Ministers and DPMs Responses to the Parliamentary Questions I filed in relation to the mother who was convicted of throwing her special needs son out of their flat. On STRUCTURED SUPPORT FOR FAMILIES AND PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH SEVERE DISABILITIES 35 Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng asked the Minister for Social and Family Development how caregivers such as parents of children with severe disabilities and single parents with little family support may be assisted in a more structured manner and co-ordinated network of many helping hands. MSF Minister Mr Chan Chun Sing: Caregiving for children with disabilities or as a single parent can be demanding and stressful. This is even more so if these are vulnerable families with multiple needs. Over the years, government agencies have worked with voluntary welfare organisations VWOs) to put in place a stronger network of services to help these families and caregivers. Caregivers may find it a challenge to navigate the various support schemes and services. Families can approach either the FSCs or SSOs for an assessment of their needs and for help to navigate the help system. Family Service Centres (FSCs) will assess, coordinate and integrate the various types of assistance that may be required for these families with multiple needs. The FSC social workers will help families navigate the ‘many helping hands’ system for different forms of assistance. The addition of the Social Service Offices (SSOs) facilitates greater access to help for the families. Besides providing ComCare assistance for those facing financial difficulties, the SSOs also help to coordinate other forms of assistance for families based on their needs. MSF has recently set up local planning teams at our Social Service Offices to better coordinate the planning and delivery of social services and assistance among the different help agencies in each HDB Town. For some of these families, there are dedicated agencies that have deeper understanding of the issues faced by caregivers of specific groups. Besides the FSCs, single parent families can also approach the two single-parent services – HELP FSC and PPIS As-Salaam Family Support Centre - for support. Caregivers of children with special needs, could contact SG Enable, who would provide information and referral services for persons with disability. It is a work in progress, and there is always room to do better. The local planning teams at our Social Service Offices aim to better coordinate the planning and delivery of social services and assistance among the different help agencies in each HDB Town. We will continue to work towards improving our support services and coordination. We also need everyone to work together with us in strengthening the coordination across the sector. This needs time. Nonetheless we will keep working at it so that the families receive timely help and support. On REHABILITATION OF PRISON INMATES WITH MENTAL ILLNESS 38 Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs (a) how can the Singapore Prison Service help in the rehabilitation of inmates with mental illness such as the recent case of a mother with mental illness who is convicted for the death of her special-needs son; and (b) what are the circumstances under which inmates with mental illness may serve a sentence shorter than that originally imposed. DPM Mr Teo Chee Hean: All inmates diagnosed with mental illnesses are seen regularly by prison psychiatrists. Those who are assessed to require dedicated treatment are housed in the psychiatric housing unit within the prison complex. This is run in partnership with the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). While there, inmates undergo a comprehensive treatment programme which includes therapy and counselling and is conducted by a multi-disciplinary team comprising prison officers, psychiatrists, psychologists and occupational therapists. Inmates whose mental conditions are stable are housed with the general inmate population. They undergo a prison regime similar to other inmates, which includes rehabilitation programmes as well as work and education opportunities. All inmates, including those with mental illnesses, are required to serve their sentences in full, with remission of up to one-third of the sentence length given for good behaviour. They may also be emplaced on community-based programmes and serve the tail-end of their sentence outside prison, if found suitable. Depending on the inmate’s individual circumstances, the Singapore Prison Service may make aftercare arrangements with IMH or with VWOs to provide psychiatric treatment after the inmate’s release from prison.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0000