of money well spent

Yesterday, I went to a block of flats that are under the Social Services. These 1-room flats were catered for senior citizens, mostly living alone.

It had been 2 years since my last visit to these flats. Now that it has been upgraded, it looks better. Before upgrading, the corridors were dark. Lifts did not reach every floor. Something which is inconvenient for the elderly who had to climb a few flight of stairs to get to the lift.

To allow more light to enter the corridors, one unit near the lift landing was demolished. There were also some lights along the corridors that are switched on all day, something that is essential for the senior citizens staying there. And in case of a blackout, the emergency backup light will be triggered.


They even fixed handrails (which does not come cheap. $30 per meter) along the entire corridor. Quite thoughtful.


But the feature I found most essential was the Alert Alarm System. 2 trigger switches are installed in the living room and in the toilet. Once it is triggered, say in the event that the person in the flat needs emergency help, a light outside the flat will be lighted and the LED display at all the lift landings will show your flat number.


The alarm will be activated at the Seniors Activity Center, run by a group of volunteers from Fei Yue, located at the void deck. Then help will arrive to check on the particular flat in need.


I have taken a few snapshots of the pamphlet to describe how the Alert Alarm System works.


Gahmen has spent quite a lot on upgrading this flat. At least I find that this is money well spent. And most importantly, the occupants do not need to fork out a single cent.