An occupational therapist with an elderly client

The Centre Based Weekend Respite Care (CBWRC) service was officially launched by the Health Minister Gan Kim Yong on 14 July. An initiative by the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) funded by the Ministry of Health (MOH), it aims to provide the opportunity for caregivers of adults or senior persons with physical or cognitive disabilities to take time off from their weekend caregiving duties for self-care or to engage in other roles and responsibilities.

The CBWRC service is available at seven centres island-wide, and there are plans to increase this number to 10 centres by the end of next year to benefit more than 200 caregivers and their loved ones.

SPD@Toa Payoh has made this service available from 5 July, with day care, nursing care and rehabilitation services available from 8.30am to 4.30pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Our trained personnel provide custodial and personal care of clients’ daily-living needs, administration of medication where necessary as well as general exercises and social and recreational activities.

With this service in place, we look forward to seeing more caregivers better rested on the weekends and recharged to provide better care for their disabled loved ones.