SMRT TAXI PARTNERS TO ENJOY DOORSTEP CONVENIENCE TO WORKPLACE HEALTH PROGRAMMES
1 September 2014, Singapore - SMRT’s taxi partners at its SMRT Taxis Customer Service Centre are participating in a pilot preventive health screening and coaching programme that is offered through the partnership of SMRT, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) and Alexandra Health System (AHS).
This is part of HPB’s efforts to step up its workplace health promotion programmes, particularly for mature workers with no fixed workplaces and rotational shift hours, who may have limited access to healthier options and find it difficult to practise healthy lifestyles. This is also a key initiative under the Healthy Living Master Plan which aims to provide workers with easier access to healthy living options at their workplaces.
SMRT Taxis, which operates the third largest fleet of taxis in Singapore, aims to reach out to as many of its partners as possible to promote and encourage positive health practices, while they are at work and while they are at rest.
The key objectives of the programme are to get the partners to understand their health conditions and motivate them to take the right steps towards healthier living. Through counselling and encouragement by AHS nurses, the partners are advised to proactively manage their own health and adopt healthier lifestyles.
The one-year pilot programme, which started in June this year, provides taxi partners with free health screening conducted by AHS for chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes mellitus and obesity. After their initial health screening, the taxi partners will undergo a five-month health counselling and coaching programme tailored to their health conditions, with a second health screening conducted subsequently to evaluate improvements to their health. The programme is conducted at the SMRT Taxis Customer Service Centre for convenience and accessibility, where the taxi partners can participate in the programme whilst their taxis are being serviced.
Based on the results of the health screening and survey, nurses from AHS will help the partners set individualised health plans and goals. Besides placing the partners on suitable counselling tracks, the nurses will also review their health plans and goals monthly at the service centre to minimise disruptions to their driving schedule. The partners can also come in specifically for health counselling, at their convenience. Healthier food options such as fruits are distributed after each counselling session as a first step to motivating them to adopt healthier lifestyle habits. The taxi partners are also encouraged to attend the interactive health-themed workshops conducted on a weekly basis during lunch time at the Service Centre.
To encourage participation in the health programmes, the taxi partners will be given a chance to participate in a monthly lucky draw. In addition, special draws will be conducted to further motivate partners to continue to make lifestyle improvements.
The pilot targets 720 taxi partners from SMRT. More than 600 taxi partners have participated in the health screening and programmes since June.
SMRT President and Group CEO Desmond Kuek said, “We are pleased to partner HPB and AHS in their efforts to promote healthy living with our taxi partners. This is in line with our efforts to promote workforce health for our taxi partners and enhance customer experience for our passengers. Our partners put in many hours to provide a positive travel experience for our passengers, and we want to ensure that their health is well taken care of. This collaboration reinforces other SMRT initiatives such as the two-hirer scheme, which was launched last month. The programme encourages our taxi partners to pair up to share a taxi. This also promotes a better work-life balance.”
HPB CEO Zee Yoong Kang said, “Partnership with employers and customisation of health promotion programmes to meet the varied needs of different sectors are two key approaches that HPB will continue to take to expand our reach to more of our target groups of workers. For SMRT taxi partners, we want to ensure that they not only have access to health screening which will help them understand their health status, but also equip them with knowledge and skills in healthy living via practical workshops so that they can themselves adopt behavioural changes in their lifestyles that will contribute to better health.”
The Health Promotion Board (HPB)
The Health Promotion Board was established as a statutory board under the Ministry of Health, Singapore, in 2001 with the vision of building “A Nation of Healthy People”. HPB aims to empower the people of Singapore to attain optimal health, increase the quality and years of healthy life and prevent illness, disability and premature death. As the key partner of national health promotion and disease prevention programmes, HPB spearheads health education, promotion and prevention programmes as well as creates a health-supportive environment in Singapore. It develops and organises relevant health promotion and disease prevention programmes, reaching out to the healthy, the at-risk and the unhealthy at all stages of life – children, youths, adults and older Singapore residents. Its health promotion programmes include nutrition, mental health, physical activity, smoking control and communicable disease education. HPB also promotes healthy ageing, integrated health screening, and chronic disease education and management.
SMRT Corporation Ltd
SMRT Corporation Ltd (SMRT) is the leading multi-modal public transport operator in Singapore. SMRT serves millions of passengers daily by offering a safe, reliable and comprehensive transport network that consists of an extensive MRT and light rail system which connects seamlessly with its island-wide bus and taxi operations. SMRT also markets and leases the commercial and media spaces within its transport network, and offers engineering consultancy and project management as well as operations and maintenance services, locally and internationally.
Alexandra Health System
Alexandra Health System (Alexandra Health) offers multi-disciplinary and holistic care for the patient’s total well-being. Established on 1 April 2008, Alexandra Health is a new healthcare cluster in the north that currently manages the 590-bed Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. As part of an integrated healthcare system to serve the community in the region, Alexandra Health will build and oversee the Yishun Community Hospital, the new Admiralty Medical Centre in the Kampung Admiralty integrated development, and an integrated healthcare development @ Woodlands. The community hospital will be operational in end December 2015 whilst the medical centre and Woodlands integrated healthcare development will be ready in 2016 and progressively in 2022.