In the last 30 years, Dr Helen Ko pioneered the development of several programmes for seniors in Singapore,
including gerontological counselling, case management, daycare for seniors and a suite of training
programmes related to ageing workforce. She has taught courses at several universities and trained thousands
of employers, older adults, volunteers and caregivers across different sectors, consistently garnering
'excellent' ratings from many participants. Currently, she is also a Senior Lecturer with the Singapore
University of Social Sciences, teaching courses in the Master and PhD in Gerontology, and the Master of
Counselling Programmes. She was previously Chief Executive Officer of St Luke’s Eldercare, Executive
Director of Centre for Seniors and Director of Sage Counselling Centre.
Through her research, Dr Ko has developed an evidence-based model for counselling older adults in
Singapore. The model is featured in her book, Counselling Older Adults: An Asian Perspective, which has
received highly positive reviews by industry leaders. She is also lead author of Understanding and
Counselling Older Persons and co-author of Gerontological Counselling: An Introductory Handbook (see section
on Publications & Papers for details). All the books are/had been
key texts for courses at several universities/training institutions. She has carried out research on
Singapore’s ageing workforce and published in various scientific journals. Through her latest award-winning
research, she has developed an evidence-based, process model (including strategies/principles) for
training/coaching mature adult learners, within an Asian context.
Dr Ko received further training in gerontology at Harvard and Oxford Universities. She is accredited to
administer several psychometric tools, and uses this knowledge to enhance her training programmes. She had
served in various national committees, including the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Ageing Population and
the Committee on Ageing Issues. Currently, she serves on the Boards of Council For Third Age and St Luke’s
Hospital.
Dr Ko Soo Meng, Director
Dr Ko is Senior Consultant Psychiatrist at Mount Alvernia Medical Centre, and
Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Psychological Medicine, National University of Singapore. Besides
having special interests in stress and anxiety disorders, and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, he also received
training in geriatric psychiatry at the Memory Diagnostic Clinic and Special Care Dementia Unit, McLean
Hospital, Harvard Medical School. He had been attached to the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centre,
University of California San Diego, the Stanford / VA Alzheimer’s Centre, Stanford University School of
Medicine and the Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age, University of Melbourne, Australia. Dr Ko was
previously senior consultant psychiatrist with the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry and Head, Division of
Stress Medicine at the National University Hospital. His research in the elderly included suicide,
depression and epidemiology in Old Age Psychiatry, with publications in scientific journals and books on
mental health issues. He frequently trains and speaks at workshops and talks for professionals and the
public.
