What if you are in the middle of an ordinary day when suddenly, you’ve become witness to elder abuse? Or you encountered a medical emergency with the person you’re looking after, and you need easy access to a seniors helpline?
At these dire times, you will realize the importance of keeping a list of a toll-free national helpline or seniors helpline. Keep a list. You never know when it can save a life.
Family members, community workers, elderly, or even children need easy access to the helpline phone numbers. Aside from knowing what to do in an emergency, you also have to know whom to ask for assistance or provide listening ears whenever needed.
Let’s look into important emergency helpline numbers in Singapore you can call when no other people can give assistance with your immediate concerns.
If you want to know about the helpline you can reach through the phone for the support schemes they can provide, read on.
What to Remember Before Reaching a Seniors Helpline?
Whatever the situation is, the most crucial thing to remember when there’s an emergency is to refrain from panicking. You have to assess the situation, so you would know what helpline to call.
Do you require a social service or a counseling centre? Do you only need a listening ear or someone with a community service background? Are you in search of a trained medical staff or you only want to know the address of the nearest counseling centre?
If you are not trained as a medical professional, try to talk to the patient first to keep them awake. Wait for the person to respond, so you can relay to whoever will answer the helpline if the patient can talk, what kind of support they need, and proof that there are signs of life.
Call the proper Singapore helpline and relay the condition of the patient and the services you need. Never leave the patient, especially when dealing with the elderly.
Help the patient as much as you can while waiting. Make conscious decisions and keep providing assistance and listening to your patient.
Encourage them to talk and ask about their condition. Enquire about how they are feeling or the other concerns they may have.
Never give your patients hints that you are panicking. However, update them that you have called a helpline and professional medical services are on their way.
Important Helplines for the Elderly that Caregivers and Family Members Must Know
Remember that a list of helpline or a a toll-free national helpline is not enough. You have to know what to do and how to help the patient while waiting for help to arrive.
Here’s a list of the helpline numbers you can call when having an emergency in Singapore:
The 5 Most Important Helplines
- Ambulance (non-emergency) – 1777
- Ambulance (emergency) – 995
- Police – 999
- AWWA Caregivers – 1-800 299 2992
- Seniors Helpline – 1-800 555 5555
Alzheimer’s Disease Association, Caregiver Support Service
6377 0700
Agency for Integrated Care (for care options or to enquire)
6377 0700
ComCare
1-800 222 0000
Caregiver Counselling Welfare Association
6449 8755
Care Corner Counseling in Mandarin
1-800 353 5800
IMH Mobile Crisis Service (mental health and psychiatric services)
6389 2222
HealthLine (for general healthy issues; available during office hours)
1-800 223 1313
Incontinence
6513 7313
Ministry of Health (providing listening ears regarding Eldershield and related policy concerns)
1-800 225 4122
National Problem Gambling Helpline
1-800 6 668 668
QuitLine (services related to quitting smoking)
1-800 438 2000
Singapore Silver Line
1-800 650 6060
Singapore Association For Mental Health
1-800 283 7019
Samaritans of Singapore or SOS (available 24 hours)
1-800 221 4444
TRANS SAFE Centre (assist seniors regarding elder abuse, mental health, and services related to older persons)
6449 9088
TOUCH Care Line (any issues regarding support services for older persons and seniors)
6804 6555
Learning How to Manage Emergencies Properly
When caring for older persons or seniors, you must keep a physical copy of the helpline list, including the toll-free numbers and address. This way, you can easily call for support and other services related to seniors in an emergency.
It is also essential that you are cautious of the environment. You must be aware of everything happening with the patient and what you think brought about the symptoms of whatever they are having.
Before calling an ambulance to relay a medical emergency, check if the patient is having the following symptoms:
- Continuous diarrhea and vomiting
- Coughing out blood
- Vision change, sudden weakness, numbness, or dizziness
- Too much bleeding
- Having difficulty breathing
- Chest pain and other severe and sudden pains
Once you recognize that the patient is experiencing an emergency, call the proper seniors helpline or call an ambulance to ask for assistance.
When someone answers the toll-free helpline, inform the caregivers or medical professionals regarding your concern.
Provide them with the following details:
- Age of the patient
- What happened and any history when a similar situation occurred in the past
- A brief medical history of the patient
For caregivers, inform the families of the patient about what happened and tell them that help is on its way. Ask them for the address of their preferred hospital or clinic.
If you are a family member looking after a loved one, check the other seniors in the house and talk to them about how they are feeling.
Before the ambulance arrives, you must also have gathered all the necessary documents you need to bring. Aside from the patient’s ID, pack their medical records and test results.
Bring the original copies of their insurance policies or plans. But photocopy the documents, so you can keep the original files when the hospital staff asks for these papers.
Be Gentle but Always Alert
Caregivers for seniors must practice calmness all the time. You must keep calm in answering the patient’s needs while waiting for help.
If possible, you must be aware of the common signs of the illnesses and diseases some seniors are prone to. Act as if you are a private nurse Singapore and study the symptoms of conditions, including dementia, hypertension, stroke, and more.
When you are involved in home nursing care Singapore in any way, remind yourself that every second counts, especially when faced with an emergency case.
Final Words
Keeping a list of the important toll-free helpline numbers you can call is crucial when providing elder care services Singapore. Print the list and keep it somewhere you can easily pull out whenever needed.
Be composed all the time, regardless of the situation. You have to keep your focus, so you would know what to do and what information to tell the medical professionals. This way, it will be easier for the medics to assess the patient and give them the necessary care and treatment.
