President's Message
Financial Year (FY) 2006/07 marked a milestone for the Home Nursing Foundation
(HNF) as we celebrated 30 years of home nursing service in October 2006.
We are delighted to report that our nurses made a total of 30,416 home visits
to 4,341 patients at the close of FY 2006/07. Although the number of patients
had reduced slightly from the previous FY, the number of visits made had
grown by 1,100 to surpass last FY’s results. This is an indication of the HNF
taking a step in the right direction, as we anticipate a rise in demand for home
nursing due to an ageing population and widening income gap. In view of this,
our top priority is to centralise our nursing operations to bring about greater
cost savings and improved command and control.
To further increase our patient base and the number of home visits made
annually, we are strengthening our collaboration with restructured hospitals
and polyclinics as well as initiating partnerships with the Ministry of Health
and other healthcare organisations to provide more comprehensive home
nursing services. To this end, we plan to establish a call centre and care-giver
training centre at our headquarters. The call centre will enable our patients
and their family members to access our professional services easily while the
care-giver training centre, aimed at equipping family members with vital skills
in looking after their ailing loved ones, will support and reaffirm our belief that
the family should always remain the primary care-giver for sick elderly.
The HNF has also put in place the necessary internal controls to ensure
compliance and governance, including best practices issued by the Charity
Council, covering key areas like board governance, conflict of interest, financial
management, human resource policies and fund-raising. The reserve funds
are invested in fixed deposits and low-risk bonds subject to the approval of
the Board of Management and the revenue generated is used to defray our
operating expenses, thus reducing our dependence on extensive fund-raising.
Nonetheless, donations remain a vital source for funding our operations and
improving service quality. As competition for the donor’s compassion and
purse-strings heightens over the years, it is increasingly crucial that we utilise
donations prudently. For example, the HNF has judiciously used the SembCorp
Industries’ donation of $70,000 from its Trailblazer-Wong Kok Siew Fund to
fund a one-year free supply of feeding tubes and urinary catheterisation sets
for our needy bed-bound stroke patients. To add more value to our patients,
we are looking into collaborating with corporates to provide free sanitary
diapers and nutritional feed to lessen the financial burden on the needy. The
HNF is also exploring to help patients purchase medical requisites at discounted
rates instead of retail prices at pharmacies.
The HNF’s achievements would not have been possible without the efforts
and support of many in the community. I wish to extend my sincere gratitude
to our partners and friends who have in one way or another, contributed
generously to our cause. I would like to also commend the nurses and
operation staff of the HNF for their good work in FY 2006/07. The journey
ahead is exciting – one that is paved with challenges and opportunities for
the HNF to grow and evolve. Integrity and a sense of responsibility will
continue to guide what we do, as we remain firm in our commitment to serve
our patients and supporters for many more years to come.
Mrs Fang Ai Lian
President
Home Nursing Foundation
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