Remembering Together: How Heritage Objects Spark Connection in Dementia Care (MUSE SG, 26 May 2026)
16 June 2026
Using an ethnographic approach across four senior day care centres, our researchers found that familiar objects and images can act as shared points of reference, with reminiscing emerging not as an individual act of recall, but through collective participation.
Caring for a loved one with dementia often means finding new ways to connect with them. As part of a Dementia Engagement Programme, GERI collaborated with the National Heritage Board (NHB), NTUC Health, and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital to evaluate how heritage materials from Singapore's past can support communication and social interaction among persons living with dementia
Using an ethnographic approach across four senior day care centres, our researchers found that familiar objects and images can act as shared points of reference, with reminiscing emerging not as an individual act of recall, but through collective participation.
Former Research Fellow, Dr Yu Chou Chuen, reflects on these findings in an essay for NHB's MUSE magazine.
Read the full article here.