Adjournment motion on enhancing end of life with choices and dignity

Palliative care services in Singapore will be expanded, with more doctors, nurses and allied professionals being trained in specialised palliative care, particularly home care. It will also be made a basic skill set for all healthcare professionals, starting with nursing homes and home care. Palliative beds will be set aside in upcoming community hospitals to cater to growing demand. The Ministry of Health is also working on implementing workflows to facilitate the “compassionate discharge” of patients who wish to die at home. Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Health Rahayu Mahzam said this in the House on Tuesday (May 9) in response to an adjournment motion on the issue. Ms Rahayu also gave more details of an upcoming pilot between Dover Park Hospice and Tan Tock Seng Hospital. It will trial bundled funding for palliative care services as well as earlier referral of patients with non-cancer conditions to community palliative care, with protocols for their support. The pilot should be launched in the second half of this year and will be progressively expanded if outcomes are promising. A three-year campaign will also be launched this year to increase awareness and adoption of end-of-life planning. It will focus on Lasting Power of Attorney and Advance Care Planning. A series of workshops will also be held at active ageing centres. That was one suggestion made by MP Ng Ling Ling when she spoke of the need to destigmatise conversations and simplify planning for end of life. She had also asked if - in the spirit of Healthier SG - family doctors could be gradually enabled to play a central role in home palliative care. MP Yip Hon Weng also spoke on the motion. He called for more support for caregivers and asked if the Government could consider providing subsidies for professional palliative caregiving and extending MediShield Life to home hospice care.