Professional Help for Family and Elderly Suffering From Depression and Other Mental Health Issues

Ms Foo Mee Har asked the Minister for Health how family members can get support to arrange professional help for a member of the family who suffers from mental health issues but who refuses to consult a doctor.

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim asked the Minister for Health in light of the various initiatives supported by the Silver Volunteer Fund to grow senior volunteerism in Singapore, whether the Ministry will consider training senior volunteers as unqualified health workers as first responders to help people with mental health issues, much like the Friendship Bench project in Zimbabwe which has assisted many suffering from depression and other mental health issues.

The questions reflect the breadth of concerns and challenges that families and individuals challenged with mental health issues face: the role of the family, the interface with the professionals, the opportunities to help through volunteerism, the challenges of access to care as a result of lack of consent or insurance coverage and the need for a national strategy addressing the entire spectrum of mental health conditions, including suicides.

The interplay within these various challenges and many others, as well as the need to look across agencies and Ministries are some of the reasons why in July 2021 the Government set up the new Interagency Taskforce on Mental Health and Well-being to develop a comprehensive strategy to strengthen our mental resilience and well-being.

We have begun work and will be addressing the various issues and will report on our progress. We will develop a National Strategy on Mental Health and work on the details of programmes and implementation.

I will now provide a summary of the existing initiatives that address the Members’ questions currently.

On the matter of insurance coverage, MediShield Life provides universal coverage for all Singapore Residents, including for subsidised inpatient psychiatric care. In addition, MediFund is available for those who qualify.

Integrated Shield Plans (IPs) are private and optional products that provide additional coverage for patients who wish to seek private and unsubsidised care. The benefits are determined by insurers based on their own commercial and actuarial considerations. Today, all seven IP insurers offer IPs that provide coverage for inpatient psychiatric treatments. In making underwriting and claims decisions, insurers are expected to treat all customers fairly and reasonably, regardless of whether they have a mental illness. We are formulating guidelines for insurers to adopt fair and responsible practices towards all customers and will commence public consultations when ready.

Our Mental Health Community Outreach Teams are supported by volunteers who help to broaden and extend the outreach to vulnerable persons in the community. They include the Silver Generation Ambassadors from the Silver Generation Office, befrienders across various befriending programmes, including those under the Silver Volunteer Fund, and caregiver peers. These volunteers do regular check-ins on vulnerable individuals and refer them to the appropriate care services where needed.

Individuals with or suspected to have mental health conditions who cause disturbances in the community and who refuse mental health assessment or treatment can be flagged to agencies, such as the Police, grassroots organisations, the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) or the Town Council. Our ground agencies would engage the individual or the family members to explore how best to arrange an assessment or intervention.

The Interagency Taskforce will review our current approach and existing measures, to ensure that persons with mental health needs can continue to receive the care they require.