WILLING HEARTS
Senior Chan Chin Yeong, 76, smiles widely as Zhang Ge Lin, 36, stands at the former’s doorway. “Good morning, Aunty, I hope you’re ready for your doctor’s visit today!” greets Ge Lin, who volunteers with LB as a medical buddy, accompanying Chin Yeong to her doctor’s appointment. She proceeds to book a private hire car to the hospital, assist Chin Yeong with translation or explanation on the doctor’s advice, and brings the senior back to her abode at the end of the appointment.
“If Ge Lin is available, she would come to accompany me. If not, LB would get other volunteers to accompany me. All of them are very sweet, caring, and kind towards me and I would feel very special throughout the visit,” said Chin Yeong. The senior, who lives alone in her rental unit at Holland Close, has been receiving this service since early 2024 to closely follow up with her post-surgery medical appointments due to her knee injury and the infections that followed.
“I had to undergo two operations and frequently follow up with the PROGRAMMES & SERVICES doctors on my recovery. Thankfully LB had my back and their volunteers like Ge Lin helped me throughout this journey,” said Chin Yeong.
She adds that without a medical buddy, not only would it be difficult to travel alone, the helplessness she feels at the waiting area, the registration procedure, collection of medicine, and even the one-to-one consultation with the doctor would be too much for her to bear.
“Almost everything at the hospital is self-service! It is quite scary for me to handle this by myself. Plus, the signages are in English, and many of the doctors, pharmacists, and other hospital staff don’t converse in Mandarin, so the volunteers are really a godsend for me,” Chin Yeong added.
Finding The Right Fit
LB Volunteer Management and Project Development Senior Executive Tan Wei Hong, who coordinates and makes such buddying arrangements between volunteers and seniors, emphasised that it is vital the team handpicks the right volunteers and give them adequate training to ensure the end goal of the senior’s benefit is achieved. “We would ensure we match the right volunteer to fulfil the senior’s needs. With this, we hope to instill a community service spirit among the current and future generations so that they are willingly ready to serve more seniors,” he added.
From Medical Buddies to Budding Relationships
Ge Lin, who has been a volunteer with LB since 2017, believes that volunteering is a calling for those who feel fulfilment performing it, and that’s why those who volunteer will usually form close bonds with the seniors.
She said, “I have been to more than 10 training programmes through LB to equip myself better! This dedication from my part has been fruitful for me too. For example, at home, I learnt to understand and help to cope with my elderly mother’s trait of being forgetful, after attending a dementia-related training. Instead of being impatient, I appreciate that I have the knowledge to navigate this matter for my whole family.”
Ge Lin continued, “I treasure all these visits as I love to spend time with Aunty Chin Yeong and other seniors whom I meet. I realise that they are full of wisdom since most of them have survived many challenges and difficulties.”
We hope that these stories would inspire you to reach out and touch the lives of others.
If you would like to share your thoughts on these stories, please feel free to email us at cp@lb.org.sgBe A Volunteer
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