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$10m govt funding for firms catering to senior citizens; 3rd wave of proposals called
 IN MARCH last year, ADT Security Services installed an emergency alert system in an elderly woman’s home, as part of a test it was running to see if the product could help in an emergency.
The security agency was one of 12 companies tapping into a government fund meant to encourage them and inventors to develop technology, products and services for the aged community.
These companies also test their products at households or organisations with senior citizens who sign up as volunteers.
ADT’s Care Alert system came in handy for the 92-year-old woman in February this year, when she fell and hit her head at her home in Toa Payoh.
The volunteer – who wanted to be known only as Madam Tan – was bleeding heavily but she was able to activate the emergency pendant the security company had given her to wear.
This triggered a call to ADT’s call centre in Ang Mo Kio and she spoke to the staff there via an intercom installed in her home.
An ambulance was immediately dispatched and the company also alerted her son, whose number was in its database.
Though Madam Tan’s fall was unfortunate, it proved the system worked.
It is now being sold commercially, at $32 a month, said Ms Cecile Ho, ADT Singapore’s sales and marketing head.
More such companies are being urged to come forward with ideas and solutions, and the Government has tripled its funding to $10 million for the next two years.
The initiative, called the Silver Community Test Bed Programme, was launched in 2008 with $3 million.
After two calls for proposals, 12 companies have been awarded funding, with 200 seniors involved in the test-bedding process.
Yesterday, the Government announced its third call for proposals, which will focus on community health care and wellness. The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports and the EDB-MOH Health and Wellness Programme Office are the main agencies behind the initiative.
Speaking at the event, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Lim Boon Heng said the Government was increasing its funding in response to a rapidly ageing Singapore and Asia.
The number of people here over 60 years of age will double from around 500,000 today to almost 900,000 in 10 years’ time.
Regionally, the number of people aged 60 and above will also rise by 50 per cent to 600 million people in 2020, according to a United Nations report.
“As Singapore presents a microcosm of Asia, we believe health-care solutions developed in Singapore,
with its world-class health-care system, can subsequently be extended to other Asia markets to address unmet or under-served health-care needs,” Mr Lim said.
For example, with over 50 per cent of seniors here suffering from diabetes or high blood pressure, Mr Lim said solutions could be developed to help seniors manage such chronic conditions better.
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