Gerontological Counselling
Certificate Programmes/Workshops or Customised Workshops
Singapore will witness an unprecedented increase in the number of elderly in the future. Practice and
research revealed that older adults experience a myriad of issues which may require counselling
intervention. These issues include depression, anxiety, bereavement, loss of functional abilities, health
concerns, retirement/loss of financial independence, social isolation, intergenerational and marital
conflicts and other mental and emotional challenges related to ageing. Indeed, there has been a sharp
increase in the number of parents filing applications with the tribunal in recent years. There were nearly
200 last year, compared to 109 in 2007 (Straits Times 11 Mar 2010). Moreover, the MCYS Social Isolation
Survey 2009 revealed that the number of estimated socially-isolated elderly is projected to increase from
31,000 to 42,000 by 2015. Likewise, the number of estimated depressed elderly is going to increase from
19,000 to 25,000 by 2015. Depression is associated with suicide and the rates of elderly suicides across the
world, though decreasing, are still amongst the highest compared to other age groups. In Singapore, although
government’s policies and attention to issues of mental health have bore fruit in recent years, in bringing
the overall rates of suicide down, the rates amongst older adults are still relatively high. Between 2003
and 2006, for every 100,000 men in their 40s, the rate jumped from 14 to 19. For every 100,000 women in
their 50s, the rate jumped from eight to 13 in the same period (Straits Times 29 Aug 2007).
Within this context, frontline service providers working with older adults will need to be equipped with key
competencies to effectively engage, assess, counsel and make appropriate referrals to specialized services
for the elderly. Moreover, they will need to be able to design intervention strategies and manage complex
bio-psycho-social problems of the elderly, as well as address the needs of the families. They should be able
to employ a range of modalities to work with them, such as individual, family and group counselling, support
groups, and adjuvant therapeutic activities to enhance their well-being, as well as effectively utilize a
range of assessment tools for appropriate interventions. In addition, they should be familiar with the
different theories of ageing, as well as counselling theories, particularly those appropriate to older
adults, and apply them in an integrated manner, with the ultimate aim of helping older adults adjust to
transitions and life events, so that they can continue to live empowered, happy and meaningful lives.
A suite of courses/training programmes, ranging from three day introductory workshops to six day
intermediate courses to more advance skills-intensive specific programmes are available. The duration and
topics to be covered in these programmes can also be customised according to the needs and requirements of
organisations/ agencies.
These courses are provided by a multi-disciplinary team of experts (refer to profiles of Directors and
Associates).
An important and unique feature of these programmes is that it will equip participants with an
evidence-based, integrative and procedural model for counselling older adults. It could accommodate various
theoretical orientations, be used in conjunction with pharmacotherapy and a wide range of other psychosocial
interventions and is entrenched in the social cultural milieu of older persons in an Asian context.