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| Reaching
out |
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| At AH: Dr Tan
Ching Yam shows the elderly patients and SCGS
students how to paint a landscape picture. |
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More hospitals are now offering
programmes where volunteers can help out in therapy sessions
with a difference. Whether it is building the confidence
of the mentally ill or reaching out to dementia patients
with the help of pets, these programmes are designed to
supplement patients’ treatment plans and to help
manage their conditions. Here’s how volunteer programmes
in the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) and Alexandra
Hospital (AH) do just that.
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| At IMH: The Achievers
invited a Chinese opera emcee to host a post-Chinese
New Year celebration thrown for the patients. |
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Every fortnight they play board games, have karaoke competitions
or go for trips to places like the zoo. Though many of
them enjoy the same activities as any other person, the
mentally ill are stigmatised and volunteers have to fight
hard to dispel the negative sentiments towards them.
The Achievers group from IMH, comprising more than 40
members who are mostly working adults, come together every
other Saturday to run activities for mental patients.
Patients participate in song and dance and other organised
activities, which help them express their feelings and
boost their confidence.
In the midst of activity, the volunteers have had a glimpse
of talent that they were astonished to find in patients.
One patient is so good at the board game Dumb that no
volunteer can beat him at it. Another paints the scenes
of old Singapore in watercolour so well that he has sold
more than 20 of his works in auctions to the public and
IMH staff.
Said Ms Jacqueline Beh, Advisor to The Achievers group:
“Being able to make patients smile and seeing them
happy are what make volunteers come back.”
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| Patients’
art pieces are proudly framed along the corridor
of AH’s Geriatric Centre. |
|
Walking along the corridor of AH’s Geriatric Centre,
one is greeted by Chinese paintings of fish, flowers and
birds framed on the walls.
The paintings look like the work of steady, experienced
hands, so it often comes as a pleasant surprise to visitors
when they find out that these have been done by elderly
patients, many of whom cope with disease or disability.
Elderly patients who paint such pictures are part of AH’s
Art Therapy programme. Every Monday from 3:30 pm to 5:30
pm, they gather for Chinese painting classes at the Geriatric
Centre Day Room. They are taught by volunteer Dr Tan Ching
Yam, an art consultant, and aided by a group of student
volunteers from the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School
(SCGS).
Dr Wong Sweet Fun, who initiated the programme together
with a group of colleagues, said that many people think
the old are “decrepit, moribund, and that they can’t
do anything for themselves”.
Art Therapy however has debunked this perception and brought
the “revelation that ‘Grandma is not that
bad after all if she can paint better than I can’,”
said Dr Wong.
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| At AH: An enjoyable
morning stroll with a Pet-assisted Therapy
volunteer’s golden retriever. |
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We don’t call dogs “man’s best friend”
for nothing.
A group of dementia patients in AH’s Pet-assisted
Therapy programme find friendly companions in dogs, which
help them along in their therapy. Patients take the dogs
for walks, engage in stroking sessions with them and watch
them perform tricks.
“Research has shown that pets evoke certain emotions
in patients who usually do not respond to other stimulation,”
said Occupational Therapist Denise Chen, who attends the
sessions. “There are some patients who would sit
quietly when you talk to them, and don’t give any
sort of response. But when you show them a dog, they will
stretch out their hands to touch it.”
Pet-assisted Therapy is part of the CARE programme for
dementia patients at AH. The latter takes place every
Wednesday from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm for eight weeks. Pet-assisted
Therapy falls on one Wednesday within the eight-week cycle.
Volunteers for the programme come from Therapy Dogs, Singapore,
a non-profit organisation that provides pet-assisted therapy
to the underprivileged in society.
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In every community, there is work to
be done. In every nation, there are
wounds to heal. In every heart,
there is the power to do it.
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Marianne
Williamson
Founder of The Peace Alliance
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You can be a volunteer too. Look out for these
opportunities.
| Who: |
Volunteers of KKH |
| What: |
Organise family activities, assist in play
sessions, provide support at Women’s
Cancer Support Group, and bring joy to paediatric
patients |
| When: |
Flexible timing, different commitments for
each activity |
| How: |
Sign up at http://www.kkh.com.sg/WaystoGivenVolunteer/
or call 6394 2302/2324 for more information |
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| Who: |
NUH Friends |
| What: |
Befriend patients, organise activities for
them, and provide them with personal grooming |
| When: |
Flexible timing, minimum commitment of 2
hours a week |
| How: |
Sign up at http://www.nuh.com.sg/waysToGive/volunteer/waysToGive_
beAVolunteer_howCanYouBecomeANuhFriend.htm
or call
6772 4559 for more information |
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| Who: |
The Achievers, Friends
of IMH |
| What: |
Organise social/recreational activities,
help in rehabilitative activities (e.g. art
therapy, skills training) or spend time with
long-stay patients in IMH |
| When: |
Minimum commitment of once every fortnight
on Saturdays |
| How: |
Sign up at http://www.imh.com.sg/volunteers/volunteers_imh.htm
or call Achiever Apple at 9688 2038 for more
information |
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| Who: |
Night Volunteer Sitters
of Tan Tock Seng Hospital |
| What: |
Assist fall-risk patients in simple tasks
such as filling up their drinking glasses.
Volunteers will also assist nurses in more
difficult tasks or in helping patients who
require medical attention. |
| When: |
At least once a week, with choice of shift
from 9 pm – 12 am or 4 am – 7
am |
| How: |
To sign up, email diana_ml_pang@ttsh.com.sg
or call 6357 8411 for more information |
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by Marianne
Choo, Challenge Editorial Team
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