The new digital portal provides resources to support persons living with dementia and raises awareness about the condition.

 

Dementia Singapore has launched Singapore’s first one-stop resource portal on dementia, built in collaboration with the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC). Named DementiaHub.SG, the portal offers a one-stop resource for persons living with dementia and will play a key role in raising awareness about the condition through public education.

It seeks to enable persons living with dementia, caregivers, care professionals, and members of the community and corporations, so that more people may be equipped with the most relevant, comprehensive and up-to-date information from evidence-based research to enhance the quality of life of persons living with dementia. The resource is arranged for users under the four category groups – member of a community or corporation; person living with dementia; caregiver for a loved one with dementia; and care professional.

“Upon diagnosis, persons living with dementia and their caregivers often scramble to find more information about their condition to better prepare for their dementia journey. This information is often sourced from various local and international websites, but not all sources are reliable, verified or relevant to the Singapore context,” said Jason Foo, CEO of Dementia Singapore.

He added: “We see a need for accurate and relevant information on dementia to be curated and shared on a common public platform, with ease of access by members of the community and corporations, persons living with dementia, caregivers and care professionals. We hope that DementiaHub.SG will fill that gap.”

As part of Dementia Singapore’s sustained and concerted efforts on dementia inclusivity, the user-friendly portal is designed in accordance with the dementia digital design guidelines, with input from persons living with dementia and caregivers here. An accessibility tool is also included to help users who may require other viewing options for easy reading, such as the need to adjust text sizes or change the display contrast.

The resources on DementiaHub.SG, specially curated by Dementia Singapore’s Community Enablement team, include articles on the management of dementia symptoms, products and support services, self-care, and more. AIC also contributed toolkits and videos on dementia inclusivity and dementia care, such as caregiving tips, dietary recommendations and exercises for persons living with dementia and caregivers. Users can also find a blog section where persons living with dementia, caregivers and experts contribute their insights on dementia.

In Singapore, one in 10 seniors aged 60 and above may have dementia or around 86,000 people – with numbers expecting to soar to 130,000 or more by 2030. Said Tan Kwang Cheak, CEO of AIC, “Through this portal, besides providing support for persons living with dementia and their caregivers, we hope that it can also encourage members of the community and corporations to step forward to learn more about dementia and play a part in supporting persons living with dementia and their caregivers. Care professionals can also enhance their knowledge and build capability through the specialised resources. The portal makes it easier to access information and resources, as they do not need to turn to multiple sources. We hope that this can also encourage more to seek help if they need it so that they can live and age well in the community.”

Future development of the portal will include content in all four of Singapore’s official languages – English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. In the pipeline are also more personalised content, expert-sourced materials, as well as training course signups.