AS Watson announced the launch of its community support programme “Wanderer Watchers”, which aims to create a Dementia Care Network that is instrumental in detecting and locating missing dementia patients.
Dr. Malina Ngai, Group CEO of AS Watson said, “Rooted in Hong Kong for over 180 years, AS Watson has always been passionate about serving our community with a caring heart, especially for the senior citizens who have contributed tremendously to society. Our ‘Wanderer Watchers’ is a support network woven with love. With the collective strength of our 500 stores across Hong Kong, we hope to support every elderly individual and dementia patient in our community, bringing them love and care.”
Extensive Store Network to Support Dementia Patients
Currently, over 100,000 people in Hong Kong suffer from dementia, with one in ten individuals aged 70 or above affected by the condition. The number of patients is expected to continue rising.
Dedicated to supporting the elderly and people with dementia, AS Watson’s relentless commitment has brought “Wanderer Watchers” to fruition. As the first retailer in Hong Kong to partner with the Jockey Club Centre for Positive Ageing, “Dementia Angel App” has been installed on over 1,200 mobile devices at more than 500 Watsons, PARKnSHOP, FORTRESS, and Watson’s Wine stores located in 18 districts across Hong Kong. The programme has effectively expanded the network for detecting dementia patients who get lost in the city.
Kwun Tong, Kwai Tsing, Eastern District, Sha Tin and Wong Tai Sin are the five key districts with the highest numbers of missing elderly cases. In light of this, this year’s “AS Watson Project LOL Elderly Visit has partnered with the Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association and Hong Kong Christian Service, mobilising over 1,100 volunteers from its business units and 47 partners to visit 2,000 elderly in nine districts across Hong Kong. To put the volunteers’ love and care into action, special visits were arranged to three of these five key districts, where simple memory tests were conducted to screen the elderly for early signs of dementia.
Malina added, “Since the introduction of ‘Project LOL Elderly Visit’ in 2016, AS Watson has been dedicated to support every elderly individual in the community. This year, with the launch of ‘Wanderer Watchers’, we hope to leverage our extensive store network to support even more people in need within the community. To enhance the impact of ‘Wanderer Watchers’, we will provide dementia-related training to over 10,000 of our colleagues, equipping them with the knowledge to better understand dementia patients and to offer appropriate assistance to them. Additionally, we will devote our efforts to promote public awareness through a variety of educational activities, offering support to both the patients and their caregivers.”
