SINGAPORE - Mr William Koh was only 17 when he became a caregiver to his mother after she was diagnosed with young-onset dementia at just 59.

He realised something was wrong when his mother, Margaret, looked at him and said: “Where is William?”

“I was like, ‘Oh mum, that’s so funny,’” he said.

He quickly realised that she meant it. That came as a shock, leaving him feeling lost, but he quickly adapted to his new role, even as challenges grew.

“During my free time, I love to go on walks with her and play board games, like Jenga and Snakes and Ladders,” said Mr Koh.

The national serviceman, who will turn 20 in 2024, was addressing an audience on Jan 6 at the launch of an interactive exhibition at the National Museum of Singapore aimed at strengthening public support for people living with dementia.

The Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) launched the exhibition as part of 2024’s national #DementiaFriendlySG campaign.

The exhibition, Facing Dementia In Singapore, will run till March 31. President Tharman Shanmugaratnam was the guest of honour at the launch.

Every three seconds, someone in the world develops dementia.

In Singapore, the number of people living with dementia is on the rise. By 2030, more than 152,000 people in Singapore are projected to live with the condition.

“It is important for us to meet the needs of persons living with dementia and their caregivers, and enable them to continue to live and age well in the communities and at home,” said AIC chief executive Tan Kwang Cheak at the launch.

For Mr Koh, caregiving became more challenging as his mother’s dementia progressed, and she was diagnosed with diabetes in February 2023.

“Once, when I was eating with her at home, she fell. That really scared me like crazy,” he told The Straits Times.

“She’s also diabetic and has to inject herself. (Administering her insulin jab for the first time) – that was the scariest moment for me because I hate needles... So I closed my eyes and just inserted it.”

When the going got tough, he told himself that he loves her and wants to care of her.

Besides taking care of his mother’s physical needs, he also keeps her engaged.

“I set up lunch dates, and I try to find friends for her,” he said.

Together with four friends, he is working on a social project for young people looking after their loved ones with dementia. He invites others to share their caregiving woes on an Instagram account named Our Main Oasis.

The project falls under Youth Action Challenge, a programme under the National Youth Council that offers young people the chance to pursue their aspirations and shape the future they want.

Another project under the challenge is Project Forget-Me-Not, an initiative that aims to deepen awareness of dementia among the young. Its team lead, Mr Soh Ke Wei, 22, also spoke at the same session as Mr Koh at the launch.

Mrs Evon Estrop, who owns a company that provides relocation services for expatriates, was also at the launch with her husband, Mr Peter Estrop, 64, who has dementia, and their two granddaughters.

The Singaporean couple shared their stories in a video playing at the exhibition. New challenges surface each day, but they fight on.

“I still have other things to do. It’s not just being at home every day. With my brothers, we go cycling,” Mr Estrop told ST.

His granddaughters, Maesi Evera Leow, 11, and Maia Erika Leow, 13, said they try to do activities with him to keep him occupied when they visit him.

“Some may say dementia is the end. Technically, yes, it’s true. There’s no cure, but you can be positive about it. You can turn it around and say: ‘Hey, now we’re going on a journey of making memories,’” said Mrs Estrop, 62.

“This will translate to the grandchildren spending time, pictures being taken, videos... When Peter cannot remember, these videos and these memories that were made through the journey will help him... The brain may forget, but the heart will always remember.”

At the launch of Facing Dementia, AIC also unveiled new resources, including a conversation guide for young people to help them converse with their grandparents, and signed a memorandum of understanding with transport operator SMRT to strengthen collaborations in dementia-friendly initiatives.

For instance, SMRT will be including mental health awareness in its staff training, to better support commuters with such needs, said AIC’s Mr Tan.

SMRT senior assistant station manager Nur Shareeza Abdullah told ST the dementia training that she received in 2019 helped her understand and better aid those living with dementia.

“We did come across those with dementia, but we didn’t know if it was dementia... We would still assist them,” she said.

But now, it is easier for her to recognise the condition.

In 2023, Ms Shareeza was commended for helping to locate an elderly woman with dementia at the station where she was working.

“I just followed my instincts… and went into the train and combed through it,” she said.

She approached the elderly woman – who was wearing a lanyard and looking away from the platform – and told her she was there to assist her.

“I said, ‘You can hold on to my arm’, and she held my arm all the way. Actually, I felt that she was scared because she didn’t want to let go,” said Ms Shareeza, who then took her to a quiet room at the station to rest while she located the woman’s caregivers.