stop them from doing so effectively is it mobility issues? eg.shaky hands and they have a hard time? or unable to stand? or have they lost their purpose and think old age ai-ya why bother just where dentures. plus dental treatments are expensive like really expensive do these elderly want to spend? especially treatment do they have someone to go with them a caregiver and how about the stress on the caregiver?
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Would it be helpful to include more specific info instead of a range of cost? For instance, $11-$250 subsidy per treatment might be general info that is already available online. What would be value adding could be a list of clinics and how much they charge e.g. “Clinic A in Boon Lay charge $20 for a consultation (after CHAS subsidies) and $50 for extraction. Appointment can be made by calling 6xxx-xxxx”
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
A weekly visitation to remind them on how to do proper dental care would be good.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
A lot of elderly rely on dialects instead of english to communicate, to get outreach it would be better to bring a volunteer doctor/dentist who can personally distribute these and who can also explain in dialect.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I feel that you can improve by reaching out to more charities, government boards as well as partners to ensure that this gets distributed to a larger target audience. you can partner with aged care facilities as well to ensure that their residents also get a copy to ensure widespread usage of the care packs and to protect their oral health.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
The care package is a great idea but will it be sustainable? Maybe you guys could source out companies that could supply these care packs. You can also create videos that can be played to seniors on how to take care of their oral health.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Bring up awareness of their existing dental medical coverage from the government
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Perhaps you can do physical out reach at supermarkets or Hawker centres
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I think you might need to meet some elderly to understand their concerns and fears about going to the dentist- pain, procedures, costs etc and to create materials that speaks their language and answers their questions
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
I can\'t really see the activity booklet. But I am not so sure if elderly would always flip past booklets.
In response to "How Can We Improve?"
Maybe short example videos and maybe a tracking sheet for them to tick
